Waiting for the title...
The car is running great, but I can't drive it anywhere yet. I had thought the Tag Agency was going to hold my title application until I returned to get the rebuilt title, but they went ahead and sent it in for an Oklahoma Salvage title. It usually takes about a week for the new title to arrive, but this one is taking longer.

I took care of a few minor issues, but I don't want to do anything major until after I put some miles on it. I replaced the secondary O2 sensors and air injection pump, cleaned and lubed the brake light switch, then installed the matched lock tumbler in the door. Everything was smooth and easy except the lock tumbler.

I had to remove the door latch assembly from the inside of the door to get the old lock tumbler out. It's a kind of tight fit for big hands. While trying to pull the lock mechanism out, I inadvertently held the lock lever to the unlock position, causing the windows to automatically go down (a special feature on the Boxsters). At first, I had no idea why the window was going down, but knew that I could shed a few fingers if the window pressed them against the sharp metal edge of the frame. I barely got my hand out in time and only lost a little skin.
***Safety Tip: The first step is always "Disconnect the battery."***
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02/hand1519530296.jpg
The car is back out of the garage and covered. I start a week of day shifts on Wednesday and really hope to get the title before then. I have plenty of slack time at work, but can't be more than a couple minutes away from my office. If I drive it to work, I can give it a good cleaning and drop it off at the tire shop across the street for a new pair of rear tires.
For now, we just sit and wait.
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1519530538.jpg

It's been awhile since an update. I'm more specifically interested in how the claim on the carrier is going? I just bought a cayman for a friend and it showed up with damage. The carrier is blaming the insurance auction but I'm 75% sure he did it.

My claim for the damaged bumper and tail pipe is finally paying. I have half the money and expect the rest on Friday. I paid a little over $700 for the shipping and figured my cost to do the repairs myself would be about the same. The shipper decided to pay me directly rather than go through insurance. No doubt the claim could have been well over $1,000 if done through the insurance and he still would have had to pay the deductible.

Sometimes I just don't listen well...

I have been waiting for the title for about a month now. It normally takes less than a week. Something is wrong. The first time I went to the Tag Agency, I didn't quite hear them right. They told me that the Title would be on hold until I brought the car in to have the VIN and mileage verified. I thought they told me they were going to hold the title until I brought the car back to verify the repairs. So... when I brought the car in to have the repairs verified, they told me that I needed the Oklahoma salvage title first. Instead of looking at the car to verify the VIN, they sent me home to wait for the title – which wasn't going to be sent until they verified the VIN. My wife has said that I'm deaf in my left ear and just don't listen with my right.
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1520484262.jpg
Today I got the title released and it may be here as early as Friday. Then, finally I can drive the car. I drove it to the Tag Agency today to show them the VIN. I think that I could have been stopped by the police and ticketed for being unregistered. The ticket, noting the VIN of my car and signed by local law enforcement would have also served as documentation to get my title released and I would be fine with that.

I took the steering wheel airbag to a local shoe and boot repair shop. This guy has been in the business of leatherwork for many decades. He had plenty of high end cowboy boots to keep busy with and didn't want to take the airbag as a job. He was happy to check it over and had a lot of questions about the car. He told me to come back with a bottle and gave me some of his special glue. Wouldn't let me pay anything.
Herman's Boot & Shoe Repair:
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1520484329.jpg

Dirty cars. Finally I have some time and good weather tomorrow to clean them up.
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1520484410.jpg

Yeah, sounds familiar, my wife sometimes says it could be "selective hearing"...no clue what my sweetheart is talking about :confused: ;)

My suggestion for the 50th plate is "other"

or maybe OR :D

Tagged.

Video: https://youtu.be/v1XNsmwhqtI

The salvage title arrived in the mail today! I took that to the Tag Agency and quickly filed for my rebuilt title and got the car registered. (Custom plates will take about 3 months to get in Oklahoma.) Now I can daily-drive the car around town for a while to get a better feel for it and sort out some of the minor issues.

