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2.9/2009/987.2: another saga starts!

911hillclimber

PCGB Member
Member
Yet another surprise today with my troublesome Boxster.....

Went for a drive with the wife, so gentle, about 30 miles to a couple of local sights, car started smoke-free (3 times in a row...wow!) and ran a dream, everything as it should be.
Parked up and went for a 2 hour walk and lunch at a National Trust (I'm retired!).
Got back to the car, started it, no smoke, gosh.

Then 'ding' the Check Coolant message came on and the temp gauge read 120+ C.
So the car had stood still, engine off for two hours and gone from 80 to 120+C.
Drove the thing out of the park for 1/2 mile and suddenly the message went and the gauge sank to 80 in 3 seconds or quicker.
1/2 mile or so later, ding, message and 120C in 3 seconds, a further distance and back to 80 where it stayed all the way home running sweet as a bird.

Must be a temp sensor.
Anyone with a similar experience and a solution please?
 
Shortest sage ever!
Just looked under the car to find a 2" dia of coolant on the driveway right under the cross-over pipes coming off the under floor trays, so rad or worse is clearly leaking.

Bit of DIY coming up!
 
Sounds as though you've found the source of that coolant drop Graham.!

At least fixing the leak will give you a diversion from the smoking problem. [;)]

Good luck!

Jeff

 
Very unusually for me I got lucky today.

Got the nose of the 987.2 in the air and found the source of the leaking coolant.
Bottom left hose, everywhere else bone dry.
With a bit of 'slowly-catch-your-monkey' teased the hose off the bottom plastic T connection and the other end slipped out a dream from the radiator.
Somewhat surprised, and having caught 2 litres of coolant in old oil catch trays I scooted off to the OPC who happened to have the hose in stock (!) infact, he had ALL the front hoses in stock which indicates the 'popularity' of this fault!
£30 later back home with a similar cost of coolant in hand and it all popped back together.
Opened the engine up (again...) and opened the Burp Valve and poured in about 4 litres of neat OAT coolant topping the engine tank. Started the engine (no smoke, no coolant message) and warmed it up and up and up..and then all the hoses to the rads were hot, fans on, heater to fully hot so the system should be wide open to flow and air pockets dispersed.
New hose ok, everywhere else ok that I could see, so will test the car tomorrow and hopefully rejoice next week if the coolant level in the boot is steady at Full. I have just over filled it above the yellow MAX marker so I can actually see it!

So, 90% sure I've fixed the leak for £65, learnt a bit and feel better.

Soon will try my mod to the AOS/Vent tube.
 
Hi Graham,
mine seems to leak when I fill it to the ‘Max’ mark. Not a lot, it’s about half a teacup over the next 1k miles or so.
It then sits at just below max and never loses any more. I’ve never managed to find out where it goes. Replaced both the coolant caps to no avail. Never had a pool in the garage. I had the front bumper off last week to clean the rads and fit some grills and all seemed OK in there. I now just live with the fact that it’s never at the ’Max’ mark.
Hope you get to the bottom of your troubles and get it all sorted.

 
When I first had the car, 4 years ago the coolant was never an issue, it has only gone south in the last 9 months.
I hope to have a stable level and just under Max all the time sounds good to me!

the overriding issue has been the cold start smoking and this coolant has added to the irritation.
I fI have finished this issue with today's simple efforts, all will be good.
 
Sounds like a result Graham. If only the smoking issue was such a straightforward fix.!

Like yours, on the very rare occasions I've added a small amount of coolant it always seems to settle just under Max. It's always tricky to judge the level though due to the lack of contrast between the yellow Max/Min markers and coolant colour. I think the later-series cars have a sighting float which makes the process much easier.

Jeff

 
I use a small wood dip stick Jeff!

Took the car for a hard/gentle scoot as much as you can in the West Midlands.
Checked the coolant level before starting, dropped from full to 10mm below, so about mid-way Max to Min. I filled it when hot, so presume this is just fluid contraction on cooling down.
Nothing wet under the car. New hose felt dry.
White smoke on start-up! Typical.
Drove for 25 miles, temp gauge rose as it does normally, 80C after 4 miles or less and took it through the rev range etc. Gauge reading rock steady, car goes like stink. Sounds good with the roof down (rare treat for me).
Home after switching off mid journey a few times and back on the drive to cool. will check the level when cold (tomorrow).
Good signs, pity about the persistent white smoke randomly appearing on cold start.
 
Very nice Graham.

Good to see that you didn't choose to park outside a vaping [aka smoking] emporium..! [;)]

Jeff
 
Ha! That made me smile!

I thought it sort of appropriate with the word 'fabulous' in shot....

