Looking for diagnostic help with a durametric

[boxster_nut]

My 1997 boxster will not stay locked no matter what I try. Doing a lot of reading seems to point to bad microswitches in the doors. Problem is, I can't figure out which door to replace the switches. Looking for someone in SwPA/pittsburgh area (perferably a fellow enthusiast) that has a durametric and can determine where the problem is. I can get the part(s) and do the repair.
Any help is appreciated.
Thanks
J

[piper6909]

Hey J,
You'll be hard pressed to find someone willing to use their Durametric since there's a limit on how many cars it can be used on. They'll either want to keep it in case they buy another Porsche or keep the resale value up by having as many unused VINs left as possible.

Have you tried an Indy like Foreign Traffic, just North of Pittsburgh? Maybe they can run a scan for you at a reasonable rate.

Good luck.

[theiceman]

why not just remove the door actuators and do some troubleshooting with a schematic. you may even be able to do this with the harness disconnected at the through body connection. there are 4 switches in the drivers door actuator. probably 2 in the passenger.

[boxster_nut]

Originally Posted by piper6909

Hey J,
You'll be hard pressed to find someone willing to use their Durametric since there's a limit on how many cars it can be used on. They'll either want to keep it in case they buy another Porsche or keep the resale value up by having as many unused VINs left as possible.

Have you tried an Indy like Foreign Traffic, just North of Pittsburgh? Maybe they can run a scan for you at a reasonable rate.

Good luck.

Thank you - I did not know this fact about the durametric. A rather lame characteristic of the durametric. Guess Porsche want revenue streams anyway they can.
Yes, the thought crossed me mind about contacting an indy and see what they can do.

[boxster_nut]

Originally Posted by theiceman

why not just remove the door actuators and do some troubleshooting with a schematic. you may even be able to do this with the harness disconnected at the through body connection. there are 4 switches in the drivers door actuator. probably 2 in the passenger.

That is exactly what I would do IF I had the schematic/wiring diagrams. Do you know where I can get them withing paying a fortune? I have the Bentley manual which is useless - no schematics what so ever.

[elav]

Durametric has 2 versions. The Enthusiast version will support up to 3 VINs. The Professional version is meant for mechanics and will supports an unlimited number of cars. There are people on eBay that rent the Professional Durametric for a reasonable price.

Can you explain the issue more? Is it locking and immediately unlocking? When does it do this (inner lock button, fob, key in door)?

The microswitches in the inner and outer door pulls (handles) only tell the window to drop a bit for when you open the door. It is the latch assemblies that tell it to keep the window down, etc. It also has the lock mechanism. If I were you, I would do the testing like the iceman suggested starting with the driver's side door latch.

BTW, from time to time my car almost seems to get out of sync. Going inside the car, shutting the doors and using the internal lock/unlock button a few times (until the light is off) seems to get things back in sync. Can't hurt to try.

[piper6909]

Originally Posted by boxster_nut

That is exactly what I would do IF I had the schematic/wiring diagrams. Do you know where I can get them withing paying a fortune? I have the Bentley manual which is useless - no schematics what so ever.

I sent you a private message. I have a schematic of the Central Locking system for a 97.

[boxster_nut]

Originally Posted by piper6909

I sent you a private message. I have a schematic of the Central Locking system for a 97.

I responded, thank you!

[theiceman]

I have one for post 2000 if you need it . Just not sure how to get it to you high res enough to read.

[boxster_nut]

Originally Posted by elav

Durametric has 2 versions. The Enthusiast version will support up to 3 VINs. The Professional version is meant for mechanics and will supports an unlimited number of cars. There are people on eBay that rent the Professional Durametric for a reasonable price.

Can you explain the issue more? Is it locking and immediately unlocking? When does it do this (inner lock button, fob, key in door)?

The microswitches in the inner and outer door pulls (handles) only tell the window to drop a bit for when you open the door. It is the latch assemblies that tell it to keep the window down, etc. It also has the lock mechanism. If I were you, I would do the testing like the iceman suggested starting with the driver's side door latch.

BTW, from time to time my car almost seems to get out of sync. Going inside the car, shutting the doors and using the internal lock/unlock button a few times (until the light is off) seems to get things back in sync. Can't hurt to try.

Oh, more things I didn't know about the Durametric....thanks!

I didn't do a lot of tests with the car windows and roof in different states, but here are a few scenarios:
1 Both windows up, roof closed, engine off.
Hit the lock button on the key fob
Both doors lock. Exterior lights flash, 1 second passes, both doors unlock.

