Rear Spoiler
 

OK.....so I know my spoiler in theory goes up at speeds in excess of 75 mph....but how do I actually know if it is doing this ? Is there a dash light saying its up? Should I be able to see it in the rear view?
Thanks

Put something funny on the rear spoiler and watch people behind you SMILE!

There's a nice kit on eBay that replaces one of the dummy switches and light up to indicate spoiler operation, I've never seen mine go up but have been told it works

The spoiler is not visible while driving. One trick is to pull along side of a truck or trailer that you can see your reflection on the side of . Be careful though !

Take a picture with your iPhone...

http://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.ne...37687262_n.jpg

What if the top is up ? :)

Buy one of these and you'll never wonder again

http://img.tapatalk.com/c6e4c9a1-21be-555b.jpg

I usually just (as JD pointed out) pulled along a white truck or semi :p

Hit the manual switch on your fuse box panel by your left leg while the car's running and you can see if it comes up before you even take off. You only have to press and release the up button for it to go up all the way automatically, but you have to hold the down button for about 3-4 seconds for it to come completely down.

If you put the spoiler up manually, it will stay up regardless of your speed until the car is shut down or until you lower it manually with the switch. Upon a full lowering via the switch, it will resume its normal operation after that. If you leave it up, upon the next startup it will resume normal operation when you exceed 55mph.

If your spoiler light comes on when you start the car and extinguishes when you start moving, that means the system is working properly. If the light does not come on, the bulb is either burnt out or the system is not operating correctly. If the light comes on any time during your driving, that means that it is not working properly, and the spoiler is either stuck up, down, or somewhere in between. You can also check your fuse to ensure that it is intact just as another sign of whether or not the system's working.

If you want to find out the hard way, do twice the highway speed limit and see if the rear end sticks in the turns. (Please don't actually do this).

You don't flash the trucker do you ?

Feel the sudden and vast improvement in the car's responses as a result of the sudden increase in rear downforce.


In all seriousness, I have often forgotten to manually extend the one on my SpecBox (no electric assist on a race car) and it makes absolutely no difference to lap times or performance.


My response therefore to your question would be - who cares?

When I first got my car, I wondered if the spoiler worked also. You can't see it in the rear view mirror, so I put a long piece of masking tape across it at a 90º angle and went for a "spirited" drive. If the spoiler is working, the tape will be torn or pulled up when you stop and check it.

This one?

spoiler control indicator switch Porsche Carrera turbo 4S Boxster S 986 996 | eBay

Wow! For $79, I don't need to know that badly whether the spoiler is up. I guess if an officer, who knows Porsches, pulls me over in a 65 zone, I will know that it was working......:D

Ya that's the one. Weird, it was under $40 when I first saw it

Yeah, I bought that one a year ago for $30 shipped from the same guy. It works great, well, $30 great.

How was the install? Pretty straight forward?

Just curious. I would be in for $30-40 but not $80

Let's not over-think the problem here. Wouldn't the easiest thing be to just get a buddy to drive behind you and check that it goes up and down at the correct speeds?

That would work too... :)

BTW..

New lower price in case its easier to do this than have your buddy ride behind you :)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SPOILER-CONTROL-INDICATOR-Porsche-Boxster-S-986-996-TOP-/261073640659?_trksid=p5197.m1992&_trkparms=aid%3D1 11000%26algo%3DREC.CURRENT%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D14%26m eid%3D1254278968662817392%26pid%3D100015%26prg%3D1 006%26rk%3D1%26

Yes! This is what I was talking about.

Does the switch actually activate the spoiler as the fuse box switch does. What then happens to the function of the fuse switch?

How was the installation?

Install was easy. 30-45 mins. Pop off plate that holds the fake buttons, replace fake with the spoiler indicator. Remove gauge cluster, tap and run the wires from harness behind cluster to button. Put everything back together. The instructions provided were pretty good, if I remember correctly and the seller was quick to answer any questions I had.

This product is not a function button, you can not raise and lower the spoiler. It just blinks when it is raising and lowering and stays red when the spoiler is completely up.

One thing I do remember. When I installed it, my spoiler only raised 1/4 the way right after install. I don't know if it was because my battery was weak or what. After a quick 15 min drive, everything worked perfect and has been that way every since.

^^, the whole time I thought it was an actual switch. That's quite expensive for an indicator...

i just kind of stood up in the driver's seat with the top down and looked at the back of the car. did the same thing to figure out that it lowers when you get down to about 30 or 35mph.

http://forums.rennlist.com/rennforum...823_154005.jpg

And in regards to checking to see if it's up, I pull next to a black shiny car and check the reflection.

I thought it was a switch too. Was considering it, but I guess not.

If you just sit up and peak over the back you can see if the stocker is up. Otherwise click on the link for another option.

http://986forum.com/forums/show-tell-gallery/36284-new-wing.html

That's what I did, and I was able to see the spoiler sticking up, smiling at me! I'm a tall person, so a short dude may not be able to raise up that far to see the spoiler.