msaif

Thank-you everyone. I had a look and it was the serpentine belt which I'll fix at my local porsche dealership after my vacation. I keep on telling myself that once a new part is fitted I'll be good to go for another 12 years (car's age now) but it's happening more and more these days!!!! Thanks again for your guidance.

Hello all, I was driving my 02 Carrera Manual at about 50km/hour when I heard a loud bang noise followed by a warning message (cannot remember it but I think it stated 'Warning Charging System) and then loss of Power Steering. Luckily I was close to my home. I checked the car and there is fluid under the car at the back. Two weeks ago my car broke down due to a faulty Fuel Pump then I couldn't start the engine as it was hot. The dealership fitted a new Fuel Pump and fixed the cable from the battery to the alternator. This may be related.

It worked, thank-you ever so much Loren.

Hi Loren, I have a Porsche CDR 220 Single CD Player (Becker) in a 996. Serial No 25015047. 4462 came up as well. I would be most grateful if you could provide the radio code. Thank-you, Momtaz

Hi everyone, Just had an accident and damaged the front end of my Left Hand Drive Middle East spec 2002 3.6 Carrera. My local official Porsche Centre has estimated the Parts to be KD2,600 (approx $8k) and KD950 (approx $3k) for labour. The worrying part is the cost for the Headlights which are KD1,500 ($4.5k approx) for the pair. My existing headlights are Litronic with Headlamp Washers (they have a chrome ring in them, and they take a few seconds to reach full lumination). Can I purchase the standard Halogen Headlights and slot them straight in as the cost seems to be a 3rd of the price? Will I need to modify any other parts? Thanks

I contacted a specialist in the UK who does work for Porsche GB. My while dialled factory fitted gauge faces are not illuminating brightly. After reviewing multiple photo's of my instrument cluster, he said "Porsche used high quality stickers applied over the standard black and white gauge face,hence,the light has to pass through the transparent white numbers and markings of the original gauge face and then the transparent black of the sticker,reducing the illumination by 50%. We have rectified this problem for Porsche Cars G.B. and private customers by fitting a set of our screen printed gauge faces in the appropiate colour,our gauge faces illuminate as original factory faces." As for the LED bulbs, he said "facelifted 996 and later Porsche LED's in gauges are not replaceable,they are soldered directley onto the circuitboard." There is an unteresting article in either the May or June 2012 edition of 911 & Porsche World concerning this subject. The company is called REAP Automotive Design. I will be removing the instrument cluster to take with me to the Uk to complete the work and I'll be upgrading the central rev-counter to guards red and the rest will remain white. Hope this helps

I had the same issue with 'comfort' spec seats in my 2002 3.6 carrera, have you not considered simply re-upholstering your existing seats? Porsche do still sell replacement leather coverings but it worked out out at $2.4k per seat so aftermarket was the most economically way forward.

Thanks for sharing this quite ingenious work around. It reminds me of days long gone installing ICE in my BMW E30, Alpine graphic equaliser in the dash etc..

Hi Bilba, I also live in Kuwait and use my 996 2003 Carrera as daily transport. Not sure which grade is used but the official Porsche Heritage dealer in Shuwaikh services the car and it never over heats and runs very smooth even during August at 55c. The crew are very good, ask for Imtiaz at service or the head Pascal and they'll advise you.

For the exhaust, I would look into the Porsche Switchable Exhaust with the button to revert to normal levels when required. The sound does not drone when in Sports mode. I managed to find one unsold unit in the stock room at my local OPC and negotiated a good price.

Gongrats on the car. I have the same model with the same wheels, and also wanted the same look and feel you are after. I recommend the ROW Sports Suspension pack (996 Porsche Tequipment) which lowers the car by 10mm. This coupled with 5mm spacers front/rear (same Porsche catalogue) will give you the look with a firmer but compliant feel. I'm guessing your shocks are worn by the age of the car and the pack above includes shocks, springs and stiffer anti roll bars. I'll try to dig out some before and after photos if you like.

