gcp

When I purchased my C4 Cab 2 glorious summers ago, I had the hardtop shipped from Chicago to Seattle, company packed it up and shipped it for $1400. I would look at buying one locally!

Dennis

$1400 for shipping? Not in my life time Jesse.

So, I guess I'll be picking the hard top up from San Diego my self, and enjoying every minute of my cross country trip through Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, California and back. 2 weeks of business mixed in with a bit of pleasure is exactly what the doctor has ordered for me next month :king:

Question is, will I like the hard top enough to cross country for it?

What is a "Flocking" panel? And how can you tell if it is flocked up? :)

Sounds to me like I have some truly investigative work to do...if I can ever get out of bed :cursing: So lets take it a step at the time, what lubs do you suggest for the rubber parts? I have some croil that ought to work wonders on the iron parts.

Thanks for the suggestions guys but what are TSBs?

Most of the rattles and creaks can be quieted by a good coat of silicon lubricant spray on the windshield header gasket and side window gaskets, some lithium grease in the rear latch barrels, and wrapping the hardtop rear locking pins with teflon tape. There are also 2 alignment tabs on the front corners of the hardtop that go into corresponding recesses on the windshield header above the sunvisor pivot arm mount. Applying a little grease to those tabs will also quiet the rattling noise. The little caps that go over the rear locking pin access holes can rattle as well. Some tape on the snap tabs will make them fit a little more snugly.

Because there are only 5 attachment points for the top, of which 3 have latches on them, the top will flex no matter what you do, so the more the top is lubricated at the major flex points, the quieter it will be. The major source of "rattle" noise is from the windshield header gasket getting dry and rubbing against the hardtop. Keeping that gasket lubricated will keep it quiet.

I can tell you from experience that if the gaskets are lubricated prior to installing the hardtop, the car with the hardtop is quite a bit quieter, and will get better gas milage. I'm not sure that the top contributes to any increased rigidity however.

Gary, do your suggestions also apply to a soft top? See my squeak complaints have to do with the soft top as I've not fitted a hard top yet.

Did you have a good thanksgiving? Mine's been kinda unpleasant. Between a swollen tooth from a root canal and a severe cold my 4 day plans have gone to heck :censored:

George:

A hardtop weighs about 75 pounds and is about 69" L X 55" W x 14" high. I would imagine that you will need to construct a crate of some sort to ship it with, and will need to use a freight company to do the transit. The 996 hardtops are all the same, but for 2003 and later, the latching mechanism was not included on the car. You should be fine, as your car should have all of the bits already installed on the car.

Gary, thanks a bunch for the info :clapping:

I've been trying to find someone in San Diego that could pack this thing and ship it to me but after leaving a few message no real solutions so far. Maybe the cos are closed today who knows.

I wish the top I'm interested in was in the SJ area....I'll keep trying tho....

... or anyone else that knows can you please help me estimate what the dimensions and weight of a hard top would be for shipping purposes?

Also, are all 996 hard tops the same? I have a MY 2K and am looking at a MY2002 or 2004.

Thank you,

After reading the above post I am now wondering if a hard top indeed makes a cab more solid, with less wind noise and with less rattles (very annoying to have so many rag top rattles on such an expensive car)? These are some of the reasons as to why I am contemplating on buying a hard top for mine so any help from you expert will help me. Bottom line, is the hard top worth the expense or is it just a mere nicety?

Also, will any 996 hard top fit my cab? Mine is a MY2000 but will a MY2002 or even MY2004 fit it?

Thanks,

Actually I think your photos are quite artistic with the reflections and colors! Well done :clapping:

Here's a sample of one opinion....for whatever it's worth. The air filter being clean "at all times" is very important in my book. Since I cleaned my stock filter and reset the CEL the problem disappeared.

Since then I've installed an EVO induction system and still no CEL light. I'd say make it a habit to keeping the filter clean and a lot of these problems of failing MAFs my disappear.

I have a suspicion that most dealers/techs tend to throw parts at this problem and if it doesn't work, oh well, lets keep trying/charging more in hope of a solution. It's beyond me that they do this with a clear conscious, being that they have access to costly high powered trouble shooting computers <_<

Thanks,

Good job, thanks a bunch for the tips guys!

