Tool Pants

Electrical problems are a pain and about all I know is how to change a light bulb. One of the best persons for electrical issues is Sandy. I have been told you can drive a car several days with a fully charged battery even if the alternator is not charging, as long as you do not use the headlights because they draw a lot. It appears that your battery is discharging faster than the alternator can keep it charged. I trust you are not operating a microwave or a heavy duy sound system off your electrical system. If you had one of those little racing batteries - but you have an Optima. I do not know how to check the draw with the engine running. I guess you need the kind of amp meter that can clamp onto the battery negative cable. What does reset the immobilizer mean?

I have had 3 Autozone batteries, the standard lead acid type. The first 2 would not hold a charge. I would drive all day and park the car. In the morning the battery was dead. Sometimes when I got home and put the battery on a 10 amp charger, and the battery would be dead in the morning. Each battery had a bad cell per the hydrometer test I did. A guy there would test the battery in the car in the parking lot. I would ask him what kind of test, but he never answered. He either did not know or just knows how to push a button on the battery tester. I do not know if he did a true load test. I do not think they want to find a bad battery when it is one of theirs under warranty. The last time the guy tested the battery and said nothing to me, but spoke to the manager. The manager said I would have to leave the battery so it could fully charged and then load tested. Problem is I had the battery on a 10 amp charger for hours and drove 5 minutes down the street to Autozone. I'm not sure if they ever did a real load test. I told him he could charge the battery all day long, but the proplem was a short in one of the cells. I had the proper voltage, just not the amps. That is when I got the 3rd battery and so far no problems. I do not know if I would rely on Autozone. More so if you got the Optimas there. If you have a local battery shop take it there. You said this started 2 months ago. What was going on before then and what battery did you have? Did the problem start when you put in the first Optima or the first alternator? You need to give more history. You can test the draw of the electrical system yourself. Search on milliamps. Here is one. http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?s...mp;hl=milliamps

I like these trivia type questions. But most of the time it tuns out some object found near your car has nothing to do with your car. The last trivia I remember was this part. Turned out to be a part from a garage door.

This has been noted before for the 996. For some reason the number shown in the DME is lower than the odometer. I don't know why. Would have to ask Peter Smith or one of the other mechanics to see if they know. http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?s...56&hl=miles

GEIGER Syndrome strikes again.

Tighten the nut up. Clean the area with brake cleaner. Then take another look. That valve is not a known source of leaks.

If it looks like this it is the oil pressure relief valve.

I spoke to Peter briefly because he is at the parade. He said the diagnostic line could be shorted out. The K&L line shorted to ground. But I guess both are the same problem. This is over my head. He said it could take hours to figure out the problem. You might contact Scott Slauson in Connecticut for the name of a shop. http://www.cvrpca.org/cvrcha.php

Interesting. For some reason the dealers tester and your obd reader cannot communicate with the DME. This is a Peter Smith type question. A few years ago I needed a smog on my 1997, but my check engine light was on. I had 6 fault codes, but the big one was a faulty DME. Car ran fine. If the DME is faulty then you cannot be sure if the other 5 fault codes are real or not. You replace the DME then drive the car to see if any of the 5 come back. My DME was replaced under California's 8 year emission warranty. Back then my 1997 was just 1 week shy of being 8 years old. The PIWIS was able to communicate with the DME even though the DME was faulty. Todd Holyoak has experience with the DME. Maybe he can figure it out.

Do you have the second remote to try?

You got the part - might as well put it in. No problem with the set screws. I did use loctite. Does the link still come with 2 set screws, but with a threaded hole for a 3rd? If so I would add the 3rd. Less of a chance of the link pulling out of the cable. You can go to a hardware store and match it up. It is a coarse 8/32 by 3/16".

http://www.986forum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4961

After 9 years of Boxster ownership I finally joined last month. 9 years ago the Boxster was still new and when I checked out the local PCA back then there were maybe 5 Boxster owners. The members had older air cooled cars. I knew about 200 local Boxster owners so I passed on PCA. I saw that they had tech events. Back then the tech chairman for the Loma Prieta Region was Ralph Maines who owns a few 356s. I asked Ralph if I could go to the tech events even if I was not a member, and bring a "few" of my Boxster buddies. Ralph said "bring them on." I got to know the members from the 2 local regions over the years, Golden Gate and Loma Prieta. It is because of people like Ralph I finally joined. I joined his region rather than Golden Gate. Bought some Cayman and Boxster technical publications from the local dealer a few days ago. I asked the parts guy who I have known for years for a PCA 10% discount. He knew I did not belong to PCA. His jaw dropped when I pulled it out - the card I mean.

