Jacking Up Car - Diaster - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

joshua6060 · 03-06-2008, 06:18 PM

Hi, I jacked up my boxster using the rear jacking point and then put the car up on 4 jack stands to start changing the break pads, after changing the pads, which went pretty smoothly, I lowered the car, secured all of the lugs, then opened the drivers side door and when I went to close the door, the door wouldn't close properly, the window sat on the outside of the convertible top frame and the door would only close all the way with a strong push, the window ramained on the outside of the top frame, what did I do wrong? How can I fix this? Did I ruin my car? Please give advice/help.....

JackG · 03-06-2008, 06:41 PM

Explain clearly how you jacked up your car and got it on 4 jack stands. By just using the rear jack point you couldn't have gotten jack stands in the front. Also, be clear on where you placed the 4 jack stands, and how you ended up getting it back down.

Also, if you roll the window down, does the door close OK? Do the door gaps line up correctly? Is the passenger door OK?

joshua6060 · 03-06-2008, 06:53 PM

I followed the steps on this website directly http://boxsters.addr.com/jacking.htm

If I roll the window down the door closes properly.

The Door gaps appear to be ok.

The passenger side door closes properly.

blueillusion97 · 03-06-2008, 07:25 PM

I dont think you messed up anything, atleast i hope. Did at any point you disconect the battery? Try this....1. lower both of your windows 2. Sit in the car and close the door. 3. Roll the windows all the way up 4. Check if your window lowers about 1/4" to 1/2" when you pull the handle to open the door if it does then everything should be ok, If not you might have some electrical issues and the window is not letting you close the door properly. Let us know how it goes

joshua6060 · 03-07-2008, 02:54 AM

No I did not disconnect the battery at any point.

I got in, rolled the windows down, closed the door, rolled the windows up, pulled the handle and the windows went down 1/4 of an inch. HOWEVER with the window all the way up, when I tried to close the door, the same problem still exist.

catmanluge · 03-07-2008, 03:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joshua6060

No I did not disconnect the battery at any point.

I got in, rolled the windows down, closed the door, rolled the windows up, pulled the handle and the windows went down 1/4 of an inch. HOWEVER with the window all the way up, when I tried to close the door, the same problem still exist.

Its probably a micro switch in the located on either the inner handle or outer handle.

joshua6060 · 03-07-2008, 03:10 AM

the window is functioning properly, it tries to lower and raise that 1/4 of an inch as you close the door,

when i close the door, something isn't lining up properly with the door

JackG · 03-07-2008, 03:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joshua6060

the window is functioning properly, it tries to lower and raise that 1/4 of an inch as you close the door,

when i close the door, something isn't lining up properly with the door

Just to be clear, with the door open, the window should always be down 1/4". The window should not go back up fully until the door is closed.

I see where my confusion was over how you got both the front and rear in the air. I've always used the alternate front and alternate center rear jack points, as shown in the Bentley manual. I've never done it like you did.

If the door gaps and door alignment are all OK, then it's extremely unlikely that you bent anything when jacking it up. It really sounds like a window regulator problem that happened to show up at a bad time.

joshua6060 · 03-07-2008, 04:20 AM

with the windows down, the doors close properly, the door gaps on both side appear to be the same, with the windows up, the passenger side closes properly, the driver side still doesn't close properly, when the window is up on the driver side and you pull the door handle, the window drops down that 1/4 of an inch, but when you try to close the door with the window up, the window sits on the outside of the top and the door won't close all the way without a STRONG push....

nola911 · 03-07-2008, 04:46 AM

Did you leave the key in the ignition and kill your battery?

... Just trying to cover the first base

JackG · 03-07-2008, 04:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joshua6060

with the windows down, the doors close properly, the door gaps on both side appear to be the same, with the windows up, the passenger side closes properly, the driver side still doesn't close properly, when the window is up on the driver side and you pull the door handle, the window drops down that 1/4 of an inch, but when you try to close the door with the window up, the window sits on the outside of the top and the door won't close all the way without a STRONG push....

