2005 boxster s - buzzing sound at 3k?

Mrsparkle, what did you get as a loaner car? I hope you are driving the pi$$ out of that thing!

[mrsparkle]

Well, the loaner is not a porsche. I got a 02' accord which is fine. I love honda's but boy this thing is boring to drive.

I should be picking up my 987 today at lunch.

[mrsparkle]

I finally got my car back after work yesterday.

Here's the info that I received:

The problem is with the design/construction of the crankcase. Under certain conditions, will rattle. It is nothing serious that will shorten engine life.

They would not disclose any more information or give me the TSB#. The service tech I spoke with informed me that he was not part of the initial conversation with Porsche. I was also told that I was "lucky". One party was for replacement and the other was against it. What a load of....

As far as the car, they neglected to fix the passenger window due to miscommunication and had to replace a leaking clutch master cylinder due to a loose pin. On top of that, they didn't bleed the clutch correctly so it feels like crap. The car feels different as well. I'm not sure if it's because of the clutch, but it does not feel "new" anymore. The engine is smooth and does not make any noises. Feels a bit slower. I'm sure I just need to break it in again.

As you can see, I'm not very happy about the situation. I feel that my car has lost it's "new" feel at 4700 miles. Does anyone know what my options are?

Mrsparkle:

I feel bad for you and your situation. You deserve much-much better.

I think you need to start making phone calls and writting letters. Start with the owner/GM of the Porsche dealer that you purchased from. Also call the 1-800-Porsche phone, and log a complaint with the proper people within Porsche of North America.

Also, very importantly, set-up a meeting with some high level person at your dealership (Service Manager and/or GM) along with the Porsche Regional/Zone Service Executive. All zones and regions have them. The dealer can find out when he/she is going to be at the dealership next.

Hope this helps.

[MikenOH]

Was this a type of buzzing or vibration that was located between the seats--like on the centerline of the car?

I drove a 987S a month or so ago and when driving it cold--the car only had 3 miles on it when we drove it--and giving it a little throttle (from say 1/4-1/2) the car would vibrate when I hit 3000 rpm right between the seats.

I had driven 2 other 987's and they didn't have any vibration. I have to say, had I been serious about the car (we were only trying to compare the 5 spd to the 6 spd) I'd have run from the car--it was really disconcerting.

[woreilly]

Utter dispair. Not only is the car still rattling at 3K rpm, it is now making noise at 2100-2200 rpm.

I found the perfect place to replicate the issue. I have a mile long hill near me, fairly steep grade for Wisconsin. The noise comes about when at about 25% throttle--the uphill allows me to stay on the throttle but not gain speed. More than 25% and the noise is still there but not the resonance. Gear selection seems to show the noise more often in lower gear.

I went up and down the hill trying to convince myself the 2100 rpm rattle was somehow different and it is different. It is not nearly as loud, not nearly the resonance the 3K rpm rattle has, but it's most definitely there.

Even my wife hears it--and that's saying something.

I'm going to try to record it. For MikenOH, it is in the centerline of the car (but also hearing it out the vents), close (or below) and behind where your elbow sits on the midline arm rest. The noise could be mistaken for a sick valve train until the resonance sets in and dominates the exhaust note. It sounds like a heat shield vibrating or (perhaps better) a metal room fan that is out of balance and beginning to resonate when you turn it on high. It happens more consistant when cold, but on my hill (Hwy TT in Waukesha, WI, 1 mile south of I-94) it happens when warm, too.

I'm going to call Porsche on Monday. I don't know what to say. This is a *frustration* that will require action and not words. Mrsparkle: would you please detail more precisely what your mechanic was saying about the issue, or was that really all that was said?

[G3sys]

just to make things clear on my post, i definately do not have the same problem as the others, mine make a funny chattering noise for 3 seconds during warmup, while driving, and the noise comes from the front of the car. it sounds like a cicada bug in the summer... again it's not from the engine, i'm not worried about it at all.

[mrsparkle]

Unfortunately, I do not have any additional information.

