LemmyCaution

101,600 on my 1999. I have driven almost every mile with a ) on my face.

This is an interesting thread - I have a 99 (95kmiles) with ROW 030 that was installed at about 11k. Since others have established the ROW 030's handling supremacy, I will concentrate on the more superficial: For the O.P.- scbodnar: My experience with 'settling' etc. is that the suspension settled an additional 1/2 inch or so after 20k miles and has remained at that height since. That the rear is a bit higher than the front is beneficial (IMHO) in a number of ways- it changes how the car presents itself to the air which at higher speeds allows the rear to assert more downforce (can't prove it - don't ask). It also looks more aggressive. There is another 99 Boxster and 2 99 911s in my garage at work (all black - go figure) the owners of one of the 911s and the other Boxster have both asked me: "What's different - why does your car just look better sitting there?" Parked side by side, the difference in height is noticeable but the 'stance' of the car is much more obvious. The gap betwen the tops of the wheels on the other cars remind me of the 'high-water' khakis I wore when I was 14 and growing and had no fashion sense :-) . So, back to the meat of the conversation - I need to rebuild the suspension. 84 thousand miles on LA's mean streets has taken a toll on the formerly wonderful ride. The ride is not terrible but, it IS time to start rebuilding the suspension. So, do I man-up and do it myself? First of all - the bushings all need replacement. No question about that. How do I assess the springs and shocks - honestly, just from 'feel' - I think they are both well within tolerance. For the cost of the suspension parts - this may be a no-brainer. Just replace EVERYTHING? The shocks still offer a considerable amount of resistance and show no signs of leakage. The springs? How do I assess their fitness? This car is a keeper - I have no intention of selling it (for Pete's sake - what kind of a car could I get for the meager $$s I'd get for it?) and at it's age - it's just time to start refreshing the underpinnings before I drop a 3.4 into it. :-) Forgive me for not 'googling' more - I just saw this thread and since it was about ROW030, I just jumped-in. (NOTE -I think I found my answer - just replace everything - maybe not the springs - AND the tires. I haven't driven that much in the last couple of years. The Michelin Pilot Sprorts are approaching 4 years old and have lost their resiliency>)

Place some screw clamps around both ends. Place some screw clamps around both ends. I broke the dipstick tube on mine last year. About $30 from Sunset and less trouble to replace than epoxying sleeves etc.

Thanks for all the additional info etc. FYI the vacuum line is called Tekalan - I will tackle this job in a couple of weeks myself. FWIW 99 recently passed CA smog even though I had just reset the P0401/1411 CEL -

Believe it or not - I don't have the Bentley manual. I really should- -it would have spared me breaking the guide in the first place. Though, I expect that over 9 years and 73k miles it has become much more brittle. I remembered that I have the Porsche Technical manual on pdf - I thought it was the PET Katalog. Now if I can find the Katalog CD... Here's how it describes removing the engine side of the dipstick guide tube: "Discconect plug connection at oil dipstick guide-tube..." It will probably be really obvious when I get the new part.

It has a knurled knob - is not difficult to access.

Voltages all checked out fine - (from memory): Relay #2 +12 Relay #3 -GND Relay #5 & 7 showed voltage when switch was actuated. Relay #4 is the LED and I know that works... So - I removed the entire PSE 1st Gen wiring harness (except the rear harness which I had already removed) and put everything back together. Works perfectly - If I could offer a full explanation of how the first gen wiring harness defeated the new installation but, it really doesn't matter. There are a couple of minor loose ends that I will address this weekend -bolting down the vacuum switch (it's ziptied now) and securing the armored tekalan feeds so they don't rattle against the heatshields when actuated. The OFF setting is really helpful when driving into and out of my neighborhood. Since 99s are inherently louder than the later models w/4 cats, even with the flaps closed, the exhaust note is a little louder than stock. Opening the flaps introduces more high frequency overtones. Thanks again for all the help. I could not have completed this without Renntech.

Thanks - I should have done that yesterday. I'll let you know where the problem is. Probably won't get to it until the weekend.

