boxster_nut

yes, after going over everything that I touched when I cleaned the TB, it still was running bad. Took it to the local porsche indi guru. It turns out that the pipe from the airfilter to the MAF was broken. Very strange failure according to the mechanic. He fit it back together and now I am on a hunt for a replacement pipe. According to the mechanic, the pipe is sold in combo with the MAF so it is not cheap. I have to do some searching. I suspect the broken pipe was the original problem, and not the TB but the TB was due for a cleaning anyway so it wasn't wasted effort. Glad you got your problem fixed.

how to check the IAC valve? Thanks for the suggestion J

I recently became aware of the Variocam technology in my 1997 boxster. I have done some reading about it and there seems to have been a progression of improvements and associated assessments of cam wear. I am looking for information specific to my vehicle. How often should one read the cam deviations using the Durametric? What is the general life time of the Variocam pads and associated components? I don't have a Durametric, how can I assess if there is any degradation of the varicam components? (e.g. inspecting the oil filter, etc.) What are preventative measures that I can do to ensure long life? Where can I get a Durametric for a reasonable (cheap?) price? or a work-a-like? Thanks john

It sat all winter and the only thing on the ground was 1-2 drops of oil on the ground. Dont think that would qualify as a leak. dipstick OK. I doubt fuel filter...haven't touched it. Chasing a vacuum leak is a PITA...lol Thanks J

Hello: 1997 Boxster with 34K miles, manual transmission. It has developed a problem where is idles unevenly, cycling between 400-maybe 1100 RPM, and if left alone long enough, will stall out. No codes are read with my BlueDriver OBDC2 reader. I changed the oil about 600 miles ago, and cleaned the TB when this rough idling began, but no success in fixing the problem. I don't have access to any of the Porsche diagnostic tools. Any pointers to help diagnose the problem or things to try to fix it? Thanks J

vintage 1997 Boxster.... Shortly after I changed the oil, the revolutions at idle began to oscillate between 300 rpm to about 1200 rpm. Reading various forums identified the most common problem is a dirty throttle body, possibly the Oil Air Separator (OAS). Given the car has 34K miles and cleaning the TB has never been done, I figured it was time. The throttle body was indeed filthy with a very light oil-like coating, and same for the plenum to the cylinders. Having seen pictures of the effects of a bad oil separator, I figured mine was ok and what I observed was just buildup of 34K miles. After a through cleaning I reassembled the TB and remounted it (what a PITA that was because each side of the 'T' plenum would not line up with their respective intake manifold). What a struggle. Finally got it beat into submission and connected the vacuum lines and this is where I need some help. Standing behind the engine, on the extreme RHS there is a vacuum line with what looks like a check valve that goes into the RHS plenum. Got that inserted although is seems rather loose. Now, on the LHS at the rear, when I had removed the TB, I noticed a very small (less the 1/8" OD), thin black hose about 6" long that was adjacent to the hydraulic fluid reservoir - I don't recall if I pulled this out of the 'T' plenum or where is should be plugged. Can anyone offer any suggestions? Perhaps a drawing showing the vacuum lines attached the the TB plenum? The car seems to run OK after the cleaning and I do not notice any strange behavior. Insight much appreciated. John

Not directly into the screw. It takes a bit (a lot?) of patience to hunt around with the tip of the driver to find the screw head and home the screw driver. IIRC, a couple of the hole shafts on the back of the steering wheel were positioned in such a way that they overlapped the screw and it took some sideways forcing (quite a bit actually) to eventually find and home the screw driver into the screw. It is a little frustrating but keep forcing pad material out of the way with the tip of the screw driver and eventually you will find the screw. This is the video I used and yes, he makes it look waaaaay to easy, which it is not! Keep at it, you will eventually get it. J

I used the O-ring approach a few years ago and had no problem that you describe on my 1997. IIRC, there is a very good youtube how-to. Have you seen that? How does it compare to what you are encountering? ummmm after re-read.....CLOCKWISE!?!?!? that tightens them! Try COUNTERCLOCKWISE and see how that works... 😉 J

