Problem with switching gears

[calessi45]

I am a new owner of a 1998 Porshe Boxster. It's an automatic transmission. When I recently drove it I noticed for a very short time that it had not changed from 4th to 5th gear and as I looked at the speed odometer I was going close to 60mph in 4th gear. (All of this happened within a minute or two) I pulled into the 1st place and noticed it smelled like something was burning. Not wanting to leave the car there, I hesitantly sitting in the parking lot of where I had pulled in waited about 5 minutes and decided I would drive to my parents house which was nearby vs my house that was all the way across town. From the time I pulled out I never had another problem...it went into 5th gear every time with no problem so needless to say I drove home. Can someone please tell me if they have experienced like this. I'm scared something major is wrong and I got a car that appeared to be an excellent deal but as it turns out maybe not. It was like it was briefly stuck in 4th gear for a minute. Thank you for any feedback. Btw it has 46,000 miles.

[JFP in PA]

I am a new owner of a 1998 Porshe Boxster. It's an automatic transmission. When I recently drove it I noticed for a very short time that it had not changed from 4th to 5th gear and as I looked at the speed odometer I was going close to 60mph in 4th gear. (All of this happened within a minute or two) I pulled into the 1st place and noticed it smelled like something was burning. Not wanting to leave the car there, I hesitantly sitting in the parking lot of where I had pulled in waited about 5 minutes and decided I would drive to my parents house which was nearby vs my house that was all the way across town. From the time I pulled out I never had another problem...it went into 5th gear every time with no problem so needless to say I drove home. Can someone please tell me if they have experienced like this. I'm scared something major is wrong and I got a car that appeared to be an excellent deal but as it turns out maybe not. It was like it was briefly stuck in 4th gear for a minute. Thank you for any feedback. Btw it has 46,000 miles.

 

It is very hard to diagnose something like this "long range".  When was the transmission last serviced?  Is the fluid level correct?  Is the trans leaking?

 

I would suggest not driving the car until you can get it into a Porsche shop.  It could be something simple, but these gearboxes are not cheap, so I would get it seen to quickly.

[calessi45]

Thank you so much for your reply. It only has 46,000 Miles on it. Should it have already had the transmission serviced? Can I check the transmission fluid level. It does not leak any type of fluids transmission or oil. I know probably silly questions but since I don't know I'm hoping to learn about this car by joining this site.

[JFP in PA]

Thank you so much for your reply. It only has 46,000 Miles on it. Should it have already had the transmission serviced? Can I check the transmission fluid level. It does not leak any type of fluids transmission or oil. I know probably silly questions but since I don't know I'm hoping to learn about this car by joining this site.

 

While the factory service interval is 90K miles, we normally do them at 40-50K in the shop, plus from 1998 to 2014 is a long time for any fluid to be in a car.  As there is no dipstick for the Tip trans (it is a long story on how to check it, but you can find DIY instruction's if you search on this site), so the car will need to be warm, up in the air, and level to check the fluid level, which is done through one of two openings in the pan on the bottom of the transmission.  If you do not have service records for the car, a complete drain and new filter would be a good starting point.  You might also want to get the transmission scanned with a  Porsche specific scan tool to see if their are any active or pending transmission codes after you get it serviced.

[calessi45]

Thank you so much! Your response was so very informative and you answered all my questions. One last question...would you recommend that I only get the transmission serviced at a Porshe dealership?

[JFP in PA]

Thank you so much! Your response was so very informative and you answered all my questions. One last question...would you recommend that I only get the transmission serviced at a Porshe dealership?

 

No, I would look for a qualified independent as they should be much cheaper and know the car, check with your local PCA chapter, I'm sure they have a list of preferred shops in your area.

[fpb111]

Find the "Wheeler Dealers" episode about the Porsche Boxster S. They buy it cheap with a sketchy trans and fix it with a fluid & filter change.