Thank-you for your advice. The Porsche centre sent out their head mechanic with the fault reader which did not show any faults. The mechanic diagnosed a faulty fuel relay and the car was towed to the Porsche centre. I collected the car a few hours later and the following was on the invoice: Fuel Level Sender Removed and Checked, Relay Fuel Pump Replaced - came to $120 all in, including the call out and tow charge Thanks again to all

Hello everyone, Just finished a long day in the office and went to start my 2003 Carrera but it makes the noise as if it is about to fire up but it doesn't. It's got a new battery (1 week old), new alternator (4 months old) and is serviced regularly. When you turn the key in the ignition it makes the noise but doesn't start. It happened the first time 3 days ago but started up after 5 minutes. I left the car in the mult-story car park and would like to know before paying money on tow trucks etc.. Thanks, and I hope someone can point me in the right direction, Momtaz

Really Nice car, had the same model before. As for the alloys, you are aware the size is not for your model (check your car as it should have xx295 at the rears) so I doubt they would have been used for Winter on the C4S. I suspect they maybe for the 1st generation 996 (3.4L) as they had narrower tyres and were from a previous Porsche the owner had. Due to the unknown provenance and non-Porsche approved tyres/damaged, and for the requirement to retain the correct wheel/tyre spec for any Porsche 911, it may be best they are not sold on. I get my OEM alloys/N spec tyres balanced every 6 months, tyre pressure each month, full alignment annually and that is with OEM. Some unknowledgable/newcomer to the 911 Porsche driver may buy them, fit them and experience no end of problems. Please accept I am not being judgemental, as you'll appreciate as a member of this 'Porsche Fanatic' forum

The 2004 model you mentioned is an anniversary edition, which means it is the same colour as the Carrera GT Supercar and is not a colour match for your car. A paint shop can easily address this issue.

Hi there, Now sure if the image came through as I am struggling to upload a photo. My car has had 5mm spacers fitted with painted 18" Alloys (polished rim) and lowered sports suspension (M030 ROW 10mm lower pack). All Porsche parts, this will hopefully give you an idea of the look of a car with the mods you are looking to do. Hope this helps

Hi there, welcome aboard the Porsche owner train. My advice is to fit some stock wheels with Porsche approved N-rated tyres. If you want the looks then fit the M030 ROW of world suspension pack (costs about £600 in the UK), a set of 18" Porsche Wheels (the largest available for the 996, 285 at the back and 225 at the front - they sell on ebay as well) and Porsche approved N-rated tyres (not all tyre manufacturers sell these, but the main ones do). You could also fit 5mm spacers front and back to fill out the wheel arches. Finally, get a good wheel/tyre place to balance the tyres correctly and do a full geometry alignment. Goto the www.porsche.co.uk and search for the Tequipment Catalogue for the 996 and this will all be in there with photo's. All Porsche Main dealers can order in the parts. I took me 2 years and about £6,000 to get my Carrera 2003 model to how I wanted it (pure OEM) so enjoy the ride!! It's addictive.

First and foremost, congrats on your 996. There were not any 996's, both 3.4 or the 2002 onwards 3.6, offered with 19" alloys so they must be after market. As for the Sports Seats, they can be modified for a more 'snug fit' by changing the inner sponges. This was option code 'XSU' when the car was new, it was called 'Lower Seat Option' and it consists of a 10mm thinner sponge for the base of the seat. I had the same problem when I fitted Sports Seats purchased on ebay in my 2002 carrera, I felt like I was sitting on top of them and the back was a bit tight so bought the actual 'XSU-Lower Seat Height' sponge from my local official porsche garage and had it fitted and now I sit lower and feel less restricted. Worth looking into. The parts person took a while to find it in their system but he did eventually and I paid about £70 for the XSU sponge. I posted an in-depth article on this when i had it done about 8 months ago so do a search. Good luck with the car

Hi everyone, thanks again for your feedback and guidance. I had the wheel speed sensors removed and cleaned, and the official Porsche garage plugged in the testing device (not sure which one) and took the car for a test drive whilst they checked each corner. The ABS still kicks in. Perhaps it is because my last car was a 996 C4S and it had the turbo set-up, plus it was in the UK so no sand and bigger discs. Maybe it is normal for sandy climates?

Hi everyone and thanks. The tyres are all official Porsche rated tyres and match front to rear so that's not the cause. The car's going in for an oil change soon at the local official porsche garage so I'll ask them to change the pressure and wheel speed sensors all round. I'm hopeful this will cure the fault, if not then at least I'll have peace of mind that the car has had new parts fitted as I plan on keeping the car into old age. Thanks again everyone, and I'll post the results in a month or so.

