siddharth

Hey Orient,

1) I have a blow up of that area on my 1999 996. Can you tell me if its at point A or B ?

2) I also wanted to know which hydraulic jack you bought ? I bought one but it didn't lift the car too high to accomodate the jack stands below. I'm thinking the lift height wasn't enough.

Thanks !

Sid

WKD 996 120 99 MY99 Carrera Owners Manual -- MSRP $20.05 (as of May 2006)

Is that for a PDF on a CD or for a paper copy ? I'm looking for a PDF too ... the paper copy in the car and the PDF on the laptop "just in case"....

Anybody know if its possible to move the digital speedometer to the main computer display, under the tach? It seems a more natural place for it than off to the side.

Thanks!

2002 996 C2 Targa

I agree that it is not the best place. Porsche moved it back under the the tach in the 997.

The design engineer was probably got too drunk the day he designed that. Either that or he never drove a car. Who the hell keeps the computer display below the tach instead of the more relevant "speed" !?

To answer you question, what others was is also the same that I've heard otherwise. I'm not sure if an older (1999-2001) instrument cluster is your answer. You could find a cheap on off eBay or something but check with the dealer if the wiring is compatible.

I recently put an new muffler and tips on my 99 C2 and would be happy to unload the stock. feel free to e-mail mcvgums@cs.com, I am located in ATL

Only 33K miles on the old Mufflers

I'm in San Diego and have stock 99 mufflers lying around.

You can have them for free.

My driver side is rattling inside, but the passenger side is fine (opposite to yours!) !! If you're local you can pick it up for completely free. If not I can ship it to you - but you'd need to pay just the shipping charges.

Do you know the part number for what you want ? Just to ensure that the 2000 and 1999 have identical part numbers (I think they are- just confirming). That way I can send you just the one you need and its still as balanced system...

Sid

There is loctite on the threads.

Removed a few air bags over the years. Finally bought the long T30 bit for my ratchet wrench that is on the far right.

****, I had this issue a few months back on my 996 (with a 4 spoke wheel). I hadn't read any post here so just disconnected the battery and tried getting the T30 screws off the wheel - I KNEW something to do with the horn contacts was behind that airbag. I just couldn't get the **** screws off !! I tried realy hard and I broke (cross sectional shear!) my good quality T30 screwdriver - without using a rachet for leverage !! I was worried I might rip off something or break something on the wheel. At that point (and with no other resource to confirm that direction I was heading), I backed off and had the dealer take care of it for me. He did that and also took care of $230 for me. :(

I wish I had read this back then ....

Interim Workaround

Anyway, I had worked out my problem for some time this way ... take a business card, cut into half and keep folding till it becomes a 1/2" long thick stub. Wind it once with scotch tape (to prevent unfolding..) and use a black permanent marker to make the whole thing black. Now wedge it in the top edge between the horn piece and the rest of the steering wheel - instant spacer ! This way you'll have the horn for emergencies - and it doesn't look very weird (the black blends with the steering wheel). Plus it buys you a few days to work on it when you get the time. Simple grandmother-style fix - but just mentioning this to complete this thread.

Anyways since then I've become much better at DIY's !! Did my own cooling tank replacement, own console mods, own muffler mods and installations. Knowledge is power ... and fun !

cheers !

Sid

Mine (MY99) isin't very accurate either. I've noticed it has a tendency to read low (60% to 90%) when the oil level is perfect (check with dipstick). Also, the topmost bar (on the electronic guage) is supposed to be empty. All lit up means slightly over filled - its not a biggie but that's what the technician told me when I told him to "top it off to get rid of that topmost bar".

2001 cab. battery is dead and it wont jump through the lighter.

i removed the front passenger side wheel liner and am stumped as to what im looking for and where.

any advice is greatly appreciated.

Even if the car will not jump start through the lighter, it should accept enough current to open the trunk.

In the void space behind the passenger side headlight, high up in the wheelwell, you should find the looped end of a steel cable. This is the emergency release for the trunk lid. If you don't see it there, jack and support the car, then get underneat the right front fender and look up into that area. It may have slipped down.

You can jump your car via the positive post in the engine compartment, also. Use something soft and thin (paint stir stick, kitchen plastic spatula) to insert below your left side tail light. Pry up gently on the light unit while looking underneath with a light. Should find the same type steel cable loop described above. Fish it out with a thin, hooking tool, piece of wire, etc, and pull to open the engine cover.

Good luck,

There was quite a bit of discussion on this topic sometime back. Try searching.

cheers,

Sid

Hi,

What are the differencies between those headlights... some seem too have a white and an amber bulb in the indicator, some have two amber bulbs and in addition some seem to have almost transparent indicators and other don't...

