Has anyone repaired a Boxster shifter cable?
 

I recently had an issue with gear shift getting stuck such that I could only get to reverse, first and second gear. I just located the problem, it is with one of the two shift cables at the transmission end. A brass fitting that is normally inserted into the cable outer sheath and crimped to hold in place has come loose, and when it slips out of the outer sheath it can jam between the sheath and the gearbox lever. The two pictures included with this post show the cable as it should look (first picture), and the cable with the brass fitting slid out of position and jammed (second picture).

New cables would fix it, but they are expensive ($552 from dealer) and difficult to install (dealer wants $500 labor, so total is over $1,000). Since the rest of the cable is in good shape, a much less expensive solution would be something that retains the brass fitting where it belongs.

Has anyone had similar problem and developed a solution other than cable replacement?




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Does anyone have a set of junk Boxster shift cables I can experiment with? Broken / snapped cables would suit my purpose, I just need to try out some ideas on how to secure the brass end fitting at the transmission end.

I have never had the same problem but I did indeed find myself in a situation where I had to make my own extended cable for a different application. If your experience was anything like mine no-one seemed too interested in helping out, here is what I did on my own, the melting / shaping section could be useful, hoping it may help out:

Extra Long Brake cable

Not sure if we have the same problem but my Boxster suddenly doesn't want to go into gear either. It was fine then I parked it for winter went to move it few weeks later and it won't go into gear. However if I fiddle with it and get it into 6th then I can work it through gears and then it will go into 1st or R. Seems like R is the hardest to get into. Been reading how a cable could be broken or shifted but why does mine work fine sometimes? Hopefully it's minor issue any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Contact this guy for a shifter cable, he is not that far from you.
http://986forum.com/forums/boxster-parts-sale-wanted/52469-parting-out-whole-lot-boxsters.html

Thanks will contact them when decide to open it up. However I'm just curious if broken why does it work sometimes?

Successful Repair Completed!
 

In case anyone else experiences a similar issue, I can report a very simple and inexpensive repair that has gotten my car back on the road again.

Lowest quote I got to replace cables was nearly $900 parts and labor, and best I could do myself was $407 ordering cables from Pelican and installing myself. I almost pulled the trigger on that, but went one more time to stare at the cable......

Turns out that when I pushed the brass piece all the way back into place there was at least 1/2 inch of inner cable sheath exposed at the end, just enough to clamp something on to prevent the brass piece from falling out again. I went to Ace Hardware, bought the smallest hose clamp I could find (the type with a worm gear to tighten the slotted band), put that on the sheath between the brass fitting and the end of the cable and tightened snug (but not tight enough to bind up the steel cable within the sheath).

Happy to report she shifts like new. Only 60 miles so far but no problems. Cost $1.50 plus my time. Probably wouldn't recommend for the track, but seems like a reasonable, "no harm done" compromise for my situation.

I was thinking a zip tie might do the same thing.

Happened to me and I cleaned mine, degreased it then used silicone to hold it back on "temporarily" while I got a new shifter cable. Bought a new set of shifter cables for $139 from someone who bought the cables then got rid of their boxster and never installed them.

Been driving like that for a few thousand miles and no problems. At some point I will install the new cables but since I have the short shift kit I will need to reinstall the cables with the original shifter first to set things up then reinstall the short shifter. Just haven't got around to it yet.