atmorris

Everyone. I apologize to everyone who posted questions that I did not answer. I posted this guide to help out others, but don't really monitor it that often. But to answer some of the questions in a general kind of way for future posters I can offer these comments: What speakers you use has less to do with the car and more to do with your tastes. As long as you use decent quality stuff, properly matched to your amp(s), and of the correct size the end result should be as desired. I did this mod as stage 1 of a 2 stage project. I did initially just replace the speakers,with 4 ohm Polk Audio units. I had retained the Becker CDR23 and the stock M490 Harman amp. But the stock amp is terribly under powered, and the CDR23 didn't support an ipod or USB drive so I had always planned to replace them both from the get-go. Amp wise, IMHO, you need 75W RMS per channel, or better, in this car to have sufficient headroom (acoustical) when the top is down. As far as the door template, Cassiebox beat me to posting a template, although I did explain, in detail, in the tutorial the steps I went through to make mine. Still, Cassiebox's template is pretty much the exact same thing that I did so that template is all that is needed. You can get it here: https://www.renntech.org/forums/applications/core/interface/file/attachment.php?id=7789 I never posted a "replacing the amp" guide because, as I found out, it is really a fairly complicated, and highly personal, project. Possible mounting locations are found inside the front boot, in the back boot, behind or under the pass seat, or even under the pass side dash. It all depends on what you can manage to do yourself, or pay to have done, and where YOU want things and don't want things. Initially I located mine in the front boot in one location, then found a few years later, after that amp had failed, that I had to mount it's replacement in a completely different way (that was a lot more involved.) Just be careful about drilling the surface behind the spare tire as the gas tank is located immediately behind it. I chose to eliminate that surface as a possible amp mounting location for that reason, but I have seen others use it. It makes this effort very worthwhile to see how much the article has been used by others, and the comments made showing appreciation for the time invested. I hope it continues to be of use to Boxster owners for years to come.

Anybody know if a Jensen VX7020 will fit in an '03 Boxster dash ? And what you need besides the unit (brackets, trim plate, etc..) to get it done? http://www.crutchfield.com/S-KCGgH4FWnSi/p_110VX7020/Jensen-VX7020.html Stock CAN bus system is already LONG gone. I currently have a Kenwood 1U deck in there with a Polk amp in the front boot and Polk speakers throughout the car. I Want to replace the Kenwood with the Jensen 2U unit mounted in the place where the factory NAV unit came if you had the option (mine did not but I don't think the guts are different, just locations rearranged a bit). Has anyone here already done this? ...or seen a Boxster with it done? I have seen a Pioneer AVIC done and I don't think this would be any different, but I thought I'd check on here first. Thanks in advance........

I have a 2003 2.7L 986 with 70k miles that this just started happening on. Exact same symptoms. If I cancel the code with my reader it doesn't come back for months. We checked the sensor and it tested (twice) as working properly. I assume all this shop time would be on my dime if I took it to the dealer to have the DME issue checked out at this point?

Mystery solved. The pivot pin in the shifter is either bent (doubtful) or has worn eccentric(more likely) and it has turned into a position where it is jammed up solid and will not allow the shifter handle to move rearward hardly at all. The pin will not come out, even with a hammer and center punch. I have to replace the shifter.....and this is not a B&M, it is a knockoff. I was duped 4 years ago when I didn't know better. So here are my options: Porsche Factory Short Shift Kit $430 Suncoast Porsche 997 Shift Console Upgrade $199 Suncoast B&M Short Shifter $229 Bumper Plugs or $230 at Power Tech (local to me) Agency Power Billet Short Shifter $250 (Agency Shifter) Porsche SS kit is way too expensive. 997 update is genuine Porsche part but is only 15% shorter than stock. B&M seems the logical route as it is cheaper and 35% throw reduction (like I had) However the Agency shifter is interesting - it uses needle bearings instead of bushings. Anyone know anything about this Agency shifter ?