Car all cooled down an hour ago, coolant level at min so topped it up to max, I'll let it run now for some time and then check.

No wet patches on the drive, and the junctions of the new hose are dry as a bone after the run and after cooling.
Confidence now at 97.5%....
As you say, just need to find the smoke solution or the cause.

Started smoke-free 5 times then wooosh.
 
It's official, I NEVER get lucky.
Coolant leaking again, but the hose changed is dry, drips everywhere at the rear edge of the front plastic underside cover.
Obviously leaking somewhere else, but need to check far closer. Expect to remove the front plastic covers and I hope to find the source of the leak.

Why me, why me?

Some good bits is no smoke on cold starts, 5 in a row now. Had the wife stand behind the car to see which side of the exhaust it comes out of or both, but that has resulted in no smoke....
If I get her to walk in front of this car with a red flag, all will be good.
Took it for a 25 mile round trip today and the thing runs so well, pity about these faults and my inability to resolve them.
Scotland trip planned in the car, so need to sort the coolant pdq.
I'm getting very tired of it now, nearly as much as everyone on here and Boxta.net are!
 
Oh dear Graham - the saga continues! I really feel for you.

Rather odd that replacing the one pipe effected a temporary cure. Maybe removing and replacing the pipe disturbed the other connectors which has led to further leakage? It sounds as though replacement of all the cross-pipes is going to be necessary before your Scotland trip in order for you to have confidence that the cooling system will hold-up for the journey.

Ref the smoking issue: your wife sounds as though she could be your lucky charm, so maybe you should get her to stand behind the car every time you start it up!

Jeff
 
Ha!
If I jump to it, I can start the car, leap out and get to the back I think in time to see for myself. Easier to ask The Boss to do it.

The drips are in the same place as before I changed the hose.
I am expecting the leak to be in the same place, we will see tomorrow. Been told not to look at it until tomorrow when it is cool. Obedient is my middle name.

If it is the same place, it means the O ring cannot seal to the plastic housing. The face the O ring seals to was not touched by me getting the old hose out, no hammers just very gentle prying of the housing to get WD40 down in the 'socket'.

If the leak is the same place, then I have 2 options
1
Find a plumper O ring and tease it into the housing with lubricant.
2
Insert the new hose back in with a sealant, ie liquid gasket such as used on engine rebuilding where no gasket can be used. (ie Loctite)
Change the long plastic tube, £105 and some deeper surgery to get it out.

Has to be fixed for Scotland!
I really do not want to fight a whole cross-tube task, lacking enthusiasm for the car too much atm for that one.
 
Many years ago, in the 1960s, when all I could afford was old bangers, if one of the coolant hoses started to leak and I changed it, almost straight away the others would start to leak necessitating changing the lot.
I put it down to the new hose causing the pressure in the entire cooling system to increase as being new there was no expansion nor leakage at the old worn rubber hose. This increase of pressure of course put extra strain on the other parts of the system which were all of the same age and condition.
just a thought
sws

 
911hillclimber said:
If I jump to it, I can start the car, leap out and get to the back I think in time to see for myself.


I know what you mean. When I had my smoking 2.9 Cayman I tried to film it many times by setting my camera up on a tripod, all I got were lots of videos of me walking to the car and starting it, the smoke was very camera shy!
I eventually filmed it by following the sequence start car, move car, stop car, start car, move car, stop car, leave overnight, start car, watch smoke, of course sometimes it did the same smoking trick when I hadn’t followed that sequence ??

 
3 starts since that email and no smoke, must have run out of oil! That's 8 times now, long runs, short runs, moving on the drive.

To the coolant saga.
It just might be over now.
Early start in the 'cool' air of 20C and off with the front and middle undershields. Coolant everywhere.

The two short connections from the subframe plastic side tubes to the longitudinal tubes to the engine (#28 on the Porsche diagram) were leaking, as in dripping, both of them, but one worse than the other. Got them both off with ease(!) and caught 80% of the coolant.
Over to Porsche and bought (in stock) two #28's and back home and clucked cleanly back in. They were ready to be changed...

Ran the car up, burped the system several times, and got it hot enough to run the rad fans for 5 mins.
Not a drop anywhere. Levelled the car and ran it hot again, all looking good. middle shield back on and decided to let it stand overnight and run it up to fans-on-hot and see.
If dry, wheel shield back in and a good run and check when home.


 
Sounds like a result Graham, and lucky [!] to have separated the couplings without damage. Fingers crossed that's fixed the problem.

Jeff
 
indeed Jeff, nobody more surprised (relieved?) when they eased out almost as if they were new, both sides too!
Fingers crossed for tomorrow's run up and run out being dry of coolant.
 

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