JFP in PA

This can also be caused by a bad coolant level sensor, which is located on the bottom of the coolant tank.

The 2005's are hard to read in terms of which ones have the larger diameter bearings and which ones don't. I have seen early cars (March production) with the big bearing, and later cars (June) that did not. Only way to know for sure is to pull the gearbox and flywheel and then look............

That would work if the tank was one of the early ones without a connection, but if the connection available on the tank, it would be simpler to just connect it there.

From your other message as well: "Two Porsche dealers, and the shown TSB 1001, seem to say if you change the oil cooler to one of those new tiny ones, that you have to change all of this other stuff, add adapters etc. It is a mess. The simplest thing is to just replace the original part and drive away. There definitely is some connection between the oil pump in the front, the oil cooler on top , and the changes that would have to be made to the expansion tank in the boot. Changing the cooler will affect the velocities, the passage lengths, and the volumes. In any case, there must be some reason why Porsche says to change all of these parts if you want to use a different part than they originally designed for the application. I don't know what the reason is, and neither does anyone else that I talked to. But they all agreed that it must be done. I lost a lot of time, and a bit of money putting deposits down, and waiting for parts that I will not use, trying to follow well meaning advice, on how to Hot Rod the Boxster, instead of keeping it stock. This is relevant to the oil cooler thread because Porsche says all of these thing must be replaced when the oil cooler is changed on the original Boxster." OK, let's take this in steps: I have absolutely no idea why the oil pump has to be modified, if that is in fact correct. To my knowledge, the very old style oil cooler, the one without a top coolant bleed and that requires the adaptor plate to mate to the engine, is no longer available. As such, the newer design is the only available choice I can find in the Porsche parts system. As for the coolant tank, that has previously been discussed in this tread; the early tanks did not have a connection for the small coolant vent line on the top of the cooler to connect to, this was a design error that Porsche corrected. The small line lets air trapped in the coolant section of the oil cooler vent to the surge tank; the first cars did not have this line and Porsche discovered that air collected in the oil cooler and caused problems, so they modified all cars going forward to have the line from the top of the oil cooler to the tank. Early cars that still have their original coolant tanks (and there cannot be very many) can still use the newer cooler with the nipple by simply plugging the outlet with a small section of blocked hose. As most of the early cars have long since changed out their surge tanks (they were prone to cracking), they probably already have a tank with the connection for the line (albeit plugged for the same reasons); if they do, it is a simple matter of running the rubber hose from the cooler to the tank. Either way, the new cooler works. As for the oil pump section modification, I know the 97 cars had a different oil pump than the later cars from the part numbers in the PET, but I have no information on how it is different. Physically, the unit looks exactly the same as the latter part numbers, so what ever changed is not readily visible. The 01 and 02 cars also have different oil pump part numbers, but without explanation as to why. Porsche often changes part numbers as they update components due to information accumulated with owner miles, so that is nothing unusual. It is also not unusual for Porsche to want to sell you the updated components, particularly if the one you have are known problems, which appears to be the case in the TSB 1001 you quoted. But what I have confirmed is that if you read the entire TSB, you will note that it clearly states that it is addressing oil/coolant intermix problems on the 97 cars. If further goes on to state that even if the oil cooler on the car is found not to be the cause of the intermix issue, you should change out all the other parts while you are in there as well. So the other parts are not actually required to change out the cooler, but are precautions against a future intermix issues from the other components. What I can tell you is that, as mentioned earlier, we have quite a few cars running the newer and larger cooler, including a couple early models, none of which had the oil pump changed or modified, and all of which continue to do fine everyday to my knowledge. So I fail to see any validity in the comments about "velocity" or "passage lengths"; and as the oil cooler had nothing to do with the intake system, the "breathing" comment is equally questionable. I am sorry you seem to have run into so many brick walls on this simple and very common upgrade, but as mentioned, with so many done and having run a lot of cumulative miles, I know it works.