So here is what I can see underneath. Not sure what is normal. I can tell you that there appears to be a bolt missing in one spot, and a shaft which appears to move in and out of the trans casing as you shift. This rod does not go all the way in. The lower end of that linkage tops out in the slotted plate before that happens. Would appreciate it if someone could confirm this all looks normal or not. Someone over on the Boxster & Boxster S forum offered this: ".... there are two pins that put tension on the shift rods inside the transmission. I believe that when one fails you lose 1, 3, & 5 and when the other fails you lose 2, 4, & R. One is located on the drivers side of the tranny, just to the rear of the slave cylinder and the other in on the passenger side behind the axle at about the 10 o'clock position. I don't recall which pin would affect your loss of 2, 4, & R but hopefully some else here does. These pins were typically aluminum (although a few were steel) and we have seen them both fail in Spec Boxsters. Steel replacements are available. Please note that the tranny must be in neutral before removing either pin! " However I have not lost the gears, I can still engage them, the shifter just does not feel like it goes all the way in to those idents and there is a great deal of mechanical resistance to moving the shift lever far enough in that direction. That being the case, I'm not sure that this applies. Any comments on this one ?

Well, its nothing up top. Everything under the console looks fine. After working the shifter around a little I can get it to engage 2nd,4th,and reverse, with some difficulty because I feel a lot of resistance. But it doesn't feel like it is moving "all the way in" for lack of a better way to describe it. You can't feel the "notch" if you will. However if I let the clutch out it is in gear, so it is engaging....... Have to get back underneath and take a better look. Starting to get worried. I still have a hard time believing it could be internal, but it feels like it could be a bent shifting fork or something.....but I really don't see how that could have happened. I do not beat the trans and I don't drive like a drag racer (bang gears, power shift,etc..)

This sounds like a distinct possibility. I am going to take the console out this weekend and take a look. I also just put a new head unit in and unplugged an iPod cable needed for the old unit that runs down through the console to the storage box at the rear. I left it sitting in there loose, so that may have moved and caused a problem as well. I'll let everyone know what I found when I'm done.

Update: Just had a look underneath. Didn't take the heat guard off, but checked out the cables an linkage with a light looking up through an opening by the heat plate. Everything looks pretty normal. Cables are in their supports and arms and brackets all look fine as far as I can tell. Nothing looks bent or broke and I don't see any indications of parts wearing against one another or any other surface. With the car off, I can not engage 2,4 or reverse. 1,3,and 5 are normal as can be. There has been absolutely no indication of any type of trans issue whatsoever. No grinding, popping out of gear, rough feel, or any noise at all. Really hard to believe it would be internal. Next would be to pull the console and look upstairs I guess.

This is the interior shifter mod. Has worked great for the better part of 3 years. I was just now reading posts where apparently sometimes the cables came out of the supports on the older Boxsters Loren, they even zip tied them as I recall. Is that still an issue with an '03 ?

This JUST started tonight on the way home. I was downshifting from 5th to 4th( nice and easy) coming down an off ramp, and the shifter suddenly felt stiff - like the cable was binding. Before that it had felt perfectly normal. There was no big road pothole or bump I hit. Nothing in the road that I ran over or that flew up and hit the trans....it just all of the sudden felt stiff. At first all forward/backward shifting felt like cables were binding. Side-to-side movement is fine. Then I tried getting the shifter in the neutral gate and moving it back and forth and checking all the gears. I realized that If I shift to 1st, or third, or 5th from the neutral gate it feels fine...normal even. But as soon as I try to shift into 2nd, 4th, or put it in Reverse, it feels like the cable is dragging badly. This is a B&M short shifter that has been in the car for about 3 years now. It does not feel like a shifter issue, it feels like cable(s) or linkage binding, but it onset in a single easy downshift. Before I start tearing console apart or crawling underneath, has anyone experienced anything like this before, or heard of it ? Any wisdom anyone can share ?

I've used it on spark plugs in aluminum heads for years with no problem at all.....on both racing and street engines. Just sayin'.......

Loren.....does "Replace spark plugs" mean just plugs, or plugs/tubes/o-rings.....the whole 9 yards ?