It's that time of year folks so I'm looking for a 996 hardtop in Arena Red....or any other color for that matter. If it's reasonably priced I can have it re-painted.

Or, a pointer to where I can look for one could help me out.

Thanks,

kim, if you follow the DIY and reuse your old coolant pour it back+the new (you will need very little new coolant) slowly into the expansion tank, crank car and let idle until it warms and thermostat opens, then turn engine off, release pressure valve and pour more coolant to the right level if necessary...again slowly to avoid accumulation of air bubbles. Really there's not much to it at all :clapping:

Hope this helps,

I am pleased to report that the new expansion tank has been mounted in place and so far so good! All's working properly and it only took me 1.5 hours to complete this task. I'd say it's a relatively easy job if you follow the DIY instructions, a far cry from the 4 hours the mechanic wanted to charge me.

Thanks a bunch triathlete for pointing me to the right place and a big thanks to the member that generated the DIY on this task!!

Gents, after reading triathlete's DIY directions I noticed he mentioned something about "purging" and since I will be ready to replace my coolant expansion tank, if the parts arrive this evening, I want to know in detail how to purge the system upon install completion.

I assume purging means removal of air pockets from the system but what the most effective way to achieve this?

Thanks,

SpeedRacer350, thanks for the tip!!

And BTW you know the MAF can be cleaned right? And even though I've not done it I would try that first if I needed to.

Is there a DIY topic around here to perform such a task? What short throw shifter would you guys recommend? Don't much care for the "stock stick" :jump:

Thanks,

If P1128 or P1130 (oxygen sensing at rich threshold) is stored in the memory, this means that the fuel/air mixture is too lean.

Air leaks ahead of the oxygen sensors can lead to a fault in adaptation. Check exhaust system for leaks. Check for air leaks in intake air system.

If nothing obvious there then we need see your MAF readings.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Also make sure your air filter is in good shape. A dirty filter can cause all sort of bad readings.

I plan to do the expansion swap myself when I get home, hope I can do it with not too much pain.

izzy, I like your style :thumbup:

Save your money, unless you just want a sound upgrade.  There have been a lot of discussions on the upgrade topic, including intake. headers exhaust and chip.  Some say it is worth it some say no.  I did it on my last car and could not tell the difference.

You know, if I could do all the above changes for $1000 or so I might take the risk, but for $2500 and up for those changes....forget it. IMO.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

My case is somewhat different. A friend has the EVO air filter/air box and cleaning kit and will sell it to me for 1/2 price of what he paid 'cause he will be returning his lease back to the dealer (this is 1 of many aftermarket parts I will be buying from him). It's just the EVO air filter/air box, nothing else. So, all I need is guidance as to whether or not I should make this mod or keep the stock set-up.

Last thing I want is to hurt the engine with a sub-standard product. After all, if they don't deliver in their claims for increased HP/TQ why would one think they would deliver in proper air filtration?

Thanks,

Come on pros give me some input here! Have non of you used this air filter system?

What do you guys think of the EVO air induction kit? Is the set up better than K&N or the stock air box with OEM filter? Is the HP/torque increase perceptible?

Thanks,

Today I finally removed the air box cover and checked the air filter. Found that it was rather dirty so before I replace it could you please advise me as to whether I should stay with the Porsche filter or go to a K&N?

I like and have used K&Ns extensively on my motorcycles and both my Audi and my Volvo but I want to make sure it's ok to also use one on my 996.

Thanks,

Thank you very much TRIATHLETE.

"Spend the $150-$500 and get a laptop/palm based OBDII reader"

ar38070, can you please provide details on the above? I'd like to buy a decent reader but I'm new at this.

All help will appreciated,

gcp

Guys, I finally bought the Torx bits so I removed/inspected the MAF. It looked brand new, no dirty or film what so ever on it.

So, I took the car back to AutoZone for use of their OBDII, which reported P1128 again but this time it printed out that the failure is due to the Fuel Air Metering. I zeroed it again so lets see how long it lasts.

One more picture of my Nomad set-up. I have under it a non-slip rubber matt so the unit stays put, even while driving in a spirited manner.

What I like about the Nomad is that the push button controls are on either side of the unit so I can blindly work them while driving.