I don't know about rest of the world models, but in the US they initially had amber headlights (early 99). The outside surface had amber blended into the plastic itself near the turn indicator area.

An example :

After that they had clear headlights. By clear what they did is they made the outer surface of the headlights clear and moved the amber inside the headlight assembly (between outside and bulb) and used clear bulbs at the core. This is how most cars have been since then and that's how you can see some of that amber plastic when you look closely at those lamps.

Since then some enterprising people decided to get rid of even that inner amber plastic and simply use amber bulbs or (a step furthur) use clear bulbs that glow amber. Excellent thread covering that here.

OF course, this may/may not be the case with european models ... hope that helps

Sid

Ok guys, I got a set for a good deal ($400) from a member on rennlist.com (tentster). He was in the San Diego region so he dropped it off too (Nice chap !) Its a regular halogen set, clear with the clear triangles.

Its at the body shop right now ... will let you guys know soon ...

thanks

Sid

The clear lights have an internal lense for the turn signal. Sometimes a flash picture or the angle of the camera will make the lights look amber when they are really clear.

The lights on renntech should be clear since they come from a 2000 996.

Ok. I didn't know that. So you're saying that his "clear" headlights are more or less the same as your headlights ? i.e. the amount of amber stuff is the same ?

I was also researching some more and found this thread with toolpants. So this amber filter is present in both the 'clear' lithtronics as well as the 'clear' regular lights ? And method of removal is the same ?

Toolpants, did you take out the amber from your lights ? During the day, can you make that amber stuff clearly or its really doesn't matter ?

cheers ! :cheers:

hmm ... it appears that without the extra wiring harness and control unit, I lose the ability to rotate the litronic bulb to put it in "high beam mode". As per my understanding, the litronic system has

1. one HID/xenon bulb in low beam position. This rotates to become high beam

2. one halogen bulb in the fog lamp. This is purely a fog light.

So am I right to say that without the extra wiring there wouldn't be any high beam at all, right ?? That'd be bad ! I could switch on the fog light, but the basic trajectory of the high beam would be missing ...

Please correct me if my thinking is awry ...

thanks,

Sid

Hi guys,

I'm looking for clear headlights (another thread) and someone is offering me a set of lithtronic headlights for a good price. However he tell me "I will explain the wiring harness to you, and why it is not necessary.". I've not yet spoke to him and wanted to throw the question to you guys before that. As far as I know if I just slide these in place of my regular lights, I'll get xenon for low beam and halogen for high beam - no xenon meets halogen in hihg beam - but that's a guess.

What do I really lose by not installing the wiring harness as I upgrade to lithtronic ? I'm also assuming that without the wiring harness there is no control unit too, right ?

Fianlly, if I were to install the wireing harness / control module, how much are they for and are they easy to install ? BTW my car is a 1999 996 C2....

thanks in advance ! Lots of questions ... :)

Hi guys,

I'm looking for clear headlights (another thread) and someone is offering me a set of litronic headlights for a good price. However he tell me "I will explain the wiring harness to you, and why it is not necessary.". I've not yet spoke to him and wanted to throw the question to you guys before that. As far as I know if I just slide these in place of my regular lights, I'll get xenon for low beam and halogen for high beam - no xenon meets halogen in high beam - but that's a guess.

What do I really lose by not installing the wiring harness as I upgrade to litronic ? I'm also assuming that without the wiring harness there is no control unit too, right ?

Fianlly, if I were to install the wireing harness / control module, how much are they for and are they easy to install ? BTW my car is a 1999 996 C2....

thanks in advance ! Lots of questions ... :)

The clear lights have an internal lense for the turn signal. Sometimes a flash picture or the angle of the camera will make the lights look amber when they are really clear.

The lights on renntech should be clear since they come from a 2000 996.

Ok. I didn't know that. So you're saying that his "clear" headlights are more or less the same as your headlights ? i.e. the amount of amber stuff is the same ?

I was also researching some more and found this thread with toolpants. So this amber filter is present in both the 'clear' lithtronics as well as the 'clear' regular lights ? And method of removal is the same ?

Toolpants, did you take out the amber from your lights ? During the day, can you make that amber stuff clearly or its really doesn't matter ?

cheers ! :cheers:

Hey Toolpants,

Thanks a bunch for those tips.

I've PMd/emailed Mickey/Scott. Yet to hear from him. Hoping he has some good deal for me for either halogen or lithtronic.

http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=8894 looks ok but he is as expensive as another set on eBay PLUS he has some minor orange stuff in the turn signal area. I'm looking for your type of lights where its fully clear.

