wilhelmy-it

Correct. But since "top while driving" already works on his Model Year 2004, he obviously doesn't need any cheap speed wire cutting hacks, instead he needs the more sophisticated things like enabling the rear windows with top open, raise windows with key in the doorlock or open/close roof by remote. Those are unfortunately not as easy and therefore require some intelligent chip or module to work. I'm not trying to sell the module to anyone who doesn't need it. Cheers Stefan

Hello Jas, No problem. I know sometimes it is really frustrating with the car manufacturers. So many things they just don't offer (like an Ipod interface for 997 for example) so aftermarket companies have to figure it out. I didn't want to make it sound like you are being cheap, but it is true, we spent a lot of time figuring the 996 and 997 out as much as possible. The remote is a country specific issue. In the US the remote system runs on 315 MHz, whereas the rest of the world uses 433 MHz. Needless to say that the remotes are not compatible and Porsche for whatever crazy reason does not offer a 3 button version for the US market (they told us it is for "liability" reasons). Well.. you guessed right. As of right now apart from using a remotetop 996 chip there is no other way we know of to operate the roof remotely. This was originally the reason why we set out to develop this chip. Being from Germany myself I was spoiled and used to the 3 button remote. Faced with the blunt response from Porsche North America: "No, we don't offer that", combined with the windows and one touch issue and no solutions available on the market, we just had to do it ourselves. Yes, if I was you, I would just get the smarttop/remotetop and be happy with the added features. Compared to the price of your car itself, the modules' prices should be in the range of "pocket change" :-) Cheers Stefan Wilhelmy

Hello Jas, sorry to disappoint but we did some really founded and thorough research on that one back in the day. There is no way for Porsche to enable the rear windows with the top down. That option simply does not exist. For the key option they charge an arm and a leg to completely downgrade your roof controller for you to be able to raise the windows with the key in the door lock (but you lose the ability to operate the top while driving). So unfortunately the ONLY available way to enable the rear windows with top down, at the same time enable raising the windows with the key and on top of that give you one-touch operation is... you guessed right... a smarttop 996 module. THIS is why we designed it the way we did, because enabling all these features with extra HARDWARE was the only way to make it work. Best Stefan Wilhelmy mods4cars Product Development

This is one of the reasons why the remotetop offers "one-touch" operation :) Who would want to feel like a plant pot holding down the button and aiming at the car for 20 sec? Especially in densely populated areas no chance to complete the cycle without a dropout. The interior motion sensors are definitely *NOT* armed in the original condition with the top down (open). They only arm with the top up. Cheers Stefan Wilhelmy

Uh oh, isn't that the "trick" with cutting the wire of the speed signal? It may work but I would really not recommend that, its dangerous and irreversible, you would always see that someone has tampered with the wires and it takes away any speed control. And pulling the handbrake in the first notch doesn't work with every car, for some the light may come one, for some not, and pulling it to the second notch would engage the brake and wear it out. Furthermore you have to press and hold the button for roof operation. No one should sacrifice safety and comfort by using a wire cut hack instead of a professional solution which on top of everything is easy plug and play and leaves no traces when removed :) Btw.: Happy holidays to everyone on the board :jump:

Ok, thanks. That is exactly what I expected, so Porsche really seems to use the same control units here in the US and over in Germany. And they changed it somewhere around model year 2002 so the windows won't go up anymore. With the smartTOP 996 you could open and close your roof up to 15 mph at the touch of a button and even use the rear windows then the roof is fully open :) Thanks for the infos Stefan Wilhelmy

OK, this information helps. Now I'd like to know what model year your 996 is. Can you operate the roof while driving or do you have to stop and pull the handbrake? Thanks Stefan

Hello Bo, Yes you heard right, in Europe all newer 996 cabrios have a key remote which allows you to open the trunk, open/close the doors AND open/close the roof. The oder ones allow you to open/close the doors and the roof. Unfortunately Porsche does not offer this convenient feature on any cars exported to the American continent - the reasons everyone can think of himself :) If people would finally stop sueing each other and car companies for *@#%^$ they produced themselves! Right now we are planning to integrate a remote control feature into our smartTOP 996 units or offer it as an extra module, so it can be easily added in the usual "plug and play" manner known from our smartTOP products. Regards Stefan Wilhelmy Wilhelmy-IT Inc.