Hopefully, I will be able to talk to the someone when they fix my window regulator. I have no problem with replacing parts in 2-3 years. I was hoping to be service free for the first 20k or 2 years. My main concern is with only 4700 miles, I already needed a new motor, clutch master cylinder and window regulator. Come to think of it, I need to have my headlights checked as well. They make a grinding noise everytime they auto level with the engine turned off.

I thought about trading up for a cayman but it shares too many parts with the boxster. What to do....

[gRed04]

Originally Posted by woreilly

Utter dispair. Not only is the car still rattling at 3K rpm, it is now making noise at 2100-2200 rpm.

There is a thread in the UK Boxa forum that the 2100 rattle is a defective oil valve and SOME dealers there are starting to take care of it.

http://www.boxa.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=17875

[oranje]

I took it to the dealer. It had a metallic rattle around 2,100-2,200 RPM between 125 and 175 degrees.

Since it only does it in this small temperature range, the techs could only try and locate it a few minutes at a time before letting the engine cool down again. After 3 days, they thought it was the oil pump, so replaced that.

Picked it up yesterday, and 4 rides from cold later, the noise is still gone. Keeping my fingers crossed!

[Chris C Atlanta]

My 06 Finland made 987S made this buzz this weekend, while cold. I'll have to isolate rpms and conditions and let you guys know. Car has 250 miles.

Sounds like a heat shield to me.

Chris C Atlanta, everytime I see this thread pop-up. I hold my breath. Kinda scarry stuff...even for Holloween! I hope it is just a heat sheild!

[whttkrasst]

I too have a buzzy rattle at certain RPMs. But, it's at all temps, and it's coming from the front, like inside the dash on the right side. I've emptied the glovebox, figuring something was rattling in there, tried with cupholders open and closed. It sounds like what it would sound like if the cupholders were rattling. I'll have it checked out soon.

[mrsparkle]

Well, I thought I should update everyone as I am at 5700 miles now (1000 miles on the new engine). Sadly to say, the rattling problem is something I will have to live with. I have heard the rattle 3 times on the new motor. Not bad considering I used to hear the noise almost everytime on the old motor.

Since replacing a bad clutch master cylinder, it is not as smooth as it used to be. Nothing was done at the dealer since it was "up to spec". You can't really notice it until you depress and release the clutch slowly.

mrsparkle, does California have a "lemon law"? If you do, you should try this approach with your dealer, and try to get them to replace your car. It does not sound normal or in spec to me.

[longislander1]

It started on my 987S at about 2K miles. I seem to get it when the engine's cold and when I decelerate down to 2200rpm.

Sorry to hear about your situation, mrsparkle. I'd check out the lemon law thing.

[tmc]

I wonder if some of the rattles mentioned here might be covered by this TSB:
3/05 4078 Rattling Noises From The Area Of The Front And Rear Axle

Diagnosis:
"On above-mentioned vehicles, the hexagon nut on the threaded connection for the stabilizer/connecting link can become loose on the front or rear axle due to loss of preload. This leads to rattling noises from the area of the front and/or rear stabilizer"

I saw this post on the PCA Tech website today:

"A vibration at this RPM that can be duplicated every time while parked is do to the Twin flow valve in the intake. More specifically closer to 3000 rpm's this valve is actuated and a slight vibration is felt. This is normal and is in all the non "S" models at this range.

Scott Slauson - PCA WebSite - 12/3/2005"

[jna]

Hi All


Have a new 2005 boxster S with about 4500 miles on it. I have the 2200rpm rattle same as many of you. Can't say that I will live with this very long. Took it into the shop today after at least 4 other tries on this. Several months ago, took a tech out and he heard it. Went back another time and he did not work there anymore. Today, I took out another tech and he heard it. I told him about this website. If anyone has sucessfully fixed this problem, please let me know. This problem occurs when the engine is cold and is warming up into the 125 range. Then it starts passing through the 2200rpm range. After warming to normal temp, this problem is not heard. I hear it behind me somewhere. This is a awesome vehicle except for this. Any help is appreciated.

Joe Alessi

I saw some talk about this on Renn Tech. Possibly Toolpants can shed some light on this.

It might be linked to an oil relief value. And there is possibly a new TSB out from Porsche.