babbott

I did not have a CEL but I used threw my OBDII scanner on and found 4 codes P1691 (faulty indicator light CEL, explains absence of CEL), P0102, P1551, and P1514. Since I was initially unaware of codes were present I ran the scan after having already disconnected the battery once and unplugging the MAF. I replaced the burnt out bulb which took care of P1691. Since the MAF was unplugged I assume this caused P0102, note I reconnected MAF and cleared the codes and this has not come back. I thought the other two codes may be significant as they are both related to the idle control air valve. I ended up clearing all the codes. I attempted to start car and it was still not starting properly. I started it with the accelerator pedal depressed and got it started. I then kept it idling for a few minutes and blipped throttle a few times. After this the car would idle without need to hold accelerator pedal. I took it for a short drive and everything seems fine. Scanned for codes again when I got home and all clear. Also it will now start normally without holding accelerator pedal. I have no idea what caused the problem to rectify itself and am worried it may come back at any moment. Anyone have any ideas? I read in another post something about getting P1551 and P1514 if the dme goes into "emergency" mode. Is this correct? what causes dme to go into "emergency" mode? is it possible to reset dme to go back to normal? Before resetting the codes I looked around for the IACV and found what I believe is the device under the air intake manifold on the drivers side. Small device with hose running to and from as well as an 2 conductor electrical connector. All the hoses, the connector, and the wiring harness appeared to be in good condition.

Hi all I've got a 97 2.5 that will not idle and I looking for a little advice. It started a week ago when my wife was coming home she made one stop and shut the car off. 5 minutes later it refused to start. Note, before this event the car had been running perfectly. Since the car was close I towed it home and put it in the garage. I've tried a few things to see if I could diagnose the problem. First I tried to start, the car turns over and will fire but immediately dies. I tried disconnecting the battery neg to reset the dme, no change. At first I was suspecting it may be a fuel pump issue as it seemed to me it was quitting as of lack of fuel. I checked the fuel pump fuse which was fine (have not checked the relay as I am not sure which one is for the fuel pump). Also when I turn on the ignition it seems the fuel pump runs continuously (faint electric noise behind dash on passenger side). I don't remeber if this is normal never paid attention to it before. I then discovered if I started the car with the accelerator pedal depreseed it would start and run. With the pedal slightly depressed I can get it to idle around 1200rpm continously, does this rule out a fuel pump problem? As soon as I released the accelerator pedal it dies. This made me think it was possibly the MAF sensor, so I opened up the engine compartment and disconnected the MAF. No change. While I was running the car with the covers off the engine comparment I thought I heard what may be a vacuum leak. I have started looking around the AOS which I replaced about 2 yrs ago. I can't see any obvious problems (last time the bellows on the bottom split wide open). I did pull the J-tube and there were a few drops of oil in each end at the connection. I cleaned it out put it back on and restarted car. Pulled of the J-tube and there again were a few drops of oil in each end. The car has not been smoking at start-up so I am not sure if this is normal for the AOS. If anyone has comments on what else to check would really appreciate it.

As you suspected the bolt in the middle of the square plate is the oil drain plug. An aluminum crush washer is used under the plug as a seal. If the crush washer has been reused several times it may no longer be sealing 100%. I tend to replace the crush washer everytime I change the oil.

Sorry, seems my original post was not very clear. The cables on my car are fine, both are still clipped firmly in place. If you look a the metal rod (linkage) in the center of the photo you will see there is a cylinder on one end. That cylinder should be fit onto the metal ball joint you can see in the photo. Because the rubber/plastic material in the cylindrical end of the linkage has failed the linkage will no longer stay in place

Had similar problem with my car on a couple occasions. After much attempted troubleshooting I could not fix the problem took it to a certified porsche service shop where they ended up replacing the regulator and window motor. Another time I had taken off the door panel to attempt to fix a door lock solenoid which was failing. It seems when I replaced the interior door panel I pinched a wire which caused problems with the window (would not go all the way up when door closed), again a trip to the dealer was necessary to find and fix the problem One thing that you may try is to disconnect the battery for a few minutes. This has helped me cure some window confusion in the past.

While my wife was driving home the other day the gear shift lever went slack when moving side to side and she was only able to select 3rd or 4th gear. Since she was close to home she limped the car home. After a quick inspection I was able to find the cause of the problem, a failed end on a linkage on the transmission (see photo). I called the local dealer today and was told the linkage and cable must be replaced together, cost of parts alone $750. Please tell me this is not the case. Can anyone confirm it is possible to replace just the linkage and if so what the part no. may be? Car is a 97 2.5

Thanks to the help of the forum I have been able to determine the oil separator in my 97 2.5 needs to be replaced. I first attempted to remove myself however the hints given in some of the other posts were not sufficient for me to determine how to remove. Since it sounded from some of the other posts as though this is not a major repair cost I contacted my dealership. They told me 6 hours labor plus parts total around $700. I also checked with a local service shop specializing in porsche repair and they quoted the same cost. Does this sound reasonable for this repair? Is it really within the abilities of a competent DIY without a service manual? Anybody have a link to some instructions? Any Help or Advice appreciated

I have read and reread all the posts I could find regarding the external oil separator and I still am not sure if mine is good or bad. I have a 97 boxster with a vertical oil separator (must have been replaced before I got the car in 2003). I had a squealing noise that I could not located and which eventually went away (could this have a been associated with a vacuum leak from a failing separator?). Now I am having excessive smoke at startup. I removed the hose from the separator to the intake and there is some oil in it, could not tell if it was more than should be expected. With all hoses connected to separator and with car running I removed the oil fill cap. Cap was under vacuum and idle becomes rough immediately after removing cap (running lean from vacuum leak). Should the oil fill cap be under vacuum or is this a sign of a bad oil separator? Lastly I removed the hose from the intake hose from the separator and plugged it. Car does not smoke at startup, seems to idle better, and oil fill cap not under vacuum. Any help is appreciated.

I pulled the door panel off this weekend and the noise is coming from a plastic component inside the door adjacent to the door handle (I assume this is the locking solenoid as it has wiring going to it). As my locks also still function if I leave this for now and the unit fails completely will I still be able to get into the vehicle if locked?

I have checked around the coolant resevoir and do not see anything wrong. Put the top in the service position and inspected everthing visible on the top of the motor (Intakes, all hoses, etc) and nothing appears out of place. I am wondering if a bad air pump (bearings) will squeal. There appears to be some form of electric pump mounted on a bracket on top of the motor on the passenger side (assuming this is the air pump) above the engine compartment fan. Can I unplug this to see if the noise goes away? I did check the power steering fluid level and it is low, I will top up tomorrow once I have a chance to get some fluid from the dealer. The plugs were replaced by a mechanic when they did the 60k service.

The sound appears to be coming from within the drivers side door

I reviewed the relay charts found elsewhere in the forum and do not see any relays in the front or back relay panels that appear to be related to the door locks. Can anyone let me know if there is a relay controlling door locks and if so where I might find it.

Ah it has been a bad week for the boxster. First the buzzing door locks now I have a squealing sound coming from the engine compartment. When the car is started from cold there is no noise. After approx 15 min of driving (car up to normal operating temp 180-190) the squealing starts barely noticeable at first. It seems to start when at constant load or decreasing throttle and application of throttle will cause noise to stop. If I continue driving the squeal intensity increases until it is always there regardless of throttle position (it still changes in pitch and intensity with engine load/rpm just doesn't stop). The squeal is present when moving and when stopped at idle so I believe this rules out wheel bearings/brakes. Also, squeal is not affected by clutch position, engaged/disengaged. With car idling and noise present I removed fuses for both radiator fans and engine compartment fan with no effect. I removed the inspection plate between the seats and the noise definately sounds like it is coming from the vicinity of the serpentine belt. I bought a new belt as the old one was due for replacement however before replacing the belt I warmed the car up till it started to make the squeal noise. I shut down the car and quickly removed the old serpentine belt and started the car without a belt on and let it run for a minute and it was still making the noise. I proceeded to mount the new belt with no effect. Since I have the noise with no belt I believe this rules out the idler pulleys, tensioner, alt, A/C compressor, water pump, power steering pump and slipping belt. The car still runs well with no noticeable loss of power even when noise is present. Car idle is good, oil and coolant levels normal, and no fault lights are on. Car is a 97 2.5 with 75k miles. I just complete the oil change two weeks ago and the old oil was clean. I am thinking my next step will be to drop the oil filter to check for metal before any further driving. Other than that I am out of ideas on what to check. Looking for suggestions Thanks, Brian

Sounds like your diagnosis is correct, failed serpentine belt. I would not attempt to drive the car in this condition as the serpentine belt also runs the water pump. It is not a difficult task to replace the belt yourself, for instructions see http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?s...t=0entry10610

A problem recently popped up with my 97 boxster. When the doors are locked or unlocked there is a buzzing noise coming from cabin interior while the the locks engage or disengage (sounds like possibly a relay chattering). The buzzing lasts only a few seconds and occurs regardless of whether I use the toggle switch on the dash, the key in the drivers side door lock, or the remote to lock/unlock doors. While the locks still function I would like to identify the source of the noise and attempt to fix. If anyone has seen this or has any ideas as to the cause would appreciate any help you can offer. Thanks Brian