Those instructions are the original prepared by Peter Smith. I have known Peter for 9 years because he was the shop foreman at my local dealer. The part numbers have changed a bit over the years, as has the wires used for the newer cars. Peter has updated the instructions since then.

http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?s...entry8128 Your profile says you have a 2001 996 and it is wired the same way as a 1997-2000 Boxster.

It is an electric smog pump. I comes on only when the engine is cold, runs a while, then shuts off as the engine heats up. The pump is not known to go bad. But. Have someone show you how to remove the engine lid. The pump will be staring you in the face. Locate the electrical connector to the pump and practice removing and putting the connector on. Start the engine when it is stone cold. Listen to the sound the pump makes - it sounds like a vacum cleaner. Seconds later remove the electrical connector to the pump while the engine is running. I was hearing a bearing noise and thought is was from one of the pulleys for the serpentine belt. Engine was cold. So I remove the electrical connector to rule out the pump it out as the source of the noise as the pump is noisy.

Clamping washer. 999 507 534 02.

I play a lawyer, in California. If Carmax sells car on consignment and this is California then I know what happens. I had this case for a client a few years ago. Client left his classic Mustang Boss 302 at the Mustang Ranch for sale on consignment. He then moved out of the area. Mustang Ranch sells parts for old Mustangs and restores them. The owner of the Ranch was also a licensed vehicle dealer. A few months later client came back and his Mustang was gone. Owner sold the car and was having financial problems and used the money for business expenses. Client though he was protected because he did not give the pink slip to the Mustang Ranch. A dealer does not need the pink slip to transfer title. Title to the Mustang was in someone else's name, and that someone would not part with the Mustang. This situation is covered by the California Vehicle code. Mustang Ranch was my client's agent. The guy who bought it was an innocent third party. My client's remedy was to sue his dishonest agent for money. I did and got the money, part of which came from the Ranch's bond. The owner of the Ranch was also arrested. The guy who bought the Mustang kept it. That is the way it is in California for consignment sales.

On my January 1997 Boxster I had my clutch replaced 3 weeks ago by Marvin Weitz who owns an independent shop. Marvin worked at 2 local dealerships before going independent. Before the transmission was remove and the car was on the lift I could see there was some seepage. After the transmission and flywheel were out I went back to the shop for another look and took the picture. There was a film of oil on the back of the engine case. It looks black in the picture because clutch dust sticks to the oil. Could not really tell where it was comming from or if it was comming from more than one place. I consider this minor to normal for an engine with 67,000 miles. In 9 years of ownership I never saw an actual drop of oil. I had to make the decision to try the latest reseal procedure, or just replace the clutch and put it back together. I believe in Murphy's Law - if it ain't dripping leave it alone. I gave it some thought and also talked to Peter Smith. Then I decided to have it done. Flywheel was out anyway and I had 67,000 miles. Plus my Boxster is so old I had the original style intermediate shaft flange seal. So Marvin replaced the rear case bolts with the "blue" sealing bolts. The intermediate shaft flange/seal. And I got the 4th generation Cayenne style seal. Time with tell if I should have followed Murphy's Law or not.

Is this your house....

Open it up as if you were going to replace the battery and let it dry out to see if it will start working.

First a truck. Now a sedan. Next it will be a tractor....

Has nothing to do with the original engine oil drain plug question, but here on the left is the 16 mm triple square anti-tamper bit with the hole in the middle, and on the right is a standard 16 mm triple square. For the 5 speed gearbox drain plug. Seems VW/Audi did not want 5 speed owners to easily to change the transmission oil. The bits are the same size. The left one looks bigger because the bit holder is larger.

You might need to clean the plate to see the number. Here it is on my 1997 Boxster.

If it is really rounded past the torx bit stage, then you go to a triple square/xzn 10 mm bit and pound it in with a hammer. It is the type of bit on the right. One of the mechanics taught me this. For others. Left is 8 mm allen. Middle is T50 torx. Right is the triple square. For the children at home - you never drill into a drain plug unless you are prepared to have your car towed if you DIYers cannot get the plug out.