I must ask you .... how did you manage to snag your lights for $300 ?? That's pretty amazing ... on a side note, are you really thinking of selling the boxster ? If yes, what's the replacement ?

Cheers !

Sid

I'll sell you my 996 clears for what I paid, $300. But you will also have to buy the car....

http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=8894

You might try mickey/Scott. He has been selling them on ebay. http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=5328

These sold for $500 last week. http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showthread....threadid=280016

Pre-2002 996s clear halogen and litronic headlights have a diamond pattern under the clear plastic lense. They also have 996 part numbers.

986 halogen headlights have lines, no matter if they are the 1997-2002 ambers or 2003-2004 clears. They have 986 part numbers. 986 litronics have the diamond pattern because they are 996 parts.

The clear halogen 986 headlights from 2003-2004 fit the pre-2002 996s.

I have 996 clears on my 1997 Box. Paid $300 but it is hard to find a deal like that.

Ok. I'm surprised nobody here is ready to sell their clear halogen lamps ... people ... please upgrade to those lovely lithtronic lamps. Then sell me your old halogen lamps for cheap. ;) !

Seriously, I guess very few people have done the regular -> lithtronic upgrade ... I've tried renntech, rennlist and 6speedonline ....

I also found this stuff about the 996 vs boxster lights (halogen, non-lithtronic/non-xenon)...

I found out that they are identical in fit and electricals. BUT

996

===

- has a diamond pattern on the inner silver polished surface. (thanks toolpants)

- has an auto-leveling system so that the lights always shine as intended, not up or down when you suddenly accelerate or brake

Boxster

=====

- has a line pattern on the inner silver reflective surface (thanks toolpants)

- don't have the 996 auto-leveling system inside

Thanks

Sid

Running low on useless knowledge today....do tell.

You insensitive 996 owners....

And then the Porsche gods also gave us 986 Boxstir owners clear rears.

Hey Toolpants, do you know if the boxster headlamps will fit on the carrera (the 1999 C2 one) ? I might be able to expand my search space that way.

I'm getting a "deal" on the xenon upgrade for $1650 (with set+electronics). From sunset/suncoast/brandywine the regular lights are the SAME price as the xenon (or maybe $150/200 different). Porsche has a special price for the upgrade kit ...

But the thing is I've spend $5k this month on the car (front bumper, radiator replace, flush, refinish ENTIRE front for chips etc) ... so I'm very determined not to spend any more on this now. So I'm looking for a cheap solution. If I don't find anything then I might just bite the bullet ...

I think Kims suggestion of looking for used regular clear lamps is nice. But I think all owners have already done the conversion ... the market is stark empty !

Only early MY99 cars had orange (yellow) headlights. My June 1999 built car had clears (until I upgraded to Litronics). Boxster (986) has always had orange in the lights unless you opted for Litronics.

Performance Products sells the clear headlights for 996 - but for roughly twice the price the Halogen lights you can have Xenon Litronics.

Hmmm ... I guess then mine is from early 1999 then ! Anyway, I'm sure I want the regular halogen lamps. Any eBay links ? I can't find too many on eBay.

Also, what is the technical diff between regular (halogen) and lithtronic ? What technology is "lithtronic" ?

Cheers !

Hi guys,

I just got a call from the shop saying that the lamps we waited on arriving for 2 weeks are NOT clear !! They have the yellow stuff below. Of course, mine is a 1999 996, so I need the OLDER STYLE (like boxster) clear headlamps.

Now I'm really busy in the morning (sneeking this in a meeting :o) and wanted to tell him in a few hours, so I thought I'd also ask you guys to short circuit my research (sorry!).

Do you guys know of some places (online/SouthernCalifornia?) which sell CLEAR headlamps for (relatively) CHEAP ?

Thanks in advance !

__________________

Sid

--------------------------------------------

Porsche 996 C2 coupe, black on black

Suzuki GSX-R750 sportbike

Does anyone have audio clips of the 996 Porsche Sport exhaust in action ?? I'm very curious to hear how they sound ...

:cheers:

Sid

Did some research and talking with 1999Porsche911. He offered some interesting insight into the whole modding process. Appears that if I can get some 3.6L engine mufflers, its easy to mod AND fix my problem (rattle in driver side) in one go !!

So I'm now looking for 996 STOCK mufflers between 2003 and 2005 (basically 996's with a 3.6 L engine). Anyone with those lying around ? They can be at a happy home ...

Of course, I must thank Kim for his generous offer ! :cheers: !