Hi everyone, I have a 100,000 km Carrera 2002 model. It's had new discs and pads fitted in the last 9 months (less than 8,000 km ago), new Pirelli Tyres all round about a year ago (less than 10,000 km ago). The service is bang up to date, including the replacement of the brake fluid about 8,000 km ago. Problem is that whenever I brake the ABS activates, unless I brake so softly that is. It's not in an emergency braking scenario where you expect the ABS to activate. My wife's stock saloon has better brakes. It's heart beating stuff as I feel the car will not stop in enough time. The feeling is a pulsating judder in the brake paddle. The dealership read the fault codes and confirmed there were no ABS errors. I've had previous Porsches and am familiar with the progressive feel, non over served brakes of the 996. This is different and I do not have confidence in an otherwise perfect car. The climate here in Kuwait is dusty and hot, very hot. But even in Winter when there's so sandstorms the brakes are not right. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Hi all, I had a new air con system (vague wording but it cost $2,000 so I assumed all parts were renewed) installed in my 2003 996 Carrera at the main OPC. It ran well afterwards. I then had a 100,000km main service soon afterwards (about 500km later) and it continued to run well. I then had a battery warning light come on and then the car started booming, the battery indicator in the dash going up and down by about 1.5 volts, the indicators flashing fast as it a bulb was blown, and the rev counter idle started to hunt by about 400rpm up and down. The car would make a louder sound with the air con on and I can feel the vibration in the peddle and steering wheel with the air con on, also I can hear a tapping sound from the centre of the dashboard. I can only describe it like a booming throbbing headache. When the air con is off it still idles a bit rough. I had a new alternator fitted (I already fitted a new battery about 9 months ago) but the car still makes a louder sound with the air con on and I can still feel the vibration in the peddle and steering wheel with the air con on, also I can hear a tapping sound from the centre of the dashboard. When you switch the air con off all is well and the tapping noise slowly subsides over about 10 seconds or so until it is silent again. The idle without aircon still feel a bit rough, not as smooth as I remember it before all the work was done. All points to the air con, but the temperature in Kuwait is 40c at the moment so I need it on (it'll rise to 55c in a few months(!), Please help. The dealer will fix it I just need to tell them what to do. Thanks, Taz

Thanks, I spoke to the UK Porsche dealer who said they could not carry out the work. They said that facelifted 996's (3.6L from 2002 onwards) use LED's which are no longer in production. They said the whole instrument cluster could be replaced at a cost of £1,200!!!!!! I

Hi all, I've got a 2002 3.6L Carrera with white/silver dials factory installed and the dashboard does not light up correctly at night. The analogue dials are not bright and look 'broken up with lines through them' at night even with the dimming button turned up all the way. My local Porsche dealer in Kuwait told me that they will not touch the instrument panel lights as they had a previous case whereby changing a dashboard bulb resulted in a complete new instrument hood having to be installed at their expense as they could not put the original back together. They are an excellent garage and have been good in all my other dealings with them so I do not have any reason to doubt them. I am traveling to the UK soon and was thinking of getting the Kuwait Porsche Dealer to remove the instrument hood and taking it with me so the Porsche Dealer in Swindon (UK) next to my UK place can to the necessary. Questions are: 1) How easy/difficult is it to remove the instrument hood, time wise? 2) Should I change all the bulbs at the bulbs at the same time? 3) Can the UK Porsche Dealer test it once they have done the work without it actually being fitted to a car? 4) How long will it take the UK Porsche Dealer to do as I'm only in the UK for a week? 5) Any idea of the approximate cost for the UK Porsche Dealer? Thanks in advance for your input, I've searched the form and could not find the answer. I'm nearing the end of a year long (and about £6,000 lighter) restoration project and would be so happy if this niggling issue could finally be fixed. Thanks, MS

Hi there, my advice to you is to stick with the stock unit and not to modify the stereo. I had a 996 C4S and installed custom door builds, JL Audio Amp, Sub, Alpine touch screen etc... The second 996 I had I left it stock and am enjoying the car more, and the more I drive it the less I listen to the radio. Spend your cash on parts from the Tequipment catalogue, parts such as Switchable PSE, Sports suspension (ROW) etc,, sports seats from ebay, the list is endless but these will add not detract from the ownership experience. I get what you are trying to do, I used to compete in Car Audio SQL Sounds Offs in my previous cars (Prelude, BMW;s) , but I don't think the 996 is the car for all this. Enjoy it for what it is ... a sports car.