Hi Jeff, do you (or anyone reading this) know, what happens when you close the roof with the key in the lock (which obviously is a security measure as you stand as close to your car as possible to watch the scene) and hold the key in that position after the roof is fully closed? Do all windows go up themselves or do you have to get in the car, enable igition and push all window buttons to get the windows closed? Since 2002 the remote control doesn't close the windows anymore on the german models, so I would be curious to know if that is the case when closing the roof with the key in the lock. Thanks Stefan

Hi all! Does anyone here know if there is a way to get a key remote for the 911 or the Boxster in the United States? I have been told that Porsche doesn't offer remote powerlock in the US at all, why is that, or is it true at all? I just wonder why they should produce different keys without the remote transmitter unit just for the US market. Thanks Stefan

Please be aware that IF the original roof control gets updated by flashing the new software, the roof will operate in pure manual mode only (have to keep button pressed) and you will LOSE the closing-the-windows function of your remote control!!! As far as we know, they take a lot of money for the upgrade and it only helps partially. It is much better to stick with the "old" software and upgrade with a smartTOP 996a, that will give you full one-touch operation while driving, keeps your windows untouched but gives you even more comfort by enabling the rear windows when the roof is open. Furthermore, some of the older original roof units seem to be non-upgradeable, there is some luck involved in having one of the upgradeable ones. Exchanging the control unit will cost about $500, which is almost double the price then just adding a smartTOP and getting the full comfort solution. And you can do it yourself on a lazy sunday afternoon B)

I hope we can help a little on this topic. Porsche recently changed the main roof control module on the 996 Cabs. It used to be like on Boxsters, that you had to stop and pull the handbrake but since they changed the mechanics a little on the roof of the newer 996's they officially "allow" you to operate while driving at slow speeds. They started doing that around MY 2003 but there are older models around with that feature: They can flash reprogram the roof control module with a new firmware! We have had reports from some drivers of older models that they had their module reprogrammed to be able to open the roof. The big problem here is, that the new software (therefore on ALL new models and on the reprogrammed ones) has a major "bug" which is supposed to be a feature: The windows won't close anymore with the original key remote !!! We found that Porsche for some obvious sueing crazyness in the US has disabled this feature so you have to decide between two catches. Either not being able to operate the roof while in motion or (having your roof unit reprogrammed by porsche) not have the windows close anymore with the remote ! This is where we thought we can help out with the smartTOP 996. It either gives you one-touch roof operation while driving with no need to stop (old firmware in the control unit) or gives you one-touch operation and additionally re-enables the window close feature (new firmware in the control unit). We checked all safety features and found that Porsche even has sensor windows which immediately go down again if they are obstructed. As a little extra "kick" it enables the two rear windows when the roof is fully open, so you can drive with roof open but all 4 windows closed :-)

The smartTOP module directly connects to the main control device and sits "between all necessary signals". So when you drive slower than the maximum allowed roof-operation speed it will work fine. No need to put the gear in park or pull the handbrake. The installation in reversible and only takes about 5-10 min for an unexperienced person using our installation manual. It takes 2-5 min if you ever had the carpet lifted and know how to remove the 4 plastic plugs. The rest is just pulling a connector and inserting the smartTOP. If you're unsure just give it a try. We give a 14 day satisfaction guarantee and never got a single module back :-)

No emergency brake necessary. The product continuously monitors your speed and only lets you operate the roof at safe speeds.

Hi all, just a quick announcement, all smartTOP modules are now available in the Unites States via the new subsidiary Wilhelmy-IT Inc. in Kansas. Direct order possible. We offer smartTOP modules now for all Boxster AND 911 (996) models. All smartTOP modules are Plug-n-Play with NO soldering, cutting wires or "relay hack". All modules implement our safe speed control and offer One-Touch operation while driving. For the new (2003+) models smartTOP offers functions like closing the windows with the key remote and enabling the rear windows when the roof is open. All information (in english) can be found on our website "www.smarttop.de"