UPDATE!! I Broke My Porsche GTS! PADM Failure!

I finally schedule a time slot to have the PADM Disabled message in the instrument cluster addressed at the dealer.  And yes, one of the PADMs (there are 2 per car) did fail and had to be replaced.  Fortunately for me, the part and labor was all covered by warranty!

For more detailed background, please check-out my previous post and video here:  I Broke my Porsche GTS!!

Anyway - check out the video where I talk about the cost to repair, as well as another warranty replacement (rear engine lid grill) that was made at the same time....  All I can say is WARRANTY took care of everything!  Otherwise big $$$$$$$!

Thank you for visiting - please visit more of my videos and leave your comments with any questions or if you'd like me to get in touch.  Appreciate your time!

Plastidip Removal from Porsche Wheel - NO CHEMICALS!

Earlier this year I decided to switch the color of my wheels back to the original platinum satin finish that the car came with.  As you may know from my previous posts and videos (check out my You Tube channel:  GTSilver for this and many other Porsche DIY videos!) I sprayed my factory wheels with matte black Plastidip a while back.  Absolutely loved it!

So I captured the 'dip removal process.  In a previous post (check it out:  http://plenums.blogspot.com/2015/12/plastidip-removal-991-c4s-rear-wheel.html  I did a "refinish" of one of the wheels that needed touch-up after a tire swap, but in that case I tried couple of different techniques.  This time, I decided to forgo the chemicals and attempt a full removal with just my fingers / elbow grease!

Getting right to it, here is the video, out on my YT channel GTSilver:

I say it throughout the video, and I'll repeat it again here:  the amount of effort to remove the dip from a wheel is directly proportional to how thick and evenly you applied the spray in the first case.

Anyway -- thanks for visiting!  Please subscribe to my email update list, as well as my You Tube channel GTSilver!

Porsche 991 COV & Vacuum Lines Overview

UPDATE:  I'm adding links to couple of documents from Porsche specific to the article below....

WM 2400IN

COV Replacement Bulletin (2015)

I've come across soooooo many posts online asking questions about vacuum lines, exhaust valves, change-over valves and related that I thought I'd put together an overview with some pictures and illustrations....

Probably the 2 most prevalent discussions about the vacuum system in the 991 are centered on Change Over Valves (COVs), and periodic "failures" that 991 owners have reported (myself included!).  Also keep in mind that the S cars, and cars with Porsche Sports Exhaust (PSE) rely on COVs to open-and-close the exhaust valving.

Here is a link to one of the Rennlist 991 conversation threads that covers COV failures / replacements:  "Heater quit working again"  Search Rennlist, as well as the 6Speedonline boards, for more details....

Here is an illustration and picture of the COV part:

1. Fresh Air Connection
2. Vacuum Line for the Actuator
3. Vacuum Connection

Here's a pic as posted on Rennlist 991 forums by member STG:

As you can see in this picture, the part # is clearly visible imprinted on the side of the device.

Schematic, showing the basic relationship of each COV and vacuum...

The above schematic is straight from the official Porsche Service Information Book, and posted to 6SpeedOnline forums by member SM_ATL.  I'll get more into the vacuum line routing later in this post.

As for how many COVs are on a 991 (MY2012.5 through MY 2016), # ranges from 7 to 10 per below:

1. Air Cleaner Flap
2. Acoustic Simulator
3. Heater Shut-Off Valve
4. Exhaust Flaps
5. Coolant Shut-Off Valve on Engine Bypass Circuit
6. Tuning Flap
7. Shut-Off Valve on Heat Exchanger for Gear Wheel Set Oil
8. Shut-Off Valve for Clutch Fluid Heat Exchanger (PDK ONLY)
9. Tuning Flap (cars with full X-51 Power Kit ONLY)
10. Tuning Flap (cars with full X-51 Power Kit ONLY)

#9 and 10 are not a mistake on my part.... cars with X-51 option have multiple tuning flaps apparently. 

And here is an illustration from Porsche with locations of each of the COVs listed above:

The most common complaints of COV failures are the Exhaust Flaps and  Heater Shut-Off Valve.  As a 991 owner I've experienced multiple failures of both....!

Here are some vacuum line routing illustrations:

For PDK cars:

For MT cars:

Exhaust Flap line routing....

In the above, the top part of the picture is the 3.8 standard exhaust, whereas the bottom-half of the picture is for the 991 with PSE option.

