"System fault, visit workshop"

I had this issue in my '05 987S last week and have not had a chance to take it to the dealer. From what I read, you can fry the front control unit if you wax the headlight lenses with a microfiber towel, as I did around that time. (I know, it sounds like some kind of an urban legend, but it's apparently true.) Does anyone know what the front control unit actually controls, and whether the car is safe to drive until I can get it to the dealer? Thanks.

I had a very minor bump yesterday, running over a curb. No damage apparent. Car runs fine. This morning I get a 'System Fault, visit workshop' message. Unlikely to be a coincidence. Ideas? I'm 150 miles from Porsche dealer and fortunately 750 miles inside warranty.

I've been driving my '05S (out of warranty) with absolutely no problems, although the beep and the malfunction message are annoying. I'm waiting until June when I take my car in for its annual service/inspection to get the problem corrected. What I've learned from others on here and elsewhere is that: 1. Some people have had various electrical problems, such as windows or top not working properly. 2. Some people have had the dealer replace the front control unit. 3. At least one poster said that all his dealer did was to do a reset to eliminate the fault message. This is the one I'm hoping for. From my research and recent experience, I'm guessing your car is safe to drive. You might want to do a basic check to assure that everything electrical is working as normal. But you should obviously get it to the dealer while it's still under warranty to avoid paying $$$$ for whatever parts they recommend. Good luck.

Thanks. I'm hoping for the same. May just be a sensor got tripped by the impact.

that's a scary sounding message. please let us know what it turns out to be.

Apologies for digging up an old thread... but what ended up happening? Being a Cayman n00b, I opened the front hatch after being out in the rain (possibly getting water where it shouldn't have been?) and I also "cleaned" the front headlights ... Does this mean I need some new parts? If so... can someone give me the part numbers so I can forward over to my mechanic? Gargh... I feel so dumb... but then again, who knew I couldn't do either of the seemingly normal things I did?!?!

***FYI.... I've had the control unit replace under warranty, Less than an hour to replace by dealer.

Just a thought: These cars are very sensitive to a weak/dying battery. You have an '05 I would look at the battery carefully if you have not replaced it allready. Weak batteries cause all sort of gremlins. Good Luck! Let us know what happens

Interesting that you bring up the battery -- I never thought of that (though being my first P-car, I'm still learning )... On my bikes, the battery is measured at several points: 1) off, 2) during crank, and 3) on/idle. Are there such numbers for my 06 Cayman S that I can benchmark against? If not, is there a good quantitative way to rule out a bad battery? Anyway, I'm bringing her in to my mech to see if he can read anything useful out using the Durametric software...

About a week before I traded my 09 CS the battery went down to less than 8 volts. When I turned the key the horn sounded and every light on the dash lit up. I got a message to have the car taken in for service. Charged the battery, cleared the codes and all was well. The tech told me if the battery drops much below 12 volts to expect this behavior.

So I was planning to get the fault code checked out by my mechanic this morning... I unlock the car, got in, turned the key to "on"; let the oil level check do its thing, then got the "System fault" message (as expected)... once everything was settled, I turn the ignition, and my windows came down an inch, the lights on the dash went crazy (flashing). I removed the key and repeated the procedure and it was the same result. I'm guessing at this point it's the battery. I'm going to try to test the voltage on the battery tonight, but I may have found the culprit. Probably the deep freeze we had here last week (17oF) killed the battery? I'm a little annoyed, since the battery was supposedly replaced 5000 miles/6 months ago. On that note, any favorite battery brands?

Pyepye, I also had the flashing dash lights and window down issue. Good luck with the battery.

I was going to give the battery a test to see how many volts it was putting out... and well, let's just say my remote unlock doesn't work anymore and even when I unlocked the door with they key, the cabin lights didn't go on... I was hoping I'd be able to save the battery; but given that it failed this badly over such a short period of time, I don't think I'd be able to trust it even if I had been able to save it. Oh well, off to get an Interstate battery tomorrow... now to sift through the crud and find the right size I need...

UPDATE: Picked up a new Interstate MTP-91 (with vent kit) this morning for $110 + tax, popped the frunk using this new battery (since the old was toast) and in about 30 minutes, got the batteries swapped and my 06 CS is back in action! Link to a great thread with pictures (thanks to MotoFanatic): http://www.planet-9.com/cayman-boxster-tech/45447-4-yrs-old-month-battery-spark-plugs-questions.html Out of curiosity, I checked the dead battery (the OEM Moll), it read off as 6.88 volts; compared to the 12.45 volts that I read off the Interstate. I'm going to give it a longer run on the freeway after work to get it all charged up and ready to go and give it another reading to see if it reads a healthier 12.6V. So, about the fault codes. My mechanic tried to clear the codes using his Durametric software (version 5.4.x.x I think) and that didn't get rid of the "System fault". I ended up bringing it into the dealership and they were able to clear everything out. When I was reviewing the codes with the tech at the dealership, I noticed a lot of them mentioned "front control unit" and he said it was likely fixed by the time my car was built (June '06) since it was a 2005 issue. At any rate, he cleared all the codes and they haven't come back on my ~10 mile drive into work. Lesson learned... if you get weird "System fault: return to workshop" errors, check the battery. Thanks for everyone's ideas for places to look!

If you've gotten a microfiber rag anywhere near the headlight covers, that could have triggered the "front control unit" codes, as it did on mine when I got my "system fault" message. You can read about this on other forums. It's unclear as to when Porsche took care of this problem, if at all. Neither you nor I had to have the control units replaced, but I've read reports where others have needed replacements at the usual Porsche $$$$$$. Whether they really needed it or whether it was dealer BS, I don't know. All I'm saying is that you may want to keep those rags away from the headlights to avoid another expensive dealer re-set.

This thread is the first I've heard of a problem with micro fiber rags and the headlights . I've been using them almost weekly for two years, including on my headlights and have never once had a problem. I don't understand what the problem might be or if anyone who truly knows has weighed in. Any factually informed folks out there who know or is this just a rumor. HID and halogen? Vigorous rubbing or just wiping? Inquiring minds want to know.

The microfiber problem -- apparently not a rumor -- may be limited to earlier 987s, so your car is apparently unaffected. It first surfaced on my car when I dried the headlight covers. Then, when I went to check out the fault on various forums, people said the static created from the towel could fry a front control unit. I had no problems other than the fault message on my screen, but others have had trouble opening the front trunk, etc.

Re: "System fault, visit workshop" - not an urban legend anymore! I have a 2005 Boxster S that I purchased new from the local dealer. It is 7 years old now and has about 35,00 miles. Never been driven in winter. I have always washed the car wet. A couple of weeks ago the car was pretty clean but had a little dust on it. I grabbed a microfiber cloth and dusted the car. I went around the whole upper part of the car. I noticed a bug spot on the drivers side headlight and squirted a little water on it and rubbed it with the cloth. I heard the trunk and/or door lock solenoids operate. I thought that was weird