Replace or repair Anti theft control box

[tsquareweb]

2000 Porsche Boxster

My alarm was submerged in water this morning after a bad rain storm last night. I woke up to the alarm sounding, pulled the seat and pulled the M535 alarm control module out. I dried it out and cleaned it up, but when I put it back in nothing happen. The only difference with it out and in, is that the buzzer sounds while the key is in the ignition with the box back in. Windows, convertable top, locks and ignition don't work. I can't even pop the front hood. I was able to jump power to the windows to get them to go up, but that was with the box out.

My question is, does something have to be reset when it is pulled while the alarm is going off or is it dead? If it is dead and I order a new one, what has to be done to get the new one to work?

[Loren]

Have you checked the fuses?

If there were internal shorts then the immobilizer\alarm\central locking control will likely have to be replaced. That will require IPAS codes and reprogramming with a PST2 or PIWIS.

[juniinc]

sorry to hear that. it's gonna be $$

[tsquareweb]

I did check all the fuses that delt with it, unless there are more than the ones under the drivers dash. It was working while it was under water. I rolled the window down before pulling it, but after putting it back I couldn't operate the windows. I was able to send power to terminal 18 to get the windows back up. I couldn't get the front lid to open using terminal 31 though.

I just hoped there was a procedure to do after plugging it back in.

I guess it is back to the dealer. A simple drain hole under the seat would prevent that problem. Well, it has one now.

[Loren]

There are drains but they are likely pluged. Keeping those drains clear has been discussed here many times. IMHO a bad place to put a critical controller.

It needs to be checked with a PST2 or PIWIS tester -- but it does not sound good.

[juniinc]

not under the dash, check the small/blue fuse(15AMP?) on your alarm module,,, hopefully that's whats wrong other wise this can be very frustrating.

[1schoir]

2000 Porsche Boxster

My alarm was submerged in water this morning after a bad rain storm last night. I woke up to the alarm sounding, pulled the seat and pulled the M535 alarm control module out. I dried it out and cleaned it up, but when I put it back in nothing happen. The only difference with it out and in, is that the buzzer sounds while the key is in the ignition with the box back in. Windows, convertable top, locks and ignition don't work. I can't even pop the front hood. I was able to jump power to the windows to get them to go up, but that was with the box out.

My question is, does something have to be reset when it is pulled while the alarm is going off or is it dead? If it is dead and I order a new one, what has to be done to get the new one to work?

Tsquare:

As Juniinc says, there is a 15 amp fuse at the back of the alarm control module. You might get lucky if that one blew.

You should definitely check your drains to make sure you don't get water into the passenger compartment, even if you have drilled a hole into the floor to avoid future flooding problems. With that hole in the floor, you have to be careful if driving in parking lots that sometimes flood.

There are drains located under the front hood, to the left and right side of the battery. The ones that probably caused your flooding are the ones that are located directly beneath the V-levers (one left and one right), at the lowest point of the foam liners. They clog very easily, even if you don't park under a tree, etc... An easy test is to take a quart of water and pour it into each drain hole while collecting the drain water from underneath in a pan. If you have about a quart of water in the pan that you put under the car in front of the rear wheel, you will have established that there is no water going into the passenger compartment.

One other thing to verify is that your foam liners do not have any cuts/tears/rips, as water will then not go down the drains. Any rips can easily be repaired with black silicone sealer.

Regards, Maurice.

[tsquareweb]

The 15amp fuse was corroded, but I cleaned it up and put it back in. When I did push it back in, the passenger window went down an inch and came back up. That was the most life I saw out of it all day. I checked the board on both sides of the fuse afterwards and got 12 volts on both sides of the fuse. Still no windows or starting.

I read in a diagnostic manual under the alarm system " Note: After a fault occurs at the alarm and is remedied, the fault memory must be cleared."

Could this be the problem? I ask because I do not trust my local dealer at all. I brought it in for an oil separater, two days later I had a leak in my coolant expansion tank. It was leaking from a hole that looked like someone pried on it. They said, "you can't prove we did it, it will be $800.00 to fix it". No thank you!

[juniinc]

I doubt it

The 15amp fuse was corroded, but I cleaned it up and put it back in. When I did push it back in, the passenger window went down an inch and came back up. That was the most life I saw out of it all day. I checked the board on both sides of the fuse afterwards and got 12 volts on both sides of the fuse. Still no windows or starting.

I read in a diagnostic manual under the alarm system " Note: After a fault occurs at the alarm and is remedied, the fault memory must be cleared."

Could this be the problem? I ask because I do not trust my local dealer at all. I brought it in for an oil separater, two days later I had a leak in my coolant expansion tank. It was leaking from a hole that looked like someone pried on it. They said, "you can't prove we did it, it will be $800.00 to fix it". No thank you!

