Hello,
Back in January I purchased my 2008 Cayman - I've been driving it daily since. Any time my SO and I want to go anywhere, I always offer to drive, which works out nicely because she doesn't like to drive. It's been a great experience - both livening up my drive to work and enjoying the weekend activities. I have some questions about some various sounds I've noticed over the course of driving it - the kinds of sounds you only really notice after a while of ownership.
Portraying sounds over text on the internet is always difficult but I'll try my best to describe it:
Sound #1- When accelerating at partial throttle, between around 2200 and 3000 there is a faint raspy noise from the engine. When I'm pushing the throttle in more, it sounds more full and I don't notice the "rasp." Any idea what this sound is? Is it variocam/valve lifter noise? Am I just running the revs too high at light throttle and should shift earlier? It isn't loud and doesn't sound like it's a defect or anything, just something I notice in traffic.
Sound #2- After driving and turning the car off, there is a rapid ticking noise that can be heard from either rear wheel well. It's most obvious getting out of the car in the garage since the sound reflects off of the wall right next to me when getting out. It sounds like the heat expanding/contracting of mufflers/exhaust type of clicking/ticking, just louder - I suppose because there are many more metal parts in that area affected by heat that are now cooling down.
Sound #3- My horn is obviously the high tone only - I suspect my low-tone horn is watered-out which seems normal on these cars. This is probably dumb, but I've never heard the low tone horn before. Is it supposed to fire at the same time as the high tone horn? Which tone fires when you lock the car? Right now, my car doesn't honk at all when locking/unlocking. Or is it set that way by the dealership? And lastly... for the sake of curiosity, does anyone have a clip of what the horn sounds like when both fire together? I'll probably never fix my low-tone horn since I never use my horn in traffic but I still want to know what it sounds like haha.
Sound #4- I usually leave my AC off, but I'm in Florida so as it gets warmer I'm turning my AC on more and more. When it is on, there is a slurping sound - like liquid and air together moving through a tube. The AC is cold, and gets cold quickly, so I don't see it as a problem but is there supposed to be some air in my AC piping? I've just never noticed that kind of sound on previous cars.
And one other question, unrelated to sound:
The pollen been particularly nasty this early spring, and I sometimes notice some droplets of water/pollen on the second level of my door sill when I'm in the car - not on the black/silver "CAYMAN" kickplate, the step down from that. Then, there is another step further down from that that also gets it a little worse. Is this a sign that I may want to start replacing the rubber seals around my doors? Or is the door seal lined up with the front of the kick plate and a little water/grime on the outside of that normal?
Thanks
#1 I think this is a normal sound, though it's hard to tell from your description. That's kind of a low rpm to be accelerating from, and the engine is "grunting" to get up to speed.
#2 Completely normal, just the metal parts (esp exhaust) cooling down.
#3 For some reason the low horn on these cars always seems to go out. Maybe a bad design, or poor positioning so that water gets in. Mine has been out for years, I just ignore it. We don't honk that much in So Cal
#4 Sounds like there's some water in one of your air passages. That *might* be normal given your humid climate, but I would have someone check your condensation drain. They occasionally get blocked; if left that way water will eventually fill the catch pan and spill into the interior.
I also get water on the "second level" of the sill, I think that's normal. As long as it doesn't get to the trunk switches there's no problem.
Thanks for the response. I've never been much of a honker, so the horn issue is not bothersome at all. I could have no horn and it wouldn't matter to me, except for the occasional chirp I give someone looking at their phone at a stop light if it's been several seconds... usually the car behind me will honk before I do.
I'll definitely have the condensation drain checked. It is very humid here and I have never noticed any dripping of fluids from my car, even AC water so it's definitely possible it might be blocked. Actually, I have a lift at the shop so I could probably check it myself if I do a little research.
As for sound #1, when I'm at stronger throttle it's totally fine. I only hear the sound when I'm barely accelerating i.e. I'm at a stoplight behind a very slow driver and I'm slowing climbing in speed behind them. I suppose I'm just using too little throttle to be at 3k rpms and should just shift earlier, but I sometimes hover a little "high" so that when the road opens up I'm already close to the power band when I accelerate again. It's just an interesting noise.. I could probably record it. I may try that and if it's clear on the recording, I'll link to it here.
I've been through FIVE, yes FIVE horn repairs and I think I give....it really Pi##es me off.
A bad horn design really. My daughters laugh at the high tone only - call me the "clown car"
+1....I also have a 2008 in Florida and these answers are spot on except my horns haven't gone out.....yet. I did replace my headliner recently after it started laying on my head. LOL.