I changed oil + filter on my 97 boxster with all of 33K miles. Used Mobil 1 0w40 (as always) and a Mann filter. Ran fine for the first 5-6 miles then engine would surge from about 300 RPM to about 1200 RPM at idle...Thing is, it would do this randomly. Sometimes it would idle smooth at about 500 RPM, then other times it would get into surge mode. I can't determine what causes it to go into surge or out of surge. During the course of my 8 mile commute to work, roughly 50% of the time it would idle fine when at a stop sigh/light, the other 50% it goes into this surge/hunt mode. I checked the oil level and noticed it is slightly overfilled. I can't believe overfilling would cause this behavior. To change the oil, I backed it up onto ramps, the jacked up the front end and put the front corners on jack stands. The car was level. Any suggestions as to the problem? How to troubleshoot? coincidence or related to oil change? Very strange... Thanks J

"My passenger side door lock is acting up. The car has been giving the characteristic 'double-honk' when locking and unlocking for a while and the window doesn't stay down the tiny bit it's supposed to when the door is open. It was on the list to fix this month. Shortly before the engine started cutting out, the 'double-honk' started sounding while driving and often. Could the problem be alarm/lock related? " I am currently going through this process. I can tell you what I have learned so far. The ' lock followed by a double honk followed by the locks unlocking' is a symptom that a door locked sense switch is malfunctioning. Supposedly a durametric diagnosis would point to the door with a malfunction. There are 3 (or maybe 4 I don't recall the exact number) additional microswitches in the door lock assembly that sense if the handle if pulled up (tells the window to drop down (5mm?), a lock/unlock sense switch, and...I forget the others at the moment. The 'shotgun' approach to solving the problem is to buy the door lock assembly....$300 from pelican. Depending on your model year, there are 'Volkswagen equivalent' door lock mechanisms that sell for about $150ish. The trick is finding the part number cross from the Porsche number to the VW number. There is the used door latch mechanism approach that goes for $50-100 depending on the recycler. Finally there is the DIY disassembly the door latch and replace all the microswitches yourself approach. You can find information in all of these on this forum and other Porsche and even Volkswagen and Audi forums. Be prepared to spend a lot of time googling to get a clearer picture of things. I have a posting in this forum where a fellow outline the problem and included pictures - search under my user name. Personally, I am going to disassembly my door latch assembly in the next 1-2 weeks and determine the part number of the existing and suitable replacement switches. There is nothing special about them. They are supplied by Cherry Switch and Burgess (Johnson switch). I personally refuse to spend $600 on two door latches when I can rebuild them for no more than $50 worth of parts and 2-4 hrs of my time. BTW, there is a 'trick' to lock the car with the symptoms you describe. Close all the doors and manually lock the car and after you hear the locks energize, turn the key to the lock position 3 times very quickly. This is emergency procedure to lock the vehicle. It basically signals the control module to override/ignore the door open switch and keep the locks closed. You may be able to hit the lock on the key FOB 3 times to have the same effect-it did not work on my 97 boxster. Good luck J

Do you happen to know p/n? Thanks J

You are spot-on!!! After spending a good amount of time piecing together information from various sites (Porsche, VW (bug, jetta, passat), Audi) I got a good picture of the switches, what they signal, possible replacements, and alternatives. Unfortunately, the p/n 3B1-837-015-E for my door latch is NLA from most places - except pelican who's price is $310 (ouch!!). IF the VW places had them, the posted cost is $100-$115 depending on the merchant. There are all sorts of p/n variations with suffexs such as AC, C, D and E. I didn't find any source that compared these switches to identify the differences. My guess is that the micro-switches are common, the mechanical arrangement and the electrical pins on the connector are different. The cost of all the replacement switches won't be more than $25 total. (I may buy one of the parts that are 'close' with a suffex of AC, or C or D and cannibalize the switches out of it - these cost anywhere from $30-$60 and I am guessing that the switches inside are all the same, just the mechanics are different). In any case, an hour spent to rebuild/retrofit the switches is worth the $300 savings. The tip about turning the key in the door lock to the lock position and back 3 times in quick succession worked like a charm! Now I can at least drive the car and lock it. Thank you very, very much. As I found out, this switch problem is prevalent in 911's as well. It is ironic that such an expensive vehicle would use parts that are common among 3-4 lines of automobiles with at least 6 different vehicle versions. Buy a porsche, get volkswagon parts,...or by a volkswagon, get porsche parts....yea, I know, not quite the same.....well, the infamous 914 of the 1970 was basically all volkswagon..but I digress. J