Getting ready to drive, the first thing I noticed was that the PS pump was noisy. I checked the dipstick and it was dry. I expect there's a leak in the tubing, but for today, I just topped it off.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1520921306.jpg
My first stop was a car wash. Up till now, I have just rinsed the car with a hose. It was good to give it a full wash. There's a long way to go still with a 'macro view' before I focus on detailing.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1520921376.jpg
Driving felt good. Just a lap on the bypass around town, then a run through the undeveloped industrial area. At one point, as I was a little side-ways on dirt, the PSM and ABS warning lights came on. I tried to reset, but the came right back when I started the car. Quick analysis showed a bad fuse. I had put a 7.5 amp where a 25 amp should be (E9). ...I'm needing reading glasses more often than I admit.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1520921423.jpg
It arrived with vinyl headlight covers installed, and I have them back on now. Until I get the car in shape, they are probably going to stay on. The covers aren't pretty, but underneath, the headlight lenses look new.
I've been looking at tires. The rears need to be replaced. I'm probably going to go with FFI500
and keep the Michelins on the front for a while still. I feel bad about mixing tires, but its purely a street car and I'm going to go with the Firestones all around when the Michelins start to wear.
The SE muffler and tip should be shipped later this week. Shipping that kind of stuff affordably isn't easy. I've talked the seller through how to pack it and I'm emailing him a FedEx label from my account.

Looking great, glad to see good progress :cheers:

I think it's awesome how you've brought it back to life! :cheers:

What a great story...can’t wait for the next chapter.

I like your tire choice. Mine are still good, but I'd like to hear how they work for you.

Kudos (as always) with your progress, and what a difference from the original posted pics of the car!

Just a thought...have you considered contacting the previous owner? If I owned this car and had to let it go due to flood damage, I would love to know that someone cared enough to bring it back rather than scrap it out. Who knows, they might even want it back...with a healthy profit in your pocket of course.

Thanks for the update, it looks great! Did you get the muffler and tip from the PCA classifieds?

MWS, It would be fun to contact the previous owner to let him know what has happened to the car, but I have no interest in letting it go. It's MY baby now.

PaulE, Yes, that is the muffler. Lance's first shipping quote was about $200. Our current plan will cost about $50.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1521264959.jpg
I drove it to work this evening and spent a couple hours on basic cleaning of door jams, the rollbar, and leather. The brakes are still shedding enough rust/dust that the wheels don't stay clean long. The car getting better, but with the soaking, dirt got everywhere. It will need a good pull-apart cleaning to get it where I want it. The current floor mats are just extras I had. I plan to get Coco Mats for it when I'm finished with the major work.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1521264994.jpg
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1521265020.jpg

I've found that the car has a fairly significant leak from the power steering rack. After looking it up in the service manual, there are no procedures to repair the rack other than replace it. I'm glad that the parts car I picked up has a good rack. I'll probably keep topping it off and drive it for the next several days, then swap it out next week. I have about 100 miles on the car now and I'd like at least 200 (even better, 500) before I garage it again for more checks, and service.

Looks great

Nice progress! thumpsup!

Nice work and I'm glad you are able to enjoy it!

Perfect time of the year.

Mike

Really enjoying the thread and the videos on Youtube! You've seemed to cover the big stuff, good luck on all the little things that will drive you crazy.

U R a braver soul than I would be--tho the job of drying it out would be simplified by the dry air, sun, etc of the Northern Sonora Desert.

This was a pleasure to follow and view (youtube videos). Hard work pays off and this is no exception. My commendation on the dedication my friend!

What a great picture. Looks like it should be in a Por sha advertisement!

Here's a fun contrast:
https://farm1.staticflickr.com/815/2...1fbf0948_c.jpg
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1522624441.jpg

I am still amazed at how quickly you turned this car around, outstanding job :cheers:

Saw your car in Grassroots Motorsports. Nice.

I had planned to drive it with the leak in the power steering rack for a while. At first, it didn't look too bad. After a couple drives, it seemed like I was just pouring the fluid straight through to my driveway. A few drips of PS fluid on the under carriage, I thought was okay. A few pints, not so good.
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1523673736.jpg
I stopped driving the car.
I wanted to fix it quickly and get back to driving the car, but life got busy. I covered the car and it sat for a few weeks. Eventually everything aligned – decent weather, decent health, time off, and space in the garage.

• Installed the steering rack from the '01 S parts car in the SE.
• Replaced the rear drop links and control arms.
• New rear tires (Firestone Firehawk Indy 500).
• Repaired some plastic panels.
• Rear spoiler was a little misaligned – fixed it.
• Installed a custom dashboard cover as a temporary cosmetic fix. (Hate it, poor fit and cheap looking).
• General cleaning.

