charlesl

Apparently I posted this in the wrong section a few minutes ago. Sorry about that... Gang, Does anyone know why the nut underneath the exhaust tip only allows forward/back adjustment only? If you haven't taken a close look, there is a stud welded into the exhaust pipe that goes through an oval slot in the tip. Loosening the nut allows adjustment, but not removal. I'm thinking about putting a cutting disk on my Dremel and cutting out the back of the oval to make it a slot. Then I can loosen the nut, pull the tips off and polish them properly on my workbench. Anyone know of a reason I really shouldn't do that? Thanks! -Charles Raleigh, NC

Gang, I just finished my PSE installation. I compiled all of the links from here and other forums in to a new thread in the 996 DIY section. I also included a list of lessons I learned along the way. This isn't a terribly difficult mod, but it is challenging. You have to be meticulous... Thanks for all of the help from everyone! -Charles

Gang, I just finished a full PSE install on my 03 996. Couldn't have done it without Renntech and all of the people here. I've compiled all of the links I used below along with a "Lessons Learned." I did not include photos of my install because there are lots of them in the links. Hope it's useful! Links: http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=6847&hl= http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=6173&hl= http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=6 http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?s...nstall+complete http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?s...&hl=pse+install http://www.belladessa.com/auctions/exhaust/exhaust.htm http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=7011&hl= http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?s...&hl=pse+install http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=4558&hl= http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?s...&hl=pse+install http://www.funcarsonline.com/ubbthreads/sh...true#Post108035 http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=7739&hl= http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?s...&hl=pse+install PSE Lessons: 1) Order the Y Piece P/N 928.573.727.03 from the Porsche dealer and Grommet P/N 443.906.102.G. from the Audi dealer. Use the Y Piece for Orient Red's famous vacuum connection. It works beautifully and is much, much easier. The grommet will give your installation a factory finished look. 2) Unless you ordered your kit from Suncoast Porsche, it will probably not come with the console switch. It's not part of the standard kit from Porsche. You will need: P/N 996 613 987 10 A05 (Right of Radio) or P/N 996 613 988 10 A05 (Left of Radio). NOTE: These part numbers have been inconsistent. My switch is specifed as 987 (Right) but it is most certainly a left side switch. If you have an open position on each side, this really won't matter. If you MUST have it on one side or the other, I would recommend having your distributor visually verify it before shipping. 3) STUDY the TSB for the PSE installation. Your Porsche mechanic has probably been to a class on this. You probably haven't! Make sure you understand every step of the process before breaking out the tools. This will save you endless hours of frustration later. I probably read through it 5 times before starting. Get the parts out of your kit and make sure you know which one goes where. Do some "test" assemblies before actually putting the parts in the car. 4) Read every link in the list above. These are people who've done the installation and you can learn a lot from them. Study the photos so you know where everything goes. 5) The wiring diagram talks about connections to the relay. If you look at the bottom side of the relay where the silver spade connectors are, you will see numbers for each spade. These do not count! It's the numbers on white Relay Socket that count, not the numbers on the relay! These numbers are REALLY hard to see. I took a red sharpie and "colored" each one so I could see it. I also drew a "map" of the connector. I marked the top of it with a red "T" and then drew a little picture on paper with all of the slits and their numbers. I then flipped it over to the backside and drew a map of that. This helped a TON. Trying to figure out which slit is which while you're under the dash is very difficult. 6) To properly prepare the electrical connector for the vacuum switch and the 2 wires that connect to it, get a length of small black plastic flexible wire conduit, and place the length that comes into the engine compartment. You can get this stuff at any auto parts store or Radio Shack. This will prevent the signal wires from inadvertently shorting out by coming in contact with a hot piece of the engine and melting their insulation. 7) To move the tailpipe from the old muffer to the PSE, you'll need to move the V-band as well. Don't struggle with this! Take the bolt completely out and insert two screwdrivers. One through each hole from the inside to the outside. THen squeeze the handles together to spread the band. Move it in one movement from the old to the new. If it gets bent, don't worry. Squeeze it back together with a pair of channel locks until the bolt will pass through again. 8) The new muffers will smell for the first few outings. This is normal and will eventually go away. 9) Remove the driver's seat. Someone here did one without removing it and I tried it that way, but eventually realized I was just struggling way too much to move around inside the car. It's much, much easier with the seat out. 10) The wiring was really daunting to me at first. I just couldn't keep up with everything and kept getting confused. Here are some tips. 1) Go ahead and tape the gray/pink wire back out of the way. You're not going to connect it anyway. 2) Start with the easy wires. The brown one is a good start. The Gray/Green from the switch to the relay is next and then the Red/Gray from the switch to the relay. The three Red/Blue go into slot two of the relay. This isn't entirely obvious. The longer, single Red/Blue goes to B10 in the fuse panel. In my kit this had a connector that just didn't fit. I clipped it off and spliced it into one of the other Black/Red wires in B10. It doesn't matter which one. This is just a power source. 11) I had a lot of slack in the wires after everything was connected. I formed a loop out of it and zip-tied it behind the relay carrier.

