Found spring in drivers side footwell - what is it??
 

Hi 986Forum - hellos from Copenhagen

My first posting on this forum....

A few days ago I found a spring in the footwell of my 2003 Boxster S.
Cannot figure out where it came from.
Pedal assembly, seat, dashboard??
Have searched on assembly drawings but cannot find this spring anywhere.
Have driven very carefully since - everything seems normal.
Could have dropped into the car I guess but seems a bit far out!

Anyone familiar with this spring?
Thanks in advance!

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1532519732.jpg

Clutch pedal helper spring?

You mean there is a spring where I indicate on below sketch??
That would be a good explanation!

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1532521934.jpg

I think I get it.
Searched on boost spring function on the net and found that a lot of Porsche owners remove this spring for added feel - although the pedal gets stiffer. A lot of discussion on rennlist actually.
The pedal on mine was always very stiff - I now believe the spring has been broken since I bought the car - 5 years ago.

So now I do not need to worry - I am used to the stiff pedal and I do not need to try to get into the nasty upside down position to fix anything....

Thanks for hinting the source VeryRed997!

so, I've never understood this. Without the spring does it change the clutch engagement height at all? Mine engages at a point with pedal all the way out with hardly any play but does not slip.

Would not think it changes anything in the geometry.
It is merely acting as an aid to make the pedal less heavy - if I have understood it correctly....

The spring i depicted at the beginning of this thread - is ot the full spring or only part of it - anyone knows?

Part of it. That is broken. The stock spring is very heavy and gives sort of a vague feel to the clutch. This has been discussed here before. PM me, I have a few of the recommended lighter springs that work as a nice replacement. Not a Porsche part, but works great and the clutch pedal feel is 100% better. Do a search on the job/helper spring and take a look. It's not hard to change out, but it is a bit fiddly and there isn't a ton of room. Took me about 20 minutes to swap, taking my time, with beverages in between contortion moves. Of course, if you like the feel of the clutch currently just get the Porsche spring and go to town.

I will leave it for now and monitor how it feels.
At some point i may get back to you on that Geof3!

Or, just go ahead and order a new helper spring assembly. Pelican Parts number 996-423-081-19-M100

Thanks!
Will keep in mind!!

Lighter replacement spring keeps cruise control working by insuring pedal returns to switch and removes side to side play. Heavy stock spring makes it more difficult to modulate clutch as it kills pedal feel.

I was going to mention that removing the spring makes the pedal return sloppy, and that affects the cruise control switch. I have a broken spring and occasionally I have to lift the clutch pedal with my foot to get the cruise control to engage.

I have the replacement spring and its on my project list. :-)

Thanks for input - much appreciated.
I will leave the broken spring as it is and rather attend to replacing the broken rear muffler with a Brombacher Sound that I got delivered from Germany yesterday....
Exciting!

If its the helper spring Id leave it. When I bought my 2000S I thought the pedal was heavy, it wasnt I was just too used to driving our family Passat which has zero feel on any of the controls.

Anyways I bought a new helper spring and had a go at fitting it. Its not as easy as tutorials make out. Working upside down and in a very very confined space. I gave up in the end and so did the garage I took it too for them to have a go.

Its at the back of the kitchen drawer now were it has been for over 2 years now.

I just did this yesterday afternoon. Needless to say I only got the spring out and didn't put everything else back yet. :cheers:

Sometimes doing nothing is the right thing to do.....

The more I am thinking about the function of this spring - the more confused I get.
Let me describe how I think it is:
The spring is pre-loaded (meaning compressed) in the resting position - must be.
By pushing the pedal the spring gets more compressed and hence pushes back on your foot?! And when you let go of the pedal the spring makes sure that the pedal returns to rest position and touching the cruise control switch.
I am quite confident this is how it must work.
But I am far from sure.

My statement somewhere else in the thread that the pedal is hard to operate due to the spring being broken makes no sense at all. Must be due to something else....
I think my previous understanding of the spring function was to assist the foot - no now I get confused again

Heeelp!

No, it’s the other way around. Both ends of the spring are fixed and the spring expands as you press the clutch and essentially pulls the pedal back. With part of your spring on the floor, it is most likely the entire mechanism is broken (just plastic) and the whole thing may need to be replaced.

Still confused but on a high level.
So that means my first assumption was right?
But then i do not see how it at the same time can assist the pedal to go back and meet the cc switch??

I wish i could see a drawing of the pedal assembly from the side so i could see exactly what point moves where around the axis of the pedal - the exploded view earlier in the thread is difficult to interpret.

http://986forum.com/forums/performance-technical-chat/55610-clutch-mods.html
https://rennlist.com/forums/996-forum/343297-improved-clutch-action-dramatically.html

Thanks.
So glad to see i am not the only one being confused....

The spring is under compression when the pedal is all the way up. At the very start it compresses a bit more and yes, it adds a bit of resistance at this point, but after a little bit of travel it starts extending and reducing pedal pressure.

Thanks for clarifying - I think I get it.
My understanding is sketched below - not exactly an engineering drawing but what the heck.
The compressed spring is applying a force to both sides of the pivot depending on the position of the pedal - hence the dual function - right?
Quite clever!

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1532950989.jpg

Yes, that's exactly how it works.

Isn't it gratifying when you understand how some piece of engineering works? Like you, I sometimes finding myself asking "how", then think, then sketch, then think some more. At some point there is usually an "ah-ha!" followed by a smugness as if I just figured out all of the mysteries of life.

Anyway, kudos for figuring it out, but perhaps even bigger kudos for asking "how"...that's becoming a lost art. It seems that more and more people care less and less about how or why something works, and when it breaks, they act like a child with a broken toy expecting someone to come and magically fix it. I find it all pretty sad, I just hope this isn't an evolutionary shift. :(

Thanks for your kind comment!
I was so frustrated over this I lost a couple of nights’ sleep......
But with a bit of help from the forum and then some sketching and thinking, the penny dropped.
Gotta keep that brain working!

Spring update
 

On racetrack yesterday - two more spring sections fell down into footwell after a couple of hefty rounds....
Indicating that there must be even more up there - the ending of the spring to the left is still missing. I am not worried about it anymore - but just for interest.
How long is this spring in uncompressed state - anyone knows?

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1533472436.jpg

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...944a2637aa.jpg


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks - my three parts are adding up to just over 90 mm.
So basically only missing a couple of mm that is probably still stuck in there.

Interesting to see the end colour of yours is red - mine is blue - sigifies what I wonder?

By memory there’s a few different spring rates depending on model/market and would answer why there is varying opinions on the spring aided clutch feel. I can say that the spring I had absolutely killed the feel of the clutch biting and resulted in me stalling on more than one occasion.
The McMaster Carr spring I have now offers no assistance but is enough to insure the pedal returns to the switch and prevents side to side play that is bothersome with the assembly removed.

Side note: I have a number of extra McMaster Carr springs available for free pickup in MA. Not worth shipping.