Thanks - that's the diagram that I used. (That and the enlarged one above). Do you think the pink/grey connector is an issue? I had planned to install as you suggested - without it so that the switch would effectively just be an on/off switch. When I have some time, I'll remove the relay block again and have a look - unless it's the pk/gy wire, there's got to be a reasonable explanation. The only one I can think of now is that I could have swapped RD/GY for GY/RD at the relay but, I was very careful.

Wired per diagrams you provided in post 2 and post 8. FYI I did not use the relay diagram that I drew after reading on one of the other PSE posts that the diagrams referred to the numbers on the Delrin router base. I will edit that diagram per notes as soon as I can. I was very careful to verify that there is a hot lead fuse 10, row B -to the changeover valve and to the switch and relay and that ground is good. The only issue separating this from any other x96 installation is: - Gen One PSE was originally installed - looking at the TSB, there doesn't appear to be any conflicting wiring (except that there is a pk/gy lead connected to 25 BS). I removed the harness from the relay to the changeover valve and removed the relay from the carrier. Aside from the actuator valves not working: - Backlighting is ON all the time. I suspect that this is either a jumper issue or due to placing the jack in the wrong place on 23 BS. BTW: Who makes a good pin/socket/plug remover kit for these relays? I'm at a client site - without physically looking at the relay block - I'm pretty lost except that I did follow your diagrams very carefully. There has to be a mistake somewhere or a discrepancy between 99 and 2004 wiring that I missed.

A further note Pressing the switch does not engage the system- system is installed per the above diagrams and I have verified all connections between the relay, the dash switch and the changeover valve. Switch has backlight, LED lights when switch is pressed. Changeover valve appears to be correctly routed between the engine and the exhaust actuators. Actuators engage when attached directly to vacuum. I am mystified. The only thing the I did not connect is the pink/gy wire per Loren's prior suggestion. When I feel like dealing with this again, I guess I will attach that wire and see what happens. Thoughts anyone?

One more last question. (RESOLVED as of Monday November 17, 2008) All is installed but: Switch backlighting is constantly ON - regardless of whether lights are on or off. Regardless of whether relay is plugged in or not (I suspect this involves the grey/Blue and Brown lead from the switch to the relay carrier Switch indicator lamp is constantly ON as long as the relay is plugged in. Pressing the switch causes the dash/indicator lamps to dim briefly and very slightly. Resolution/condition as of Monday AM: RD/GY and GY/RD wires were reversed! FYI will update my relay carrier diagram later today. I have paying career work to do first! Since I spent all day on this and didn't feel like driving, I cannot confirm whether the valve in the engine compartment is working or not. The problems seem to involve only the wiring of the relay - relay carrier so at least MOST of the work is completed. I found several threads that cleared up most of my confusion - http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?s...;hl=pse+install (esp: 11. The pin numbers on the face of the new relay holder are TINY and white on white. Rub a pencil lightly over them, and the numbers will be much easier to read as you go.) Fully Switched PSE - ... Eddy - no tools hack Note regarding relay CARRIER base numbering (and many other discrepancies) One of the biggest problems I had was thinking that the numbers on the schematics corresponded to the pins on the relay. It wasn't until I fired up a halogen desklamp and used a 5x photo loupe that I could even see numbers. Rubbing them gently with a soft pencil really helped. AND as Kim (last link author) states: * Most important lesson: never attempt any project of this magnitude without quick and easy access to RennTech. I cannot emphasize how helpful Loren and the other PSE threads on this site have been.

Makes sense - thanks. Once this is done - life will be normal again. Now the flaps are closed all the time (I'm using the Gen1 connection at this point). The car is so quiet! It will be nice to have some control over the sound.

One more question before I complete the process: On TSB 2601, page 5, line 2.6: Realign jumper plug in relay carrier 1 with leads of the electrical wiring harness as follows: Wire Color Slot Diameter Function GY/PK 23 BS 1/1 .35mm Speedometer A signal GY/BU/BN 25 BS 5/1 .35mm Lighting (term 58A) BN 28 BS 1 1 .5mm Ground (term 31) The other ends of these are connected to relay. (except for the Grey/Blue/Brown which is connected to switch To what do 23 BS 1/1 etc. refer? Is it the Black carrier attached to and below the relays? Or is it the fuse block? Porsche's naming protocols are cryptic - until someone describes them at least. :)