Potential fault code

[Berliner]

I seem to remember reading that the Boxster stores codes of faults which might be a potential problem. Do I remember correctly ?

I will be going on a fun road trip on the scenic byway south east of Portland. I'll probably have to have to car towed back to Portland, if anything goes wrong, not that anything has in two years. Should I get the codes checked ?

It is a 2001 Boxter S, built in Finland and being joyfully driven in Canada.

[Loren]

From the Porsche OBD II manual.

If a fault is detected and stored, the prevailing ambient conditions are also stored and can be read out later with the generic scan tool. This makes troubleshooting much easier because operating data are available that were present at the moment the fault occurred.

These ambient conditions of a fault are stored the first time the fault occurs. If the same fault occurs a second

time, these ambient conditions are also stored. Each further occurrence of a particular fault updates the ambient

conditions of the last time the fault occurred, i.e. the ambient conditions present the first and last time the same

fault occurred can be read out.

These ambient conditions can be read out only with the Porsche System Tester 2.

BTW... not all faults turn on the CEL - temporary faults do not mean that the problem can not be corrected without intervention. Many temporary faults are self corrected.

[Q-Ship986]

I will be going on a fun road trip on the scenic byway south east of Portland. I'll probably have to have to car towed back to Portland, if anything goes wrong, not that anything has in two years. Should I get the codes checked ?

You don't say how many miles are on your car, how far this trip will take you, or what/when you had for last service.

If you have your car serviced at a Porsche dealer, they may have performed the task you are asking about, which they call "Diagnosis [sic] system: read out fault memory." This is part of the maintenance schedule every 15,000 miles (24,000 km). If you drive less than 9,000 mi (15,000 km) per year, Porsche recommends a yearly maintenance, which includes the same "Diagnosis [sic] system: read out fault memory."

"Yearly maintenance" also includes checking fluids, tires, driveline, suspension, etc. Basically, they give the car a once-over. Expect about an hour's labor, like US$90, depending on where you are.

Seems like good, practical preventative care for longevity of your car and your piece of mind, no matter what or where you drive.

--Brian