[Tool Pants]

I think the fuse on the control unit is just for the comfort features, such as interior lights and electric windows.

[wilder212]

I had this problem as well about a week ago when a huge rainstorm came thru DC. It started with my door lock on the dash lighting up and my door locks becoming disabled. I drove to work thinking it just might be a bug. When I came out of work that afternoon, my car wouldn't start. I could turn the ignition switch on and all the lights would light up, but when I turned the key - nothing.

I called the Porsche dealership and they walked me through a few questions. When I found the soaking wet carpet under my drivers side seat, I immediately chalked it up to a faulty new top that I had just gotten installed less than 1 week ago. But after speaking with the Porsche guys and them giving me a rain test, it turned out that my rain gutters were clogged. The runoff rain had drained into my driver's side area and short circuited the alarm control unit.

The solution:

I had to have the car towed to the dealership. They in turn had to: take the seats out, deodorize the carpet and dry it, replace the foam insulation, replace the alarm control unit, and re-connect the alarm with the keys.

They initially told me that it'd be around $2500 but they were able to get it down to $1800.

The sad part in all this (besides the money) is that there really isn't any viable solution to prevent this from happing again! The best recommendation they had was to get a car cover and to make sure the car is free of debris - especially before I put the top down.

[Tool Pants]

I have had 3 other convertible cars, English and Italian. They had drains in the floor pan under the seat.

So what does Porsche do? The floor pan under the seat is shaped like a bowl. So put the control unit in the bowl with no drain.

Time to get out the drill.

When the 987 first came out one of the first things I did was to look under the seat to see if it was still there.

[juniinc]

wow $2500 that is really steep+car not running for aweek

Every time I wash her, that's also my frequent rain test,,,something everyone should be doing!

[tsquareweb]

I bought the anti-theft control box from Sunset Porsche, a dealer in Oregon (sunsetporsche.com) for 15% above cost. My local dealer wanted more than twice as much. They didn't want to use the part at first, but I talked them into it... or thought I did. They told me they put it in and everything was working fine, they just needed a second remote that they had to overnight. The next day they called me and said the control box I brought them didn't work and they had to swap it out. Since it didn't come from them they could only warranty the part not, but had to charge me the labor again. When I picked it up I tried to open the trunk, hood and gas tank, but couldn't. I went back in to have them explain why it wasn't working and they said they didn't know what all was not working before the anti-theft device went out. They fixed the not starting issue and sent it out the door. They knew the rest wasn't working, but "I didn't ask them to fix anything else". Enough ranting about the dealer.

The actuators for the front hood (levers under the drivers side door), the gas lid and the back trunk all "buzz" and I can feel them vibrating, but all three don't work. I can't imagine all three going out at the same time unless the old anti-theft device shorted them out. If they were shorted out, I can change them, but I would hate to change them and that isn't the problem. I looked over the wiring diagrams, but can't find anything. Does anyone know what I should check next?

[Chris_in_NH]

this is my solution for water under the seat. ;)

no, there is no heat build-up, condensation, etc.

whenever i have an 'issue' that i can't figure out, i always disconnect the battery for a minute to reset the DME/ECU. sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. (you'll need your radio code for a 2000MY).

sorry i can't be more help.

[juniinc]

both levers under the driver's side door should work manually(2000model)?

I dunno if that irresponsible dealer did it or not perhaps new key needs to be reprogrammed?

I bought the anti-theft control box from Sunset Porsche, a dealer in Oregon (sunsetporsche.com) for 15% above cost. My local dealer wanted more than twice as much. They didn't want to use the part at first, but I talked them into it... or thought I did. They told me they put it in and everything was working fine, they just needed a second remote that they had to overnight. The next day they called me and said the control box I brought them didn't work and they had to swap it out. Since it didn't come from them they could only warranty the part not, but had to charge me the labor again. When I picked it up I tried to open the trunk, hood and gas tank, but couldn't. I went back in to have them explain why it wasn't working and they said they didn't know what all was not working before the anti-theft device went out. They fixed the not starting issue and sent it out the door. They knew the rest wasn't working, but "I didn't ask them to fix anything else". Enough ranting about the dealer.

The actuators for the front hood (levers under the drivers side door), the gas lid and the back trunk all "buzz" and I can feel them vibrating, but all three don't work. I can't imagine all three going out at the same time unless the old anti-theft device shorted them out. If they were shorted out, I can change them, but I would hate to change them and that isn't the problem. I looked over the wiring diagrams, but can't find anything. Does anyone know what I should check next?

Edited May 31, 2008 by juniinc