CEL - P1325 Camshaft adjustment bank 1

[Ahsai]

[talkenrain]

Just passed the local emissions test (DEQ). Finally... 

[Ahsai]

All right! Must also feel good knowing you just saved yourself $1k+ :)

[talkenrain]

Closer to $2k with the motor mounts and misc maintance and yes, it feels great. Very  accomplished and closer to my car. Oh and the new OEM motor mounts raised the exhaust at least an inch and really improved shifting stability (they where completely shot). Proper advance gives that extra power I'd been missing. Finally felt confident to step on it and it fells great (better than ever).

 

I truly can't thank you guys enough for all your guidance. I'm now not afraid of wrenching my Porsche...

[Ahsai]

Props to you. It's not an easy task (done properly) for someone new to 996 and I like the methodical way you diagnosed and repaired it.

[JFP in PA]

15 minutes ago, Ahsai said:

Props to you. It's not an easy task (done properly) for someone new to 996 and I like the methodical way you diagnosed and repaired it.

 

And props to you as well Duncan, this was no small undertaking by talkenrain, but he would not have pulled it off without your persistent help.  Well done

[Ahsai]

Thanks, John! Means a lot coming from you. I do enjoy virtual/remote wrenching :)

[JFP in PA]

Plus your hands stay a lot cleaner that way

[talkenrain]

Very true and again, thank you both....

 

Funny you bring hand washing up... I must have washed my hands about 50 times between doing something to the car in the garage then coming inside, washing my hands then getting on my main computer to load new pictures, ask a question or just update the progress. In hind-sight I could/should have just used the computer connected to the durametric in my garage.

 

Geez,

[JFP in PA]

1 hour ago, talkenrain said:

Very true and again, thank you both....

 

Funny you bring hand washing up... I must have washed my hands about 50 times between doing something to the car in the garage then coming inside, washing my hands then getting on my main computer to load new pictures, ask a question or just update the progress. In hind-sight I could/should have just used the computer connected to the durametric in my garage.

 

Geez,

 

To help making your life easier "the next time", get yourself a "Tub O Towels" for your shop:

 

These things are incredible for a quick but through cleaning of your hands or what not without having to visit some running water.  A quick wipe and your good to touch just about anything.  Also great for cleaning that pile of tools when a project is done. 

[Ahsai]

^Pro tips. Ordered!

[Schnell Gelb]

Passing Smog so soon after so much dismantling was amazing.

It will be interesting to read the follow-up . Leaks, ticking, Durametric readings. Wishing you an uneventful report !

BTW , on the farm we used "Udder cream" or "Bag Balm" on our hands. Cold, wet weather+dirt from repairing farm equipment in the field =never a good combo.

Edited August 3, 2017 by Schnell Gelb

[talkenrain]

At the smog test facility (DEQ), all systems had become ready except the secondary air (after logging about 50 miles in all different conditions). I don't know about other states but in this state you can have up to 1 test device "not ready" and still pass. Its been very hot here in the northwest the past week with temperatures over 100 degrees. Combine this with some aggressive driving and stop and go traffic. So far there are no leaks spotted. Everything looks sounds and drives great. Engine pulls strong, no misfires.

 

I ran a quick Durametric test again today (see pictures). It still reports no errors. Engine cam timing is identical to before. I can now preform the "camshaft adjustment" on bank 1 and/or bank 2 from the program.

Edited August 3, 2017 by talkenrain

[Ahsai]

Very nice. Re the SAI, you may have one of those that won't set for 500+ miles (but eventually it will set).

 

You can try this. Start the engine in the morning and let it idle until the SAI pump has turned off. That should make the SAI readiness set.

[talkenrain]

Thanks, I'll give that a try but now that I've passed the emissions test and have my car properly registered, It's not an issue.

 

I still need to finish taking apart the old solenoid and publish the results. That will be coming soon.

[JFP in PA]

16 hours ago, Schnell Gelb said:

Passing Smog so soon after so much dismantling was amazing.