I don't mean to beat a dead horse, but the written word can be misleading...

I understand that when you pull the door release, the window drops. What I'm not clear on is: when you pull the door release and open the door, then take your hand off the door and step back, if the window *remains* in the dropped position while the door is open.

If, once the door is open and the door handle is released, the window returns to the up position (not dropped 1/4"), when you try to close the door the exact thing you are reporting will happen.

In other words, the window *must* be in the 1/4" down position when you try to close the door. Even when you're not pulling the door handle to open it.

joshua6060 · 03-07-2008, 05:47 AM

Maxferran, No I did not leave the key in the ignition.

PS. I see that you are in Mandeville, I'm in NOLA

CJ_Boxster · 03-07-2008, 10:01 AM

THis is easy... You microswitch on the door latch (the part that locks onto the body) is malfunctioning, I bet with your door open, you lift your door handle on the outside, the window will drop and then raise up quickly after you let go of it. Ifs thats the case then its a microswitch.

In the meantime before you have a chance to repair it, You can lower your window a little bit before closing the door, then once closed, roll your window up.

You can also try slapping with an open palm, the latch mechanizim on the door. sometimes if its loose wiring it'll get the window to drop the 1/4 inch before you close the door.

joshua6060 · 03-07-2008, 12:44 PM

CJ, how do I identify this switch?

I hope you are right, and this is all it is.......

blueillusion97 · 03-07-2008, 09:47 PM

There is another possible solution that i found, assuming micros switch is not a problem you can try this maybe it will help.....with the top up close the door with lowered window then put it up and keep holding the switch in up position for about 5 seconds more. I will try to find some more info about that mirco switch, but mean while i would be very carefull closing the door if the glass is touching the top, you wouldnt want it to break.

Benny986 · 03-08-2008, 02:38 AM

have you tried to put the top down/up...

open the top, then make sure doors are closed, with the windows either up or down. then close the top. have someone look from the outside, if everything closes properly, then you are prob just fine.

joshua6060 · 03-08-2008, 02:48 PM

i have put the top up and back down and it appears to be working properly, however i'm still having the same issue,

also, can anyone tell me how to identify the micro switch that might be causing this? and how would i know if its broken or not.......

for now i have been dropping the window a little before trying to close the door.....

Bobiam · 03-12-2008, 06:36 AM

That microswitch just may be at fault, but the coincidence of this happening at this time is what bothers me. I just hope it's the mircoswitch rather than door alignment.

BUT, I am not totally in agreement with the provided alternate jacking instructions and would like to add comments about that.

First, that hockey puck is concentrating the lift over just a few inches. I took a 10--12 inch long piece of 4x4 lumber and used a circular saw to cut a channel down the center of its length. The channel cut should be approx 1/4" wide and NOT AS DEEP as the welded up piece that extends downward that you jack on...this allows all the lift to be supported by the bottom of the vertical welded piece along the entire length of the 4x4. Use this pressure distributing block as close to the front or rear as possible to avoid jacking the entire side of the car at once. I've just done a major project with this jacking setup and it works very well and easy.

Second, I would limit the jack stands height to just enough to remove the wheel/tire. Each extra inch that you jack the car using an alternate point (to accommodate your jack stand) requires a lot of extra force since car frame/body is being torqued and is resisting.

They put those installed jack points there for a good reason. The use of any alternate points is risky and I recommend that you heed what I've said above. I once learned this the hard way with a partially crushed underbody alternate jack point, but that was a different model sports car.

Bob

Techbones · 03-29-2008, 11:41 AM

If you are pulling on either the inside door handle or the outside door handle and the window drops to clear the roof that is normal. If as soon as you let go of the handle the window goes back up and the door latch is in the open position that is not normal. The window control does not know the latch is open. This is probably caused by a faulty microswitch which is built into the latch assembly. The microswitch is not available separately from Porsche which means you would have to replace the latch.