2 Both windows up, roof closed, engine off.
Insert the key in driver side door handle lock. Do 2 quick turns, CW if I recall correctly
Both doors lock. Exterior lights flash, 1 second passes, both doors unlock.

This next scenario may no be accurate as I don't remember the exact details, but anyway:
3 Both windows up, roof open, engine ideling
Push and hold the Roof Close button.
Passenger side window drops down the whole way.
Drivers side window drops down about 3/4".
Roof closes and latch secured.
Manually close passenger side window the whole way
Drivers side window closed automatically when roof was latched
Turn engine off, Exit vehicle
Lock with key fob.....Scenario 1 occurs.
Lock by putting key in drivers side door lock, scenario 2 occurs.

A truth table showing states of all the switches for proper operation would be really helpful.
Thanks

[boxster_nut]

Originally Posted by theiceman

I have one for post 2000 if you need it . Just not sure how to get it to you high res enough to read.

I sent you a message.

[piper6909]

Originally Posted by boxster_nut

I sent you a message.

Email sent.

[piper6909]

Originally Posted by boxster_nut

3 Both windows up, roof open, engine ideling
Push and hold the Roof Close button.
Passenger side window drops down the whole way.
Drivers side window drops down about 3/4".
Roof closes and latch secured.
Manually close passenger side window the whole way
\

It seems to me that the passenger side mircoswitch isn't telling the central lock system that the door is shut.

Try a scenario 4 (Scenario 3, but with the doors open.) If both windows operate the same as the passenger side door operated in scenario 3, then that should confirm my opinion.

[piper6909]

If you find it's the passenger door latch microswitch, PM 78F350. He's scrapping a 2004 and apparently has parts from other cars for sale.

https://986forum.com/forums/boxster-cayman-parts-sale-wanted/86423-scrapping-2004-base-model-soon.html

[theiceman]

often the door actuator is just completely worn out and needs to be replaced, they are not expensive. You are driving a Porsche afterall, spend a few bucks to fix it.

As you can see in the below pic, the switch actuating cam plastic coating has worn away and the metal quickly destroys the switch. you can see someone has attempted to spray white grease in there to no avail.

[piper6909]

[Deleted. Mis-posted]

[tcoradeschi]

Originally Posted by theiceman

often the door actuator is just completely worn out and needs to be replaced, they are not expensive. You are driving a Porsche afterall, spend a few bucks to fix it.

As you can see in the below pic, the switch actuating cam plastic coating has worn away and the metal quickly destroys the switch. you can see someone has attempted to spray white grease in there to no avail.

I’d say that you are spot on, sir!

Why the passenger side wore out first is one of the great mysteries of life, but I had the exact same problem.

Tried to “fix” it, and quickly realized that sourcing and installing the appropriate VW replacement latch was a far better use of my time and energy.

[elav]

The genuine Porsche part is pretty expensive. I have heard to stay away from the after-market versions from non-Porsche suppliers. As tcoradeschi mentioned, getting the right VW part makes sense. I believe you need to trim some plastic in order to make this work. I've also read of people having issues getting these to work correctly until the transfer the electronic from their Porsche latch to the VW latch. I don't have any direct experience with this as I was unaware of the VW path when I needed new latches and purchased Porsche versions.

[theiceman]

Originally Posted by elav

The genuine Porsche part is pretty expensive. I have heard to stay away from the after-market versions from non-Porsche suppliers. As tcoradeschi mentioned, getting the right VW part makes sense. I believe you need to trim some plastic in order to make this work. I've also read of people having issues getting these to work correctly until the transfer the electronic from their Porsche latch to the VW latch. I don't have any direct experience with this as I was unaware of the VW path when I needed new latches and purchased Porsche versions.

Yes you can definitely move over the electronic part over to the VW mechanical latch. Just figuring out which one is a bit tricky. I have had zero issues with the after market one i put in as it was a 9 pin. But i definitely kept the old assembly in case i need to revisit in the future.

[PLP]

Originally Posted by boxster_nut

My 1997 boxster will not stay locked no matter what I try. Doing a lot of reading seems to point to bad microswitches in the doors. Problem is, I can't figure out which door to replace the switches. Looking for someone in SwPA/pittsburgh area (perferably a fellow enthusiast) that has a durametric and can determine where the problem is. I can get the part(s) and do the repair.
Any help is appreciated.
Thanks
J

Lansing, MI area if you happen to be around I can let you use my Pro version (no vin limitation)