Hello: 1997 Boxster, all stock, 32K miles. All doors closed, top up & locked, hood and trunk closed tight. Hit the key lock on the key FOB. All locks go to lock position, 2-3 second later, door locks pop open. Tried same configuration with manual key-turn to lock, all locks go to locked position, 2-3 seconds later door lock pop open. I checked the microswitches in windshield frame for convertible top - behaves normally. Door windows appear to work normally. I changed driver’s side window regulator about a year ago, reset limits and everything worked fine. What could possibly be the problem?? Guidance to start troubleshooting this is appreciated. Best regards, J

OK, thank you very much. Called a few dealerships and asked for just a diagnosis...One said they do diagnosis as part of the repair, the other place wanted $250. May be time to buy an analyizer. Unless someone knows of a helpful person in the pittsburgh area who would consider doing a favor..... Thanks J

1997 Boxster, 34K miles, garage kept. Electronic lock system will not stay locked. Scenario: Top is up, hood and trunk compartment well closed, windows up. All doors closed. Hit the lock button on FOB, hear the lock solenoids engage, doors lock, 2 seconds later doors unlock and horn beeps 2 times. (lights do not flash like they used to). When I insert key in the door and manually lock, same scenario: hear the lock solenoids engage, doors lock, 2 seconds later doors unlock and horn beeps 2 times. Background: last fall I replaced the window regulator and noticed the passenger window would go all the way down when the convertible top was opened. This spring, that behavior disappeared and window worked normally (I did reset the regulator travel after I replaced the regulator). Car worked OK in June, July and now started this weird behavior. Suggestions? Where to look? Comments welcomed! John

I installed a used (11K miles) passenger window regulator on my Boxster. The regulator was complete with motor. The p/n tag on the motor of the 'new' regulator (from a 2002 cabriolet) did not match my original one, but I was assured it would work. Mechanically it fits fine and the windows moves up/down without any issues. The problem is that with the top down, the window will not stay fully up or anywhere in between. It always wants to go down. With the roof up, the window will go up/down fine, and will stop anywhere in between. With the window fully up and the door is opened, the window originally would drop ~2" and stop, then when the door is closed, it will return to the fully closed posiiton. With the new regulator, now the window drops to the very bottom. It's as if what ever stops the window from dropping ~2" is 'missing'....(what does tell the window to behave like this?) I ran the 'recalibration' on the window but it has not helped. Any suggestions as to what may be the problem and how to resolve it? The drivers side window has continued to work the way it always has..... Thanks J

Hi Loren: Thanks for the tip. I tried the procedure both with the top up and down. No joy. Other thoughts? Best regards, John

I just replaced the window regulator and motor on passenger side door, on my 97 Boxster. R&R of the old regulator went without a hitch, and there is no more screeching & grinding. However, there is an interesting side effect. With the top up, and the windows up, I unlatch the top to put it down, and immediately (as before the repair) the windows drop down, however, the passenger window drops the whole way down instead of the 3-4” that it used to. The driver’s side window continues to work as before, e.g. drops 3”-4”. The only thing I can think of to cause this is the regulator motor for the new unit. Is there anyway to fix this so it behaves as it did prior to installing the new one? The replacement is used (with 11K miles on it) from a 2002 Cabriolet. Thanks for any help J