Sid

Hi guys,

I was wondering if anyone here could "donate" or sell for cheap the driver side / left side (seen from back) STOCK exhaust / muffler for my MY99 996 C2 Coupe ? I can pickup if you're in the San Diego area, else I'd gladly pay for shipping from where ever you are.

I don't need both and just one should do fine to replace my current one which seems to have something loose inside it ...

thank in advance !

Sid

Hi guys,

I was wondering if anyone here could "donate" or sell for cheap the driver side / left side (seen from back) STOCK exhaust / muffler for my MY99 996 C2 Coupe ? I can pickup if you're in the San Diego area, else I'd gladly pay for shipping from where ever you are.

I don't need both and just one should do fine to replace my current one which seems to have something loose inside it ...

thank in advance !

Sid

Ok, so I was able to fix this problem too. My window regulator was ok and I re-calibrated the adjustment screws to re-align the window correctly. I had to remove the door trim and I noticed that the steps for the 996 are a little different than captured at http://www.bombaydigital.com/boxster/projects/window/.

Removing the door trim

1. The door handle (not door opener) on the 996 is C shaped and has a vertical seam. There are two halves snapped and hence the vertical seam you see. Put a blunt plastic spatula in that seam and gently pry off the outer plastic away from the door. It should snap off from several places and nothing is breakable as such.
   
2. That half of the handle, which is still on the door has two T27 (25?) screws in it. Both quite long. Remove them
   
3. Behind the door opener (pull it open) is another Philips screw. Remove this too.
   
4. Pry off the "AirBag" logo (just the 1-2" plastic logo, NOT 10" airbag panel!!) and remove the single screw behind it
   
5. Use a plastic spatula and pry off the door light near the bottom. Easier if the plastic spatula is inserted on the edge nearer to the door hinge. Pull the cover out (it simply slides off) and push the wire in. Be caseful not to crush the bulb during re-installation of the trim !
   
6. Now starting from the bottom, pry off the door trim on the left side, bottom and right side. These three edges are held there with plastic clips and just pry off. There are no clips on the top !
   
7. The plastic trim now rests only on the top, gently lift it and move it out.
   
8. The door opening electrical wire (upper edge- middle) should be disconnected before you can move the panel any furthur.
   
9. You can now either disconnect the metal wire connected to the door opener (better) and keep the panel aside or keep it connected and simply rotate the trim panel, resting it on the door itself. Be careful not to put too much load on that metal wire if you decide to keep it connected - it cannot handle too much twist and is a pain to replace. So make sure the trim won't fall when you've propped it on the door !
   

Adjusting the window

I now had to adjust my windows to that the passenger side no longer hits the smaller rear window. i.e. realign the window ...

1. Connect the battery
   
2. Move the window to the topmost position. In this position you can take off two oval plastic/rubber covers on the door sides (under the door trim if the door trim is in its original position) revealing two screws that determine how high/low the window is held in its clamp. You'd be losening the screw, pulling up/lowering the glass at that point and then tightening the screw again. I adjusted so that the glass was a bit higher on the rear and a bit lower on the front. This basically rotated my passenger window clockwise (from outside) by 2-3 degrees.
   
3. I then noticed that the window wasn't rising as much in the front side and could go another 2-3 mm higher on the front side to seal the window perfectly.
   
4. So I now needed to adjust how high the window rises/the upper limit. Move the window to the lowermost position. There are 4 oval rubber covers on the door's lower edge. The door trim need NOT be removed to access these. We're interested in the hole closest to the hinge and the hole furthest from the hinge - so take their covers off. Inside each of these two oval holes, there is one 3/16" hex screwhead (use a flashlight). We use them to adjust the front/back stopping window height. I think anticlockwise rotation = increasing the height and clockwise = lowering. I used the screw in the front oval hole (nearest to the hinge) to raise the ending position of the window by 3 mm up.
   

The window now works perfectly. I don't know how/when/why the window decided to lose its alignment ...

NOTE: If I were to start from scratch, I'd try the adjustment screws at the bottom of the door ... the ones I talk about in #4. they are very accessible and might resolve your problem quickly. If that didn't work then I'd take the door trim off and play with the adjustment screws I talk of in #2.

Of course, its also possible that your window regulator IS messed up so what I did may not help at all ! In that case

1) Read this post of how to get your door trim off

2) Continue to http://www.bombaydigital.com/boxster/projects/window/ on how to remove and install your new window regulator.

hope that helps

Sid

It is either the regulator and/or one of the clamps that holds the glass came loose. Mine had both problems. If the clamps loosen, the position of the glass will change, and mine was hitting in the same spot yours is, making a very disturbing closing sound, yes?