It will be interesting to read the follow-up . Leaks, ticking, Durametric readings. Wishing you an uneventful report !

BTW , on the farm we used "Udder cream" or "Bag Balm" on our hands. Cold, wet weather+dirt from repairing farm equipment in the field =never a good combo.

 

Not really.  Not all codes are treated equally under the EPA guidelines for passing the enhanced inspection process.  Direct emissions issues (EVAP, O2 sensors, etc.) have to run clean for a period of multiple cold starts to full warm up and highway speed drive cycles, such as the SAI system; other codes, like the VarioCam system are either good or not good, no drive cycles are required once the repair is made and the code cleared.

[Schnell Gelb]

For any student of Porsche Variocam diagnoses ,this was an interesting contribution to the Forum wisdom on the subject.Thanks for the time taken to document all this for us.

  Fortunately the O.P. was adept at both the electrical and mechanical tasks required for both diagnosis and repair.

A superficial diagnosis would have indicated a defective solenoid from the Durametric Actual Values ,the 13 ohm Resistance test,the click test with a 9v battery

Fortunately the P.O. also  identified the fundamental cause of the problem to be a defective solder joint in the DME. He concluded that was causing an over-current to one solenoid.

If he had simply replaced a defective (very expensive)solenoid , his repair success would not have lasted  long. And how many times would the repair cycle have been repeated before the root cause was identified ?

Opening the DME as part of Variocam Solenoid diagnosis seems like a good idea ! Carefully pry of the cover from the disconnected DME and smell it+ look for small burn areas.For those who do not have the skills to repair solder joints on the DME board, the only repair resource I have seen on the Forums is  Specialized ECU Repair. They charge almost $700 for a replacement ECU .So those soldering skills were very valuable to the O.P. ! Unfortunately the Solenoid windings were beyond repair.

Thanks Talkenrain and may your Variocam System be eternally perfect.

 

 

[dporto]

So, just as sort of a footnote to this thread... My fault code was 1341 (which is Bank 1 cam angle out of range). There's a whole thread on it here if interested: https://rennlist.com/forums/996-forum/983191-cel-came-back-finally-got-around-to-getting-a-durametric.html  Long story short, I replaced the vario-cam pads and chains as well as doing a bunch of other work. The vario-cam solenoids and actuators tested out fine before dropping my engine and doing all the work. Upon getting everything back together and starting the car, the CEL came back as well as the 1341 code. And now, I couldn't get the cam advance to activate on bank 1(with Durametric)! As the car seemed to be running very otherwise,  I decided that I would drive it while trying to figure out exactly what was going on. I certainly wasn't looking forward to dropping the motor and re-opening the bank 1 cam cover to get at the solenoid and actuator, and was beginning to second guess whether my initial test was flawed. After reading through this thread (and  another related thread in the boxter area I think) I was given some hope that the problem may be related to the DME. I also considered the "hard reset" of the DME, but as that seemed "nebulous", I decided to just dig in, remove the DME and open it up. It's very simple to get to - just pull the cart/foam trim piece behind the rear seats, remove the aluminum cover (3 screws) and unplug the module (4 or 5 locking plug mechanisms - very nicely designed). Upon opening up the DME (4 more screws) I found... ... ...(drumroll)... ... ... NOTHING! Well, not nothing, but nothing out of the ordinary! No burned components (that's a good thing) no de-soldered components etc. everything looked perfect. So, I buttoned it back up, re-connected all the plugs and put everything back together. Once again, I started the car and took it for a drive (about 25 mi.) it ran great, but the CEL remained on... Oh well, it was worth a shot. At this point I didn't have any more time, so I left the car until the following day. Upon arriving home from work (for which I use a different vehicle) I had some errands to run, so I took the Porsche. I think I put about 40 miles on it this time, but the CEL remained on. A day or two later, I took the car out again, and this time within the first 20 or so miles of driving it, the CEL went out! Wow... now my head is really spinning! When I got home, I decided to plug in the Durametric and see what's going on. The 1341 code was still present/pending, so I cleared that (which I had done several times before and since I had done all the work, and it always came back - along with the CEL). The cool part was that I was once again able to activate the vario-cam on both banks with the effects clearly noticeable...Yay! It's been about a week and a half now with roughly 80-90 miles driven and no CEL. It seems that in essence what I did was to reset the DME and clear it of any stored data by removing it from the car. While I won't be sure of the final outcome for a little while yet, I'm cautiously optimistic.