Plastic repair. Plastic weld the cracks, but not worried about a smooth finish.
I used a Polyvance welding kit (Thanks to Oldcarguy)
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PsBPZAUZWE
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1523673832.jpg

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1523674437.jpg
I have the replacement SE muffler now, but I don't plan to install it until I take the rear bumper off for repair. No rush to get that done.
The cars needs an alignment after the work I did. Everything looks good and feels right when I drive. I was careful to mark everything and install the new parts to the same position, but I know that's not 'good enough' for long term. The shop in town is not comfortable doing a Porsche. I've learned that if a shop tells you that they are not comfortable working on your car, it's best to walk away rather than ask them to give it a try anyway. I'll probably have to drive an hour to Tulsa to get it done. That means setting up an appointment somewhere and using the better part of a day off to get it done.
Tomorrow there's a PCA event (Car Detailing Clinic) in Tulsa. I plan on going and driving the SE as it is. I drove it to work this evening and the check engine light came on. I have no way to check it until I get home in the morning. It's running smooth and sounds good, so hopefully it's a quick, easy fix.

I had a good drive today. Put over 150 miles on it. It felt good. My daughter and I went to the car detailing clinic with the Porsche club, then visited my son and grand daughter near Tulsa. The only problem with the car was that the heater was blowing cold air and the outside temperature was in the high 30s. The best remedy for that was closing the vents and turning on the heated seats. I think the mixing door for the heater is jammed.
The check engine light from last night was legit, but easy to fix. The bank 2 primary O2 sensor was failing. Maybe residual from the flooding – I don't think I ever cleaned that sensor. It took less than 15 minutes to jack up the car and replace with a 'gently used' one that I had on the shelf.

My daughter and I refueling the SE and THAT:
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1523757858.jpg

I am starting to feel that the basics of this car are sound now, but there is still a long way to go to consider it recovered. I still have lots of simple things to do, like replace the wheel center caps and reinstall the original steering wheel. As I continue to clean the car, areas I have not addressed yet really stand out. I also have some major things to take car of such as the dashboard and pulling the carpet out to dry it completely (underneath).

I've been daily driving the car for the last couple weeks. Today I did some minor cosmetic fixes. The 'S' badge on the trunk was damaged - cracked with the top of the S coming off. I replaced it today with a red S using some 3M tape.
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1525014877.jpg
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02/redS1525014919.jpg

I also replaced the center caps that were missing the Porsche crest with some silver ones. I don't like the result. The center caps with a plastic crest have more relief than the metal crests. I'm going to pull a faded set off one of my other cars and paint them Seal Gray including the crest and see how that looks.
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1525015750.jpg

My garage is occupied by another car at the moment, but when I get that project done, the SE is going back in for some major work. I plan to fix the rear bumper, install the correct muffler, pull and completely dry the carpet padding, fix the heater, and replace the dashboard. I bought a dashboard from an '03 996 that is 'Natural Brown Leather'. I'm going to attempt to dye that darker to match the Cocoa Brown and install it.
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02/dash1525016406.jpg
:cheers:

Trouble?
https://farm1.staticflickr.com/869/4...13fe1c8e_c.jpg

Driving to work yesterday and again on the way home, it felt like the engine shut off just for a moment. There was no check engine light, it didn't miss, or run rough. It was as though I had turned the ignition off, but only for a few seconds. I don't think that it fully stalled out, but there was no throttle response. Then it was normal again with smooth power through the full range, no hesitation.
Given that the car was submerged and left to rot for months with no care, I can't say that I'm surprised or worried. It's just part of the process of resurrecting a car like this. The first thought when it happened was a quick, "Oh ********************!", but when it quickly came back on and ran normal, my heart rate returned to normal as well.
What do I think is wrong? Umm... something electrical. Those pesky electrons can make all sorts of mischief. In this case electrical could be fuel, ignition, or engine control ($5 bet it's electrical-fuel). Bad ground, power, or signal. The thing that I don't like about troubleshooting intermittent problems is that they are hard to find when they are not occurring. I'm going to go for a few laps of the bypass around town and see if it happens again. Probably by this weekend, I'll 'pull the car offline' for a few weeks and put it in the garage for it's next major disassembly and servicing. In doing that I can trace through the systems and clean them up some more.

Thanks for the update, great picture :cheers:

Top notch gut feeling........I carry a new fuel pump relay just for these situations. Typically they leave you sitting for about 30 minutes.

The Next Problem
 

It wasn't really a surprise, but I was hoping it wouldn't happen. The throttle issue remained rare and intermittent. Other priorities came up, so I put off starting on the major work I had planned for the car. I kept driving and enjoying it. Then one morning on the way to work, the brakes started dragging.

I had this happen once before on one of my 1999s. A little water got into the brake booster. The moisture led to corrosion. The corrosion bound up the master cylinder. The car was still sort-of driveable. It started happening on my 1999 when I was about 500 miles from home and I quickly adapted to pulling the brake pedal back up with my toe every time it stuck. With the SE, I stopped driving it and set it aside for a couple weeks.