A while ago my key fobs stopped working to lock/unlock the doors and open the boot lids. I tried replacing the battery and even bought new button pads - no change the fobs still didn't work. Not wanting to spend a ton of money for new keys to solve that minor convenience, I have just been locking and unlocking the car with the key like any other Joe has to do with his car. However, some strange things seem to happen when I do this. The car is a MY03 base. I'm not sure if this is procedural issue or if I have something malfunctioning , but I would assume that I should be able to use the key normally in this manner without these issues..... 1) When I park and lock the doors from the driver's door using the key and NOT the fob button (which does not work either), then go away for a time (like to work or over night), then come back and unlock the doors from the drivers door using the key , three things seem to happen: a) The alarm will go off within seconds if I do not immediately get in, put the key in the ignition, and turn it at least one position even though I have used a legitimate key...... 'B) I can not seem to unlock the passenger's door from the lock/unlock switch on the dash...it is lit red, and stays red, no matter how firmly or how many times I push it. I have to reach over and open the passenger door from inside, then the red light on the lock/unlock switch goes out and it returns to normal operation. c) The fuel door appears to stay locked. The next time I need to open it, I have to get out of the car, close the driver's door, lock and then unlock the driver's door with the key, then the fuel door will open. Kind of embarrassing at a gas station. Anyone have any ideas on what might be malfunctioning?

You probably "accidentally" repaired a bad, or intermittant, ground connection. Hey...if it ain't broke, don't fix it ! :P

Depends. Do you have the 5 1/4" subs in the doors? OR....Do you have another type of sub in the car? If you have subs, then try setting the HPF freq to the 120 or even 150 area and see how the balance sounds. To a point, the more bass you can relieve those small drivers of having to handle, the cleaner they will produce the midrange and highs. However, you have to balance them with your bass speakers (subs) and how the LPF filter is set - if one is in use. For example, if you set your HPF to 150, make sure your LPF is not set any lower than 150 also, otherwise you will leave a bit of a "hole" or weak spot in your system's frequency response. If you have no door subs or independant sub, then run I'd set the HPF like you have it now, or even as low as 50hz-ish, just to filter off the extreme lows that those little drivers aren't going to handle very well anyway.

I believe that the Vaseline coating is for annodized wheels with no paint or clearcoat. In that event, the Vaseline "soaks" in to the aliminum and provides a kind of release agent for the brake dust so it doesn't permanently stain the wheel. If you have painted/clearcoated wheels, you don't want Vaseline, you just need a good coat of wax. Washing the car a lot is only detrimental if you don't pay attention to the cleanliness of your mitts, sponges, and towels because they can trap dirt particles and scratch the paint the next time you use them, or if you are taking the car through cheap-n-quick commercial car washes or using harsh detergents like dish washing soaps to wash the car. This can remove the wax coating (especially if you use carnuba waxes) in as little as a single wash. Then your paint is left unprotected and most people don't even realize this has happened. Make sure you are using a reputable purpose-formulated car wash soap, and only in the ratio specified, and you can wash as often as you like. I use Ziano Z-7 Show Car Wash. The daily adding of air doesn't necessarily mean the valve stems are the culprit. It could also just be loose or leaky valves, or even a problem with the sealing bead on the tires or the rims themselves. Start by making sure the valves inside the stems are good, and are in tight. Replace them if your not sure, they are cheep and easy to get at any auto parts store. Then move to replacing stems. Then look at the tires or rims. If your oil leak is minor, and appears to be an RMS leak, then most people just live with it unless it becomes worse. I believe the dash could be all leather, but in most cars is a mix of leather and vinyl sections. I use Zaino Z-9 Leather Soft Spray Cleaner and Z-10 Leather in a Bottle on both the leather and the vinyl in my car. You can get it here. It is good stuff and keeps the interior smelling new (this stuff really does work folks...) In a pinch, I will use Armor All on the vinyl and Lexol on the leather, but the Zaino is the way to go. In fact, I buy one Zaino Ultimate Protection Show Car Kit per year, and do my Porsche, my son's 300zx, and my wife's MB 300E with it. You only need to do it once a year, and it will have shine and depth that you will not believe. G-R-E-A-T stuff !! The general concensus seems to be that Boxsters that are driven often and spiritedly, and have the oil changed frequently - a minimum of every 5k miles, remain healthier longer. There is also some reputable opinions out there that suggest not using Mobil 1, but instead using another Porsche approved synthetic oil. I use Castrol Syntec, but a friend of mine will use nothing but Royal Purple in his. I have also been told, by very reputable people, that this engine should never be lugged below about 2500 rpm. That can be difficult around town sometimes, but it is something that I now adhere to, religiously. How doable that is in a Tip I can't say since I have never had one or driven one. I hear you on the 911 thing. I did similar and have never regretted it either. The 911 is fun to drive too, I have driven my friends 993 many times, but it is a totally different experience than driving the mid engined Boxster. Someday, I'd love to put a Stage IV 2.9L Raby engine, or a Ruf 3.4 Carerra engine conversion in my Boxster so that I have Carerra HP in a mid engine chassis. THAT would be the hot ticket !