You can have both the tank and the cap pressure tested (cheap and only takes 15 min.), the caps tend to fail more frequently than the tanks, but the tank is not immune to failure. If either, or both fail the test, they should be replaced (current cap ends in 04). As for the coolant, Porsche OEM coolant is pretty good stuff from both a protection and longevity perspective, but it is not overly compatible with some aftermarket brands, sometimes leading to gelation and one Hell of a mess to clean out. As you note that you have been diluting the original 50/50 coolant/distilled water mix (you should always use distilled water), you are probably a good candidate for dumping the system and refilling with new, particularly if you need to swap out the tank.

Pre filling the oil filter, OEM style canister or spin on, is always a good idea, shortens the time until the engine first develops oil flow and pressure on start up.

You seem to like posting responses as comments to my profile, which are unfortunately being truncated so I cannot see everything you write. Either post here on the forum or send me a PM so I can read everything you have to say. Thanks.

I really don’t see the relevance to this tread as the oil pump is on the other end of the engine from the oil cooler…………….

I think a couple of things changed; originally, the early five chain motors were +/- 4 degrees, and were pretty good at meeting and holding the range. The switch to the three chain design and the later VarioCam Plus seems to cause more cam deviation, so the value was moved. In reality, early or late motors seem to do just fine as long as they stay within the +/- 6 range, so a lot of dealers and shops started using that as the “default” range for everything.

The OEM style filter is symmetrical and can go in either way.

Glad you got it sorted out.

As far as I know, all M96/97 engines are +/- 6 degrees.

Low voltage may or may not throw a code. Sometimes a dying alternator will trigger ABS and PSM MIL’s, but not always. I am also not comfortable with any voltage readings below 14V at idle. I’d suggest load testing both the battery and alternator; the sequence only last a couple of min., but will confirm the viability of both units.

Normally, we like to run a profile on the Durametric prior and post installation; just to verify that the cams are were they belong. The car in question is a five chain motor, which is more tolerant of IMS bearing install screw ups, but not immune. Logray is on the money as far as looking at the cams, but if you have access to a Durametric, I would hook it up and look at the cam deviation values, both of which should be rock steady and idle and +/- 6 degrees. The actual values are always an odd set of numbers, but they need to be in that +/- 6 degree range. The Durametric is a much quicker and a very accurate way to check this out. In the future, if an Indy suggests "we don't need no cam locking tools", run…………..

If you find the three VIN’s limiting, look at Durametric’s Pro version; it has no limits. For general purposes, we use Actron’s OBDII units, which can read and clear most codes on just about any brand, even on Porsche’s, with the exception of what PCNA call “protected code areas” such as the PSM/PASM, ABS, Airbags, and even the service alert. For those, you either need a Durametric system (we use the Pro version), or a PIWIS. We looked into acquiring a PIWIS, but when we found out that the first years lease was in the $17K range, we opted to add another bay and lift to the shop instead. The AutoEnginuity rep keeps trying to get us to take one of their units, but both the economics and its lack luster performance compared to the Durametric keep ending the conversation.

As could the reflash; I'd take that back to stock as well to see what happens....................

Several possibles: Level sensor leak, pressure sensor leak, oil cooler leak, etc. Best bet is to clean off the engine, then look for where it starts.......

If it came off easily, you are fine.

We have never seen this type of repair last either. You also need to consider where the tank is cracked; sometimes it is necessary to remove the tank to see or attempt to repair the crack, making a temporary repair a little ridiculous..........

Do an online search yourself, you can get a new one here, online, for about $60-70:

+1 That is the center hub of the clutch type pulley, which can and do fail as you described. You will need the special tool, a new pulley, and belt, and you will be back in business....

I'm not sure about there being a common junction for the wiring, as the signal and heater wiring serve different purposes I would expect not; but there are diagnostics to check for the sensor signal and heater voltage using a multimeter. I'd be running them before spending more money on sensors....

I seriously doubt that replacing the O2 sensors will fix this; two of the codes (0154 and 1119) are telling you that there may be a wiring or connector issue in the O2 circuits: P0154 is the code for the interruption of the signal from the senor ahead of the 3 way cat on bank 4-6. P1119 is the code for a non functioning sensor heater.

Should be row D, fuse #5.

All Porsche's have had lighters that are "hot" at all times for many years specifically to accommodate using a battery maintainer connected there. If yours is not hot, check the fuse.