Did the OBC hack. A few comments/corrections.

[deliriousga]

Well, I finally got around to wiring the OBC hack. I had replaced the turn signal stalk last year when the original one broke so I got the one with the OBC lever built in it to do the hack. I also ordered all of the parts at the same time, not knowing what I needed. Sunset Porsche said "this is what most of the guys have ordered when doing this hack" so I ordered everything they mentioned. They were 100% right with everything I needed.

This hack was very easy and solid with only one wire in the car that had to be cut and spliced. That was nice since I really don't like butchering already well-made connections.

All of the functions are working great, but I have noticed one strange thing. It won't switch between functions when the doors are locked. If I unlock them, everything works beautifully. I don't know if this is a common thing or if it is caused by the programming change the dealer did awhile ago to make the doors automatically lock at 5mph.

The instructions I used from PPBB were great except for three things:

1) I would recommend the parts from Sunset Porsche over the ones they listed at PPBB. The ones in the instructions said they were "not an exact fit". The parts from Sunset are probably about $3 more than the parts listed on PPBB.

2) They say you have to go to the dealer and have the OBC turned on in the 2000 Boxster, but that wasn't the case. I have all of the functions available without paying the dealer to turn them on. I believe if the outside temp shows the OBC is on, just not accessible without the switch.

3) The male connector they mentioned as not available is one of the parts I got from Sunset. They are right, you can't find the exact one, but the one Sunset sent me has 4 holes for the molex connectors which is the number of wires needed for the functions. I crimped the molex connectors to my wires and plugged them into the 4 hole connector. That was plugged into the female connector on the signal stalk and it left one pin exposed (the ground pin was left exposed). I put a molex connector on the 5th wire and slipped it onto the exposed pin for the ground. Since the other four were shielded, that molex is inside the female connector so it's shielded from contact with any other metal. The other ends of the wires were done as the PPBB instructions said.

Here are the parts from Sunset:

11 Electrical Connector Pins (molex type, need 10-1 extra just in case) 999.652.901.22
Male Electrical Insulator Cap (there are two halves that snap together) 999.652.973.40 & 999.652.972.40

[AUDIOGUY]

Thanks for the info.

What functions does the OBC have anyway?

Does it do MPG, Temp, etc..

Thanks.

[deliriousga]

Originally Posted by AUDIOGUY

Thanks for the info.

What functions does the OBC have anyway?

Does it do MPG, Temp, etc..

Thanks.

Average MPG
Outside Temp
Miles Left to Empty Fuel
Speed Gong (you can set a warning gong for any speed)
Average MPH

[rgriffin]

This sounds like a great thing to try... How much did this cost you total? How much was it for the new stalk?
I'm in Cumming too. Where do you live in Cumming? I'm in Windermere.

Rich

[bigb]

Rich, here is a link to another way of doing the same hack (without requiring a stalk):

http://www.whiteson.org/boxster/mods/obc/

As Toolpants pointed out to me, some people (with long legs?) prefer a button instead of the 4th stalk as the stalk interferes with the movements required when changing gears etc. I'm 6'2", and I realized that Jeff was right - my left knee would make contact with the 4th stalk.

Oh, and nice job with your site - I've bookmarked it

[rick3000]

I did the OBC hack a while ago with the button and it the best $50 I have spent on the car. And just a note, even if you didn't pay the dealer to turn the OBC on, at some point in the cars life the dealer turned the OBC on.

[deliriousga]

Originally Posted by rgriffin

This sounds like a great thing to try... How much did this cost you total? How much was it for the new stalk?
I'm in Cumming too. Where do you live in Cumming? I'm in Windermere.

Rich

I think the stalk was around $125 from Sunset.

I'm on the north end of Cumming, off Hwy 369.