Based on feedback from nearly all who've posted to 991 enthusiast forums on the topic of COV failures, it seems that no matter what the root cause, the service departments at dealers will NOT proactively replace COVs that haven't failed yet.  There have been multiple part # revisions, perhaps indicating attempts at mitigate future failures -- but other than a brief campaign for the earliest MY 2012 991s there has NOT been any recall or service bulletins to replace suspect parts.  The SB that I refer to here is #TI-64-12 and NHTSA ID #10048760 if you'd like to look it up.

If you'd like to replace yourself, know that there isn't a WM specific to the procedure.  However, there is WM 2400IN, which provides a lot of good pictures and location detail.  

I'll continue to compile other COV resources, and post updates from time-to-time.  Contact me, or comment below, if you have questions or want to share any other experiences of your own!  Thanks!

991 C2S Cab Purchase Assistance....

I recently had the opportunity to help out a fellow Porsche 991 enthusiast in his quest to purchase a 991 C2S Cabriolet.  I came across Dan in the 6speedOnline 991 forum.  He was asking questions about and expressing stress over potential purchase as he was located in Los Angeles, and the car in Pensylvania.  I couldn't resist, and responded to his post that I would be more than happy to visit the dealer and check-out the car for him!  And that is exactly what I did!

First, some back-story:  The car Dan was interested in was being sold by a P-car dealer, as a 2014 new car.  It has ~420 miles on the odometer, yet was purchased by the dealer in 2013.  Build date was July 2013 and paperwork stated that it was purchased by the dealer late October of same year.  So, the first red flag is that this particular car has been sitting on the dealers lot for a year!  This fact raised questions about why, was there something wrong with the car, did someone refuse delivery, and so on.  All legit concerns with a car almost year-and-a-half old (from build).  Next, the dealer punched the warranty in December 2014, so that they could get it off their inventory as an unsold car and receive credit for future allocations.  This meant that Dan would be getting a "new" car, never titled, but would NOT get the full warranty!  Another legit concern....

As it turned-out, the dealer / car in question just happen to be the same location where I purchased my '14 C4S about a year ago!  And, better-yet it is located just 10 minutes from my house.  so stopping-over and checking-out the car would be a no-brainer.

A bit about the car:  It is as mentioned above a 2014 C2S Cab, in Saphire Blue Metallic exterior,  black convertible top, and two-tone grey and black interior.  Here's a list of the options:

911 Carrera S Cabriolet
176 Sport Exhaust System
250 Porsche Doppelkupplung (PDK)
423 20" Carrera S Wheels
446 Wheel center caps with colored Porsche Crest
603 Porsche Dynamic Light System (PDLS)
636 ParkAssist (front and rear)
640 Sport Chrono Package
658 Power Steering Plus
748 Power folding side mirrors
840 SportDesign steering wheel
970 Two-tone leather interior
BR Leather Interior in Black/Platinum Grey
N1 Sapphire Blue Metallic
P06 Power Sport Seats (14-way) with Memory Package
P3E Premium Package Plus i.c.w. Power Sport Seats (14-way)
P3H BOSE Audio Package
XDA Wheels Painted in Black

Sticker was in the neighborhood of $136k, and current price is roughly $122k.  Dan was looking to get an even better deal if the car checked-out.  So I made an appointment and visited the car on Friday.  Here's some pics I took of the car after I drove it!

Side mirror with painted lower trim option....

Convertible top in perfect condition...

VIN and build date...

Two-tone interior Black/Platinum Grey

Original sticker....

Showing dash with mileage, nice SD wheel with paddles, aluminum trim....

This car is configured very much like my own C4S (albeit a C2S cab!), so I found the car very familiar to get in and drive, and took it out for a 10 minute trip over some different road surfaces.  Car proved to be very solid!  No squeaks, rattles, or even excessive road noise.  The convertible top was fully insulated and did a great job keeping exterior noise to the minimum.

After driving, I did notice that there was one message in the computer - something about "Limited Steering" and the dealer wasn't quite sure what it was... Some type of fault code, and dealer promised to have it addressed / cleared before delivery.

Overall the car is in perfect, brand-new condition.  One small, tiny scuff mark on the nose (easily buffed-out), but otherwise the car is just beautiful and I wouldn't hesitate to buy it (if this were a car I wanted).  I suggested that Dan shouldn't have any hesitation trying to strike a deal if he felt it was the right car for him.