[Schnell Gelb]

Thank you for taking the time to add to our (still incomplete) understanding of the Vario Cam/DME system.

What we lack now is an explanation of why your CEL required a hard reset to clear.

It is also worth noting that some were skeptical about the usefulness of a hard reset.

I am just putting cam covers back on for a second time and am wondering if I should have tried a hard reset. Why?  Because like you, I found no problems and the engine has less than 1000 miles on a total rebuild. Guess what I'll do if the CEL persists :-).

Thank you !

[dporto]

"

"What we lack now is an explanation of why your CEL required a hard reset to clear.

It is also worth noting that some were skeptical about the usefulness of a hard reset."

 

  ^^Yup^^ exactly why I posted this! ** It should be noted that my "hard reset" didn't follow the prescribed technique that was outlined either earlier in this thread or maybe the other 986 thread. While that one required disconnecting the battery and essentially "shorting" the positive and negative battery cables - I simply disconnected the DME (without disconnecting the battery - I didn't do this on purpose. I just disconnected the DME sort of impulsively without really thinking about it. I don't recommend this!) in essence depriving it of power for roughly 10-15 minutes while I did a visual check of the PC board...  Good luck on your second time around! 

[dporto]

Just a quick update: I drove approximately 90 miles on Sunday and another 55 today and still no CEL. I haven't hooked up the Durametric yet to see if the 1341 code is back, but my hunch is that it isn't. In addition to the car just running great in general, my gas milage has gone from around 18 mpg to 21.8 over the last 140 miles - I'm sure this is directly attributable to the Vario-Cam operating properly now...

[Schnell Gelb]

This is very encouraging. We need more ppl/victims to try it ! That way we can build some experience of when/why it works and what is the best hard reset method.

Thank you for sharing with us.

[mdreef]

Question for you experts:

 

I have a 2001 996 Cabriolet with 135,000 miles and chain rattle at startup with CEL P1341.  Replaced the Bank 1 camshaft position sensor but that didn't fix it. Durametric revealed variocam deviation of 8 deg. so It's time I pull the engine.

 

I'm trying to get "all my ducks in a row" before I proceed with actuator pad replacement (the ones between the camshafts). I recently replaced the IMS and have the camshaft locking tool that came with the IMS tool kit so I think I'm good there.  I've been doing lots of research including reading all your great posts - thank you - and now getting ready to pull the engine out of the car this weekend.

 

I'm trying to understand the need to support the camshafts once the cam cover is removed.  Since I have to remove the cams to access the actuator assembly and both chain pads, If I'm careful to keep the relationship between cams correct by aligning the lighter chain links with the "dots", why is it important to support the cams?  As Ahsai mentioned, there's the least amount of stress from valve springs at TDC.

 

I'm just trying to understand.  I completely get it if I was only planning to replace the solenoid without affecting timing.

 

Thanks in advance!

[Ahsai]

Usually you want to time the cams when the cam covers are still off (seal the covers only after timing is verified). In that case, you need those cam bridges to support the cams while you rotate crankshaft to adjust/verify timing.

[Schnell Gelb]

I found it helpful to use M6 s/s studs +washer+nut to hold down the 'bridges'. I was paranoid about causing any avoidable wear on the aluminum threads with steel bolts. Yes. it is a chore to measure and source the correct size/length but imho ,worth it.