I will check those things Maurice, and thank you for the response. At first, it wouldn't seem that any of those things would be an issue in this case, because this car has never sat outside in a driving rain, never gets used in the Winter, is garage kept - in my basement - in a heated garage, and only has 28k miles on it. However, these things never happened prior to the day my key fob stopped opening the boot lids and unlocking the doors , and have intermittantly happened ever since. Also, it just hit me, as I wrote this, that it was my key fob that stopped working all of the sudden one day. My wife's had a dead battery so I could not use it at the time. I got a battery the next morning for my wife's and tried it, but it also did not work. I knew that both fobs had weak buttons in them, so I wrote that off to the buttons giving out and ordered new tops for the fobs, but that didn't solve the problem either. I never connected the fact that both fobs had stopped working essentially at the same time. The liklihood of 2 key fobs dying on the same exact day must be quite remote, so perhaps this does point to the control unit.

A while ago my key fobs stopped working to lock/unlock the doors and open the boot lids. Not wanting to spend a ton of money for that minor convenience, I have just been locking and unlocking the car with the key like any other Joe has to do with his car. However, some strange things seem to happen because of this. The car is a MY03 base. I wonder if some of you could enlighten me what, if anything, I need to do differently to avoid the following: 1) The fuel door occasionally stays locked. I have to get out of the car, close the driver's door, lock and then unlock the doors with the key, then the fuel door will open. Doesn't happen all the time, just once in a while for some reason. Kind of embarrassing at a gas station. 2) When I pull into a parking space and lock the doors with the key fron the drivers side, then go away for a time (like to work), then come back and unlock the drivers door and get in, two things seem to happen: 1) the alarm will go off within seconds if I do not put the key in the ignition and turn it immediately, and 2) I can not seem to unlock the passenger's door from the switch on the dash...it is lit red and stays red no matter how firmly I push it. I have to reach over an open the pass door from inside, then the red light goes out on the lock/unlock switch and it returns to normal operation.

That's what I did too....just cut the **** thing out. Wasn't like I was going to put it back in anyway. I do recall however, reading somewhere that if you loosen the engine mounts and drop the engine down about 1/2" the box will come out in one piece. I thought about taking that route, then said the hell with it and just cut it apart.

I'm assuming you are referring to not warming the car up properly, because I have been doing this with my 986 for 4 years. I change the oil before I garage it for the winter, store it without starting it over the winter, start it up and drive it after a few good rainstorms have cleaned the roads off in the spring. It still starts first time, every time, the motor is still in one piece, and it still runs like a top. Of course, I maintain it properly, and warm it up properly before I drive it hard. As long as you keep it maintained properly, use good quality oil, change the oil at a minimum of once a year or every 8000 miles, and warm it up properly - and completely before you drop the hammer, you shouldn't have any trouble.

Andy, Don't get me wrong, I understand that there will be higher than normal costs associated with driving the Boxster. I would just like to minimize those costs on my wallet. re: half shaft example My worry is that the outer CV joint on the car has been exposed to grit for ?? period of time. There are no symptoms of it right now, but I've got the dealer to fix the problem before I pick up the car. They likely aren't going to put a new half shaft in it for me. They are likely just going to clean and regrease it. My guess is if it fails, it'll likely be toast (grinding or knocking sound). My half shaft won't fail because of 'excessive g -forces or speed or torque on it', it will likely fail because it was exposed to the elements, and just have wear. In general, it's my speculation that angle of which the shaft 'bends' puts too much flexion (is that a word ?) on the boots, causing them to fatigue. I'm sure that the chinese made Half shaft is just copying the Porsche design. ....Now in terms of quality control, China is still a crapshoot, but from my limited knowledge in the area, it is improving, - proved by the amount of outsourcing that is still taking place to the Far East. P Asian stuff is cheaper mostly because their labor costs are a small fraction of those of Western or European companies are. That is least true with Japan and most true with Malaysia and China. However there is another very important difference that most people are not aware of, their steel is crap. I have worked for two companies that have both found this out the hard way. Asian steel <> American steel, not by a l-o-n-g shot. Also, when it comes to Asian product, it has been my experience that you truly "Get what you pay for." Companies like Sony, Toshiba, or Honda make a quality product and charge for it accordingly. For the most part, the dirt cheap stuff is just what you'd think it is - cheap knock off's and inferior product. You get what you pay for. I want quality parts on there that I have confidence in, especially considering the performance level of the car and the fact that I use that capability frequently. Of course, you can put whatever you like on your car, that’s your prerogative. I just hope that your not on these or other discussion boards a year or two from now bad mouthing Porsches. Brought about by your negative experiences, which you likely brought upon yourself by skimping on parts, oil quality, change intervals, maintenance, etc., to "minimize the costs."

Just trying to justify my toys to myself (and ulitmately to my wife:) ..... Taking a look at Randall website http://www.iwantaporsche.net/repairs_mods.htm , it makes now sense to spend $12,000 on repairs on a car worth $12000. Who cares about resale value when u're in the hole more than the cost of the car, just in terms of operating expense?. Resale value on a soon to be 3rd owner vehicle can't be all that high to begin with.... Can't wait to drive it. P No offense, but at the moment at least, you couldn't sound LESS like a Porsche kind of guy. :eek: This isn't a Honda Civic or Pontiac G5 you are talking about here, it is a PORSCHE. Whole different animal. As someone stated in a previous post, there is a REASON why these cars cost 2x as much as those other cars new. My bet is you'll either be singing a whole different tune by the end of your first year of ownership, or you'll no longer be driving a Pcar. Everyone I know that owns a Porsche, myself included, would take a second job, sell anything that wasn't tied down, and do just about any other reasonable thing to get the money they need to fix their baby....and wouldn't give a crap how that amount would relate to resale value either.....and operating expenses aren't ever even a thought. Whatever it costs to drive it and upkeep it are worth it. Do you really want to trust your *** to some cheap, Chinese made, half shaft at the speeds and g loads that these cars can corner at ? Not me, buddy. :soapbox: ....and a Boxster is a Porsche. Period. I chose mine OVER a 911, because it is Porsche's only mid-engine cabrio as someone stated already. It's not a "poor man's" anything, it is a true blood Porsche....in fact, it SAVED Porsche. So let's have a little more respect for the Boxster here. :P Good luck with yours.... :thumbup:

So Porsche is now using their "latest" IMS bearing solution on all the rebuilt M96 engines and new (replacement) M96 engines then ? Interesting....

Could not agree more. I have desnorkled (big improvement) and installed a BMC airfilter (small improvement). Do you know if an EVO setup would improve sound wise on this configuration? Thanks. :) Atle Not with 100% certain because I went straight from stock intake/exhaust to EVO/headers, sport cats, and Fabspeed muffler, but I would think so.

I've been an EVO user for over 2 years with absolutely ZERO MAF issues, CEL issues, or water issues......and I have driven it through a 4 hour monsoon I ran into between Boston and NJ without so much as a burp, and am not the least bit careful around the side vent when washing the car - which I do frequently. Wow !.....:eek: "cant see the allure of hearing the induction" ? :unsure: Doesn't sound like you drive her hard enough bro ! - and that's not good for her! :P To each his own, and I don't mean to attack, just poke a little fun - but there is nothing more inspiring than hearing that beautiful sound from one of these engines ! :thumbup: