quick question on a stuck spoiler
 

Hi all -

I've been actively lurking here since I acquired my 98 Base model last year, continually leveraging your experiences to restore my neglected Boxster into my daily driver. I've gone through and replaced most of the common things - drop links, coolant tank, water pump, thermostat, motor mount, cleaned the front radiators, etc etc. Rear brakes are coming very soon. So, thank you for the collective advice that is repeatedly given out!

That said, I can't find a definitive example of the current issue. During a recent cold snap, the spoiler light started illuminating, indicating a fault. Sure enough, it's not deploying. I checked the relays and supporting electrical and all appears fine. This weekend I had my son work the manual switch at the fuse panel and noticed that it was trying to deploy and retract, but was stuck. I decided to "help" it a bit and got it to deploy and retract. However, it's now clear the left (driver) side has significant resistance.

My question is this: Is this the case when you'd typically replace the spoiler assembly? Are there some other steps that I should be investigating to resolve?

Thank you...
matt

I'd remove the whole assembly (it pulls out in one glorious piece) and investigate what's binding. There's only one motor and it's in the center of the assembly with the slides on each end. Have you a manual or Wayne's 101 Boxster book?

Thanks for the response! I figured that was where I was heading, but thought I'd check first. I'll pull it and check it out... I have Wayne's book, but I don't have the Bentley manual yet - that and a Durametric are on the list...

Maybe it just needs some lubrication? Take the wing and the black center section off and squirt some lube on the poles.

I've got a 987 spoiler at home so I took it apart just to see how it works. It's a marvel of engineering except for some plastic gears. I bet your problem is one of the 2 plastic rack- gears. The cables are good old steel. I don't know if you can buy any of the guts individually but you could buy a used assembly if need be.