The regulator cable will start to destroy itself around the main pulley and soon be making a crunching sound. I spent an afternoon and put in the new regulator and adjusted it. I think the regulator was approximately $150 shipped. If you aren't up for taking the door panel apart, probably have a shop or dealer do it.

I used this link to get familar with the process:

http://www.bombaydigital.com/boxster/projects/window/

Wow ! Good information there. Well - I don't get any crunching sound or anything when raising / lowering the windows. But if the glasses touch (saw window up, and I close the door) then there is a slight glass on glass sound.

Looking at the pictures (nice detailed writeup BTW!!) I think I should 1st start out by adjusting the screws at the bottom edge of the door before opening up the side door. I've opened side doors before(although on my girlfriends Nissan Altima !), so it shouldn't be something extreme ...

I received my radio keys and pulled the radio today. Well now I know why the code wasn't working. It's a different serial number than the one on my code card. Seems strange to me but I guess the previous owner put a different radio in. So now I call my porsche dealer and they can give me the code?

Thanks for the tip.

I'm guessing you solved your problem. But for future searchers, you can simply call becker/porsche and they should read back your code. Once you get the new code, its a good idea to write it on the back of the stereo. Yeah, the thieves will also know your code - but they would have already (hope not) stolen the stereo by then.

I cleaned the MAF yesterday. I bought the T20 head with a hole in the middle "tamper resistant toric heads" and an electrical contact cleaner, solvent based and no-residue type. You can find these things at autozone or any other shop. Be careful in picking up the right contact cleaner - I almost picked up a electrical grease cleaner right next to the electroNIC contact cleaner (which is what I want). I can't recall the name but its red and white and has a car electrical socket picture on the can.

So anyway, I disconnected the battery, removed the MAF and sprayed the cleaner on the back side where I saw a 'resistor like' sensor. Thinking of it, I didn't really clean the film in the gap, on the other side where the resistor thing was. So maybe I didn't do a complete job of it. I guess I'll just spray the cleaner all over the whole thing today too. Didn't have the CEL come up, but its just been a day.

I was thinking of also checking the air filter and the air box as such. I unscrewed all the screws around the air box but the air box cover didn't want to get off. It seemed like I was missing something. Any instructions on how to open the air box and examine the air filter ?

Sid

Well, I thought I'd post again with some updates.

So I removed the MAF the next day and sprayed the electric solvent-based cleaner all over the MAF. I sprayed the same resistor-like thing sprayed just the previous day and also into a square section which seemed to house some film like stuff. I basically soaked the whole thing with the spray and let it dry in 10-15 seconds.

I also cleaned the airbox (it was quite clean) and also cleaned the throttle body (also clean). I didn't need to but since I was "there" I did the cleanup.

Now for the screwup ... In my excitement to hurry up (with girlfriend nagging about not making it to dinner) I forgot to connect the electrical connection back to the MAF :oops: . Initially the car felt lethargic but after 10 minutes I needed full throttle to even move the car ! After dinner, it just died off but I restarted it and limped back home. I was quite worried !

At home I saw I had forgotten to connect the MAF so the car computer started using a very conservating air/fuel map. Doh !!! I simply connected it immediately, reset the computer (disconnect battery for 5 minutes). The car seemed energetic - like just before the CEL came up.

I'm just glad none of the belts ate my electrical wires ... it was dangling 5" away from all that and would have been disaster !

All that was over a month back.

Bottom line :

1) Its been a month of hard driving since the CEL (OBD2 code = with O2 sensors) and it hasn't come again

2) The solvent method seems to really work !

3) NEVER do repairs in a hurry - better to do them later when you get some time.

:thumbup: to the solvent cleaning method !

:cheers:

Sid

It is either the regulator and/or one of the clamps that holds the glass came loose. Mine had both problems. If the clamps loosen, the position of the glass will change, and mine was hitting in the same spot yours is, making a very disturbing closing sound, yes?

The regulator cable will start to destroy itself around the main pulley and soon be making a crunching sound. I spent an afternoon and put in the new regulator and adjusted it. I think the regulator was approximately $150 shipped. If you aren't up for taking the door panel apart, probably have a shop or dealer do it.

I used this link to get familar with the process:

http://www.bombaydigital.com/boxster/projects/window/

Wow ! Good information there. Well - I don't get any crunching sound or anything when raising / lowering the windows. But if the glasses touch (saw window up, and I close the door) then there is a slight glass on glass sound.

Looking at the pictures (nice detailed writeup BTW!!) I think I should 1st start out by adjusting the screws at the bottom edge of the door before opening up the side door. I've opened side doors before(although on my girlfriends Nissan Altima !), so it shouldn't be something extreme ...