The drain table is invaluable in trouble shooting this problem. In addition, IMHO, getting the wiring diagrams would be very helpful. Assuming you have some good understanding of electrical circuit theory and devices, it would be helpful to study the wiring diagrams to understand which loads are being isolated when you pull fuses as there are multiple devices on each leg. Pulling fuses, generally, will narrow down the circuit but not the device that is causing the problem. Well, in some cases the fuse description will point to an obvious device which you could isolate but that may not solve the problem. After reading through the drain table, prepare to spend some time doing this. I was *really* surprised to see a wait time of over one hour to get to the smallest current draw. Have fun

After re-reading the post, the drain interval/pattern is *very* strange. With all due respect, is this the correct story?? every 45 mins the current draw shoots up to 5 Amps (from what? and for how long?)??? I know of nothing in a vehicle that would run at this frequency or multiples of that frequency or that has any similar behavior. There are DMMs that are capable of monitoring readings over a period of time. You may need to get one if this is truly the case. I'd start with the monitoring the battery current draw and if it is over the normal value, start pulling & replacing fuses.. If the battery current is less than the normal value, then you may need a meter that monitors the current over time. Good luck J

This approach is incorrect and you will most likely burn out the meter if you do this. First of all, it is parasitic CURRENT draws (not voltage), Secondly, you should set the meter on Amps (e.g. current) NOT OHMS. While the general idea is correct (after the corrections I made) you need to be aware of important details: As a general rule of thumb, the maximum current draw with everything in the car 'turned off' and having waited about 60 seconds for all the devices to go to sleep, is 50 ma (or 0.050 A). Opening a door which will cause interior lights to go on and 'awaken' a factory alarm box will result in a current draw of roughly 2-6 amps (depending on all the loads). Point is, your meter should be able to autorange OR, set it to the high range and then wait a minute till the current draw settles down. then switch to the low range to see the actual draw. The fuse-pull method has to be well organized but looking at the fuse layout and begin pulling fuses one at a time and note the change in current draw, One must wait as long as 30-45 seconds for the reading to settle.Likewise, one must wait 30-45 seconds after reinserting the fuse and moving to the next one. It is very helpful to record the current changes associated with each fuse. 5 amps is a hefty current draw for a vehicle 'at rest'. This means a 'large load' is being connected to the supply bus. Typically, this includes the ignition switch, and the starter motor. If the ignition switch is faulty, it could be energizing a number of loads. Relays that engage the starter motor circuit or the starter motor itself could be (partially) shorted, but this is unlikely. When in the 'off' condition, the radio should draw no more than about 20 ma to run the clock ckt. Generally, alarm monitoring is around 10ma. Sources of problems also include: trunk lights that are kept on due to faulty trunk lid switches, and shorted wiper motors (if their power feed bypasses the ignition switch). The numbers above are general 'ball park' numbers, not Porsche specific. The FSM would have the real numbers. I based my numbers on troubleshooting similar problems on my jeep and Saab. Good luck J

I have a 1997 boxster that needs a new passenger side window regulator. Checking various sources resulted in different Porsche p/n. The p/n at pelican parts is 996-542-07604. Another site listed 996-542-01605. There were also other p/n from other sites (part houses as well as flea-bay). So, I wonder if anyone has a list of cross references for all p/n that will work in my 1997? Thanks John

Have you tried any recyclers? (aka junk yards)? there are a few fairly well known ones, whos names escape me at the moment, who list entire vehicles that hey are parting out. When looking for door and front bumper parts for my 97, there were a number of lower mileage vehicles, e.g. 16K-40k.. basically garage grannies that met an untimely death...

Well I assumed it was something I had done when I cleaned out the throttle. I took the air intake off, all the clips and bolts etc, and I am sure everything went back on ok but I was just wondering if I should check something in that area first before driving 1 hour to the porsche garage. I notice you are not in the states...Many auto parts stores here in the states will do a scan if you ask them. Perhaps that is the same where you are located? They may not be able to read some Porsche specific codes but the scan tools should be able to read/interpret the majority of the codes....worth checking to avoid the drive Good luck John