Today I got to work on fixing it. There's a great DIY on Renntech.org that I found the last time I had this problem. The biggest difference between the DIY and my experience is that the car they have is a right hand drive and mine was a left hand drive – The ABS unit is blocking access to replacing the booster on US cars and has to be moved slightly to make room. I recorded video of the process and I'll put it together and upload it in a day or two.

I removed the booster from my 2001 S parts car, checked it over, cleaned it a bit, and installed it. I still have to finish up with brackets and trim, then test drive. I'll pull apart the bad one for forensics and post some pics. I actually had considered pulling the booster out of the SE and checking for water in my initial recovery of the car, but that is just as much work as replacing it when it failed. I chose to be hopeful rather than preemptive. In the end, no loss other than a part removed from my parts car. I had the job about 90% done this evening when it was time to wrap up and go to work. I'll finish up tomorrow.

It's all back together and working well again. Here's some pictures of the corrosion that was binding the brake booster:

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1528610772.jpg

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1528610798.jpg

Here's the video of how I replaced the brake booster:
https://youtu.be/HA57cFfTUGA

That is why it is also important to change the brake fluid every 2 years. ;)

Regards, Markus

Well, that didn't go well...
 

One of the last major items on my list is to fix the dashboard. I mentioned earlier that I had bought a replacement dashboard in 'Natural Brown Leather'. I had thought that it might actually be Natural Brown Leather, but that was not the case. The finish is an opaque paint that seals the leather.
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1529966177.jpg

I had read on leather-working forums about re-dying leather, but this was not going to work like that. The dye and stain I has would not penetrate at all and wiped right off.
It had to be stripped and sanded.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1529966521.jpg

With hours of labor I finally had broken through the paint to the leather beneath. I really liked the distressed leather look. I should have stopped right then and saved it for another project. Instead I continued and used my spray gun to coat it with a dark brown opaque wood stain. The color matches nicely now, but the texture is all wrong. It cannot be fixed. To try again, it all has to be stripped off and I just don't have it in me to do that right now.

I have not found a Cocoa Brown leather dash in good condition to buy. Rather than replace the whole dash, I am going to check out possibilities of just replacing the top front portion of leather where it is damaged.
http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1529967251.jpg

Probably what I need to do is track down a good local upholsterer and lay down some cash.
The car is running and driving great now. It seems that the throttle cut-out problem it had a while back was fixed by cleaning connections. It has not come back.
I received a gift from PaulE of a nice '04 SE wheel center cap (Thanks again Paul). This next week, I'm going to clean up the original center caps - making sure the center emblems are secure - and put them back on the car.

My pleasure keep up the great work and reporting your progress!

If you decide to give that leather dash another try, maybe this post from this thread will get you the color you need

Back in the Water
 

I took a long way home from work and stopped at a ford for few pictures. Did I say few? ...I took over 100. It was a 'candid', unplanned stop. After seeing the pictures, I really want to go back and try different angles, lighting, depth, etc.

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/847/4...077df74d_c.jpg

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/837/4...536d2100_c.jpg

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1787/...8d415af5_c.jpg

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1763/...65e1b2ac_c.jpg
:cheers:

I finally got around to installing the correct muffler on the car. I've had it for months.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1948/...a76de2b2_c.jpg

I also repaired the minor crack in the rear bumper cover while I had it off. Tomorrow I plan to repaint it before I put it back on. My painting skill is marginal; I tend to do a lot better at wet-sanding and polishing to correct the finish than I do at getting a proper prep. If I mess it up, I can always take it to a shop after.

The bumper and muffler are back on. I was a little concerned about the new paint not matching the 14 year old original paint, so i chose a line just below the bumperettes to blend the new with old. There's a nice sharp curve there to mask a slight change in tone.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1929/...cfa13fd5_c.jpg

I'm happy with the results. The color doesn't stand out as being any different unless you get close and look for it.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1975/...15305cc6_c.jpg

The biggest problem is that I didn't have the patience to properly feather the primer over the repaired area. If you look for it, you can see a slight ridge around the area. Some of that I may be able to correct with fine sanding and polish, but since it is under clear-coat, I expect it will still show on close examination.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1940/...13492d0b_c.jpg

In a few days, I'll work on it again to clean it up a little. I can also see a few spots where my clear-coat ends onto the original paint. I had about a 2" overlap of just clear, so I could blend it back. I really need to watch some more YouTube on this stuff... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYB4Yxeq_M8

:cheers:

Paint looks good. Are you still trying to locate a cocoa dash? If so I know of one....

Yes, an original cocoa dash would be nice. The last one I checked on was from the car that Paseb (987parts.com) was selling and it was not in good condition. Please send a pm or post info here so I can check it out.