You probably could but they'll eventually wear off on their own. I'd just ignore it. -Charles

You can get them here: http://www.fvd-web.com/fvd-usa/ Prepare yourself for sticker shock. -Charles

You don't want to use WD40. It's a very common misconception that WD40 is a lubricant. It's not . It's a Water Displacer (hence, the "WD" in the name). That said, it will lubricate for a short while until it evaporates. Like someone else said, when you find the sqeak, use a lithium lubricant. -Charles

Agreed. 100%. If my local dealer was a good as Suncoast I'd be buying from them all the time. I usually call Suncoast to find out if something is in stock before I order it. If there's only one or two showing in their inventory, they'll put the phone down and walk out for a visual count! Talk about great service. They always ship quickly as well. Good company... -Charles

Hey Kim, Yea, I'm pretty sure Suncoast Porsche does their own "value add" on top of the standard kit. There were several parts included that were not specified on the TSB. They added in an extra "Y" connector but it's not the rubber one. It's a white plastic one with male fittings. Therefore, Suncoast also included 3 more of those rubber "L" fittings that are female on each end. In other words, everything I need is here to do the Renntech vacuum line for the PSE. Pretty cool! -Charles

Gang, Just a curiosity question, really. What does this "Secondary Air Pump" do? I gather it's the device in the back left corner of the engine compartment. Thanks in advance! -Charles

Update: The cans are installed. I only made one boo-boo. I had the passenger side can COMPLETELY installed, tail pipe lined up and then...... I realized I'd left the stupid clamp off between the cat and the muffler :( So I took it off and started over again.... As has been noted in some other threads, the console switch part numbers are completely unreliable. My switch clearly says: 996 613 987 10 A05 Right of Radio It's undoubtedly a LEFT of radio switch... Anyway, the braided lines are in the engine compartment and I just zip tied them out of the way for now. I'll have time next week to get into the rest of the installation. First impressions. It's loud. Wow, it sounds like a completely different car. So far I really like it and I see now why everyone wants to do this mod. -Charles

Hey bud, OK, cool. I knew this was a universal kit that would have extra stuff. I see what you mean about the leaving out the 2nd check valve. If I come off the vacuum point that you found, it'll just be two check valves in a row. No need for that. By the way, Suncoast Porsche actually packed another vacuum "T" in the kit. It's not the same as the Porsche/Audi "Y-Piece" but rather plastic "T." They also put in enough of the male/male vaccum "L" shaped pieces to make it work! I like the look of yours so I ordered the part from my local dealer. Huge, huge thanks man. I'm going to post a new message when I'm done that's basically a compliation of all the links I found on the PSE install both here and elsewhere. Maybe we can add it to the DIY or Mods section? -Charles

Hey bud, I'm ahead of you already! I called my local dealer and ordered another "Y piece" to do the vacuum hookup just like yours. I have no idea why Porsche makes it so much harder. I plan to use a long section of heat shrink tubing from the passenger compartment down to the vacuum switch. I'll call the dealer tomorrow and add on the 443.906.102.G part you mentioned. Probably not entirely necessary but it'll look factory. Do you have any idea why the TSB and the kit come with 4 braided steel hoses? I can't see any reason for more than two and the TSB only mentions two. Thanks man. I know you've been told this before, but you really rock. -Charles

Gang, I just received my PSE kit from Suncoast Porsche. They include everything on the TSB, plus quite a few extras. New cat clamps, console switch, extra vacuum bend unions, and even another vacuum "T" fitting to do Orient's famous connection. Their prices are not the best, but they ship quickly, always have what I need, and really support PPBB. They come up to BRBS every year and donate door prizes and do tech talks. That's good enough for me. My plans are to swap the cans and run the braided steel vacuum lines into the engine compartment for now. I'll come back and do the rest of the electronics next week. Photos:

Yea, just paint them. If you know someone with a bead blaster, have them blast all the paint off so you can start from scratch. If not, just use some sandpaper. It's not necessary to sand all of the paint off. Just get the rust off and get them clean. Prime and paint... Charles

Does anyone know why replacement guage faces are so incredibly expensive? I found a set of red faces but they were $455. Sure seems like 4 plastic disks would be significantly less than that. I asked Eric (of Bumperplugs fame) about this and he'd already looked into it. He determined that it just wasn't something they wanted to get into. -Charles

