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Unfortunately the Carrera instrument cluster is not compatible with the Turbo's oil quantity measuring system. Bill

This would be a good time to clean any accumulated debris from between your radiators and air conditioner condensers. http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?/videos/view-5-porsche-996-986-front-bumper-removal/ Bill

Oops!

I'd address number 5 sooner than later. Funky ignition switches cause a lot of seemingly unrelated problems. Check out this DIY: http://www.renntech.org/forums/topic/29137-996-ignition-switch-replace-just-the-switch-with-pictures/ Bill

Are you sure all the spark plugs are properly torqued? Bill

Creekman, The following might be of some assistance: BROKEN PLUG HARDWARE. For those DIY’ers who have broken the lock on one or more of the instrument cluster plugs or who are afraid they might, here’s the part number you need : PNA 721.04.300.202. This part number gets you a package with the three colored (blue, green, gray) covers/locks and all three black plugs. They only come as a set of three and cost $27.00 (2007 MSRP). The blue, white and black covers/locks and plugs are available for earlier cars too. Have your Porsche technician (not parts guy) check his "Porsche Electrical Connector Repair Kit" for the replacement parts or at least a part number for the three plug package. The entire repair kit is known as CARTOOL Nr 96 0 000 or PNA 721 043 600. It is full of connectors the parts guy would like to sell you the entire wiring harness for. Bill

I had a situation where my alternator voltage would start out (cold engine/alternator) with a charging voltage of about 13.5 and droop to about 11.0 volts as the engine/alternator came up operator temperatures. Appearantly, voltage regulators have a heat related failure mode. The fix was (after eliminating battery, ground/power cables) replacing the voltage regulator. A voltage regulator costs about $20.00-25.00 and can be replaced easily.....once the alternator is removed from the car. I, in fact, didn't work on the alternator. I took it to a auto-electrical shop recommended by my dealer. The shop had a new voltage regulator and installed it and tested it; part and labor $85.00 + tax. Now my charging voltage is about 14.3 volts. Bill

In an effort to summarize what has been learned so far, Ill start with the Carrera instrument cluster itself. The assumption of the DIY is that the instrument cluster is fully functional. I have a concern with the instrument clusters found on the internet auction sites. Did the seller just decide one day that he didnt need the instrument cluster in his car? Or, is it available because it was removed from his car for cause? I would put more trust an established re-cyclers parts because the instrument cluster in the donor car was probably working properly before the accident and, given no physical damage to the instrument cluster, probably still does. I also have doubts about the viability of an instrument cluster that has had the part number and/or serial number removed. Anyway, the basic MY02 MY04 Carrera instrument cluster is the same regardless of the car it is installed in. There are different part numbers for manual vs. Tiptronic and color coordination of the instrument faces to interior colors, but the instrument cluster is functionally the same whether it is installed in a C2, C4, Coupe, Targa, etc. Only the coding by a PST2 / PIWIS tailors the instrument cluster to the car. (Instrument clusters from Turbos are a different breed and should NOT be considered for a transplant.) The ideal candidate for a transplant into an MY01 MY04 Boxster is a Carrera instrument cluster taken from an MY02 MY04 996 C2 Cabriolet. (Obviously, consideration has to be made for the type of transmission manual or Tiptronic.) This means that the instrument cluster is coded for the proper fuel tank/fuel quantity transmitter and the Convertible Top Warning Light. If the instrument cluster is taken from a Coupe (or Targa), the Convertible Top Warning Light will not illuminate when the Boxsters top cover isnt fully stowed. Some people can live with that anomaly. Likewise, if the instrument cluster is taken from an MY02 - My04 996 C4 Coupe (or Targa), the fuel quantity will be inaccurate. In order to make the instrument cluster operate completely, if not from a Cabriolet (or is from a C4) your car's DME will have to be temporarily re-coded. This is because the Carrera instrument cluster has to see a Carrera DME before it will allow its coding to be modified. (More on DMEs below.) MY97 MY00 BOXSTERS. For RennTech members who have MY97-MY00 cars and who are contemplating installing a Carrera instrument cluster, the following might be of some assistance. You must find a Carrera C2 instrument cluster. The C4 / C4S instrument clusters are physically (internally) different and there is no hope of getting the fuel gauge system to indicate fuel quantity accurately. I would also recommend looking for an instrument cluster from only MY00-MY01 Carreras. This is because the MY98 - MY99 Carreras use a different fuel quantity transmitter than your Boxster so a MY98 MY99 instrument cluster may not be compatible with your Boxsters fuel quantity transmitter. Also, a MY98 MY99 instrument cluster may not have provisions for the On Board Computer. Your ideal Carrera instrument cluster would be from a MY00 - MY01 C2 Cabriolet. From the 2005 PET parts list, the following part numbers are representative of the MY00 MY01 Carrera instrument clusters that would be good candidates. These instrument clusters are matched to your Boxsters fuel quantity transmitter and have electronic mail which I would guess is Porsche parts manual speak for On Board Computer message display capability. MY00 MY01 Carrera C2 6-Speed 996.641.105.02.70C MY00 MY01 Carerra C2 Tiptronic 996.641.106.02.70C MY00 MY01 Carrera C2 (GB) 6-Speed 996.641.107.02.70C MY00 My01 Carrera C2 (GB) Tiptronic 996.641.108.02.70C For reference, the MY98 MY99 Carrera C2 instrument cluster part numbers are the same as above except they are 996.641.###.01.70C. DME CODING. A procedure has been used to successfully code a 986 DME as a 996, code the instrument cluster to C2 Cabriolet and finally recode the DME back to 986. I would strongly suggest that the person following this procedure be an experienced PST2 / PIWIS operator. There are several steps (key strokes) needed to accomplish the coding.

On page 143 and page 149 of the MY03 Carrera Owner's Manual re. Convertable Top Emergency Operation, there is a statement that says not to operate the top normally until the car has been taken to a dealer for service. I think that the MY99 Carrera Owner's Manual has the same information. I think the top system has to be re-synchronized following being opened or closed using the emergency procedure. It takes a PIWIS or PST2 (or perhaps a Durametric) to re-synchronize the top system. Bill

Here is an older DIY for an installation of an AVIC in a non-MOST bus Boxster/Carrera. http://www.renntech.org/forums/tutorials/article/109-porsche-boxster-avic-d3-installation-instructions/ Check for an installation kit sold by RennTech member Trieullionaire. Trieulilionaire and his brother have an e-Bay store that sells the kits. They are easily available for informational help as well. I'm not connected with Trieulilionaire's operation. I'm a satisfied customer....twice over. Bill

Aside from the CarFax report, get a PPI done by a Porsche technician - dealer or reliable independent (not to be confused with the cousin of a friend who works on foreign cars). The large discount may be due to problems with the car that are not related to the body work. Bill

+1 on getting your alternator load checked. I had a situation where my alternator voltage would start out (cold engine/alternator) with a charging voltage of about 13.5 and droop to about 11.0 volts as the engine/alternator came up operator temperatures. Appearantly, voltage regulators have a heat related failure mode. The fix was (after eliminating battery, ground/power cables) replacing the voltage regulator. A voltage regulator costs about $20.00-25.00 and can be replaced easily.....once the alternator is removed from the car. I, in fact, didn't work on the alternator. I took it to a auto-electrical shop recommended by my dealer. The shop had a new voltage regulator and installed it and tested it; part and labor $85.00 + tax. Now my charging voltage is about 14.3 volts. Bill

"1) Check front hood level from bumper - hood is lower than the bumper. Should they be even?" The hood / front bumper relationship is correct. The hood is aligned lower to eliminate wind noise. Bill

Can someone explain how the results of the suit covering MY01 to MY05 996s/986s excludes cars that have been "in service" for ten years. That would seem to eliminate MY01 to MY03.5 cars from consideration. BTW this is part of the verbiage in the settlement: "The following Porsche Boxster and 911 vehicles that experienced or will experience IMS related engine damage are included:" Just wondering.......seeing how I own two (an MY02 and an MY03) Stuttgart grenades. Bill

Kevin, I wish I could help with the voltmeter problem. I don't understand the nomenclature "pure". I would suspect that there is a compatibility problem between the 996 cluster and the 986 circuit board........although there is no such problem with the oil pressure gauge. You might run the situation past the folks at PA Speedometer or the manufacturer, VDO. As to your question about the PST2 / PIWIS having an enabling function for the voltmeter, there is none. You can check the system voltage to compare with the voltmeter indication. When you find the solution to your problem, please let us know what it is. Bill