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jasmus1

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Everything posted by jasmus1

  1. I ended up buying a new remote key fob from sunset imports then took it to my dealer to have them program it. Since I only had to pay their hour rate I saved money. Good luck. I know how frustrating it is.
  2. Unfortunately I already took the old fluid I dumped to the recycling. My local Porsche dealer is having a free inspection event this weekend so I will have them take a look. I'm sure they'll find something. :) Thanks!
  3. Thanks for all of the responses. I really appreciate the help. The coolant I removed is more orange, not as dark as I initially thought. However, it's not the bright pink that the factory fresh stuff is and that's what worries me. To me, the color is consistent with adding a bit of contrasting color, green, to the pink. Just as DBJoe996 suggests. It looks clear and I do not see and drops of oil in it. I've attached a picture for further consideration.
  4. I did that. It looks more like tea than hot chocolate. Any idea where I should look to see what is causing it? Is it unsafe to drive? Thanks for the help!
  5. Okay, so I think I may have run into a bit of a snafu. I checked the coolant level the other day and it was fine, but the coolant itself looked rather dark, so I took some of it out to get a better look at it in a clear bottle. Next to virgin coolant, the stuff I took out of my coolant resovior is somewhat browner. It's not as bright pink, more of a muted pink color. Is this something I should be concerned about? The temp seems fine when I drive (doesn't go past the right edge of the 0 on the guage). I'm wondering if oil has somehow found its way into the coolant or if its just old stuff that didn't drain out when I drained to replace the water pump. Any advice is much appreciated!
  6. Thanks for all of the help. I was able to install a new water pump and refill with new coolant thanks to the help on this forum! I got the parts from Sunset Porsche--I still can't figure out why their prices are so great. The job was fairly easy except for these areas: -it's fairly difficult to remove one of the bolts on the right side of the pump. I used a combination of different lengths of 10mm sockets and my fingers and it eventually came out. -the pump is impossible to remove unless the one large coolant line beneath it is temporarily disconnected and the smaller line leading to the pump is dropped (there are 3, 10mm bolts holding its long length in place. Just follow the line down from the end and you will see them). I have been mainly a regular maintenance, oil-changing type DIY mechanic and since doing this I feel much more confident in my ability to tackle more challenging service tasks. Thanks renntech!
  7. Yes, it was the battery. The old one tested dead, so I purchased a new one and the car started like a charm. Thanks for your reply Loren. How long do I need to open the bleed valve? I let the car run for about 5 minutes with the valve open and the heater on high defrost. Turned off the engine, let it cool and topped off with more coolant/water mix. Should I drive around with the valve open for a bit or has what I have done enough?
  8. I have removed the old water pump and installed the new one. I added 1 gal of Porsche coolant followed by 1 gal of distilled water. I thought it would take more than that, but the filler is full (even after pulling up the purge valve on top of the coolant reservoir. The rear of the car is about 2" higher than the front as I saw recommended online. I went to start the car and everything went haywire. What I mean is the interior lights and dash lights blinked off and on repeatedly and didn't allow me to start. Does anyone know what this means and how I can solve the issue? Could it be that my battery is too low to start or is the car giving me a warning that something is wrong? Thanks!
  9. Thanks. I ordered a new pump and gasket from Sunset Imports. Also, I remembered there's an article in the Aug. 2012 #202 issue of Excellence magazine. Interesting read... I'll update when I get the part and start repairs.
  10. Thanks. Don't worry, I wasn't going to drive it! Do you know if there are any DIY posts regarding this replacement?
  11. I checked the coolant tank and hoses and they seem fine. The leak appears to be coming from around the area of the water pump. So, I removed the air cleaning assembly and serpentine belt to try to get a better look. I tried turning the water pump flywheel and it started to turn, then seemed to rub against the engine like it was out of center. Now it will not move at all. Should I replace the pump to fix the problem? Thanks!
  12. I have a MY 1999 996 C4 that I had to have towed because of a coolant leak. I saw smoke coming form the engine area so I pulled over, saw the leak and thought it best to get a tow. I initially thought it may be a hose leaking, but found that when I squeezed a hose, it looked like coolant was leaking from the lowermost flywheel (where the serpentine belt goes). Is this possible or could it be leaking from somewhere that I cannot see? About 1000 miles ago I had a new clutch, IMS and RMS bearings installed. Could any of these repairs be related to the coolant leak? I want to try to fix this myself before having the car towed for repairs if possible. Thanks in advance for your help!
  13. My warning lights vanished. Not sure why. Maybe the good karma I've been spreading around is helping. Well, maybe not, because now I have a new set of car problems (leaking coolant) that I will need to post to get info about.
  14. That's interesting. I recently had work done consisting of a new RMS, IMS and clutch. Lately, when I am cruising down the road both my PSM Off and ABS warning lights come on. The warnings stay until I turn the car off. They come on when I drive it again, but only after driving for a while and not always. Could there be a relationship between this and the work that was done? It seems curious to me that I would have the same problems as georgios and it looks like we had the same work done.
  15. Purrs like a kiten now!

  16. Got her back yesterday and she sure looks great. Drives incredible, too! Thank you logray, loran and others for your advice and help! If anyone in the area wants to know, it was International Motor Cars in Bridgewater, MA who did the repairs. They were the best service department I have ever worked with. Very up front with pricing, patient with all of my many MANY questions and open to walking me through what needed to be done. I cannot recommend them highly enough. JC
  17. Yep. Still much less than the dealer quote (because I had much more work done). They worked on it for over 2 weeks. Once they have your car with its guts spilled all over the shop, they have you. I'm trying to look at the brighter side and looking forward to getting it back today. Maybe I should sell it now before it gets too deep. Never mind...too late for that!
  18. Just got the final invoice for the work. Ouch. I'm concerned about the note on the pinion niose. I thought this was common to 1999 C4's. Should I worry about this? I pick the car up tomorrow. Can't wait! JC
  19. Just returned form the shop. I met with the mechanic and he walked me though everything. My car was on the lift with the transmission out and the cam adjusters removed. He showed me one cam solenoid/actuator unit that he had out and it had fairly deep grooves primarily on one side. He said that he planned on replacing the chains and spark plug tubes/rings as you suggested and showed me the parts pile he had assembled for my car. He showed me the IMS bearing he removed and it looked pretty bad. He said I was lucky that it was only a matter of time before it failed. He showed me the clutch plate and it was really worn, almost down to the rivets. I went through the parts list he had and he agreed about the things your pointed out, logray. He said it was the secretary who entered things wrong but that it would definitely be fixed when the work is done. He's also going to replace the AOS and timing chains. I suggested that I purchase my own parts and bring them, but they kind of have you over a barrel because if I did then the labor rate increases. C'est la vie. Or should I say das ist Leben. I can post pictures if anyone's interested. The work should be completed next week. I'm really looking forward to it. Now, I just need to sell a couple of my favorite watches to pay for this (Tag Heuer Monaco and Bell & Ross 03-92)!
  20. Thank you so much for your detailed list of things to watch out for, Logray. I am going to meet with the mechanic and I will definitely bring these up. I'll keep you posted.
  21. So, the saga continues... My mechanic called today and told me it's the variocam adjusters, not the solenoids that need replacement. This hikes the job up pretty significantly. He tells me he would also like to replace the clutch while doing this saying it will only cost the amount of the part, but labor would be the same regardless. So, now the price is $6637 ($4484 in parts/$1575 labor) to fin the variocam adjuster units (x2), new IMS, new RMS, new clutch, new spark plugs, new ignition coil, oil/filter change and various other new fluids. I've attached the estimate for anyone interested. The only thing keeping me positive is knowing that the Porsche dealer doesn't have my car because they would have really charged me a small fortune! I'm going to meet with the mechanic tomorrow before he starts working.
  22. Wow. No wonder they can charge so much! The actual procedures don't scare me too much. It's the tools needed to do the work that gives me pause. The other issue is where do you stop? I'm one of those "as long as I'm in there" people who may end up with a totally rebuilt engine when all is said and done. Here's a funny story. I told the Porsche dealer that I got a quote much less than theirs and pointed out that the book time listed for this work was about 8.5 hours, not the 39 hours they were estimating. They asked if I could send them my other estimate so they could try to match it. Well, within an hour they dropped their price from $6000 to $3700! A $2300 price drop just like that? Amazing. They are still $380 over the independent mechanic (and they won't budge from their "rock bottom price"), so I think I am going to go with the indy mechanic. He does about 12 RMS and IMS replacements a year and tells me he does the solenoid work much more frequently. My Porsche friends recommend him, too, which gives me some peace of mind. I still may decide to do it myself. I'll keep everyone posted.
  23. Now that I have a quote from a recommended mechanic that seems more in line, I guess my question now is if you all think I could do this work myself? I have done all of the maintenance work on the car myself, I am patient and I research things like a madman before carrying though. The only engine I have ever removed and replaced was on my John Deere riding mower! Yeah, I know... How hard can it be to remove the exhaust and lower the engine a bit to get to the solenoids? Also, how much trouble is it to remove the transmission on a C4 and replace the RMS and IMS bearings? I know LN Engineering recommends having a pro do their IMS install kits. Am I way out of my league here?
  24. Where can I find the Porsche labor information? That sounds interesting... I just got a quote from an independent shop in the area. I'm interested in hearing what you all think about this price. For some reason they broke the work up into two parts, but the total is much less than Porsche wants.
  25. Thanks for the info, Loren. It's too bad this dealer is doing this because they are so convenient to my home. I guess they charge these prices because people pay them. Bummer. I'll keep everyone posted on the other mechanic prices I find.
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