Gang, I just finished installing the B&M Short Shifter in my 996. It's B&M Part # 45135. Some things I learned along the way: 1) Some gear shift knobs don't have the set screw or the collar. You just twist and pull like crazy until it slips off. 2) After the shifter is installed in the tower, the instructions have you tighten down the adjusting set screw and then locking it with the jam nut. You need to tighten the adjusting set screw until the shifter is really hard to move, then loosen it up a 1/4 turn. This will push the bushings fully into the base. I didn't do this and had to adjust it after I got the whole car back together. Twice even. 3) On my 996, there is no way to get a 6mm allen wrench onto the set screw with the console installed. I could obviously take the console back out but that's a lot of work. Instead, I covered the jaws of my channel locks with tape and just gripped the blue bushing and then loosened the jam nut with a 19mm crescent wrench. -Charles

Thomas, I had the same thing happen on my Boxster S. I caught the knob with the end of a cleaning towel and snapped it off flush. It can't be glued. I tried. Also, the post can't be ordered separately from Porsche. HOWEVER! It is a replacable part. Here's the trick: You need to talk to one of the mechanics at your local dealer. Whenever they swap out a bad cluster, they'll often take them apart and keep the parts that are still good. My mechanic had a whole bag full of these plastic posts. He just gave me one. I then just gave him $10 for being such a great help! I have photos of the disassembly and reassembly process if you need them. It's fairly obvious. Just take the console off the car and then remove the instrument cluster. The cluster comes apart in two halves and the posts will be right there. Just pull the old one out and put in a new one. Hope this helps! -Charles

Gang, I've searched through the archives and can't seem to find what I'm looking for. I'm trying to find out who makes a low dust brake pad for an 03 996 Carrera. I don't plan to track the car. Just something that will cut down on the brake dust (if possible). Does anyone have a recommendation? Thanks in advance... -Charles Raleigh, NC

Hi Gang, I'm new to the whole PSE thing and from what I've read, I would be plenty happy with PSE and no wiring. Seems that almost everyone leaves it in bypass all the time anyway. If I were to go this route, do I need to do anything to the exhaust to "hold" it in bypass mode permanently? Thanks in advance! -Charles

It's not that simple. Once the cluster reaches 62 miles (100 KM) it "locks" and cannot be adjusted by the dealer. However, these guys can take care of it for you: http://www.paspeedo.com/ Charles

Scott, Feel free to contact PEParts and discuss it with them. 800-593-8787. They explained how the pyro charge works and it cuts the web after the airbags are deployed. There is some delay but that's the function. Furthermore, the mechanism is tamper proof. It's sealed and PEParts said they could not disassemble it to replace the web. They tried a couple of them already. Anyway, it looks like my options are rather limited at this point. I thought about ordering a set of inertia reels and belts for an 02 and just disconnecting the pyro wires but I bet that would send some error code to the computer and I'd be staring at an idiot light forever... Anyone know for sure?

Well, the plot thickens as they say. I contacted PEParts today and they're more than happy to reweb my existing reels in red for $90 each. Fair price and I'd be more than willing to go with that. Unfortunately, in 03 Porsche added pyrotechnic charges to the seat belt reels that fire after the airbag deploys. It cuts the web and although this is a neat feature, it makes rewebbing the reels impossible. PEParts said they could not reweb reels from 03 onwards. So it looks like this retrofit is off the radar for me.... Bummer. Charles

Hi gang, Well obviously it's pretty easy to get to the seat belts to do the conversion. Paying for them, well that's another deal altogether. I looked around and the best price I could find for OEM Seat Belts in Red was $668.46. Wow, I'm not sure that's worth the price of admission. I did find this site: http://www.peparts.com They seem to have Porsche seat belts but their web site is looking pretty sad. Makes me wonder if they're still a viable company to work with or not. Anyone know of another source that might reweb my existing reels? Thanks! Charles

Hi gang, I did a search in the archives here for retro-fitting red seat belts and the only hit I could find referenced a thread over on Babblers that was really old. The photos in the post were all little red "X"s. Anyway, has anyone here actually done this before? If you have any directions/pics, that would really be awesome! Thanks... Charles

Yea, the trick is "986310" or "986320." You HAVE to enter all six digits of that code in the "Order Type" screen. Since this post here and another on PPBB, several of us 03/04 owners have made another trip to the dealer to get the OBC enabled. It works with the new dealer diagnostic computers and the old PST-II. The OBC display you'll get will be the 2001 style 7 segment LED display. The full dot matrix display CAN be added, but it's expensive. You'll have to replace the whole cluster and I'm just not sure that's money well spent. Maybe if you had a relative in the salvage business that could get you one off a wreck or something. Anyway, I went for the full 4-stalk approach. I know I could get 90% of the functionality I have now with a single momentary switch but I like the car to look as close to "factory" as possible. The full 4-stalk is a bit of work to install but I manged to get through it in about 2 hours. Let me know if you have any questions. I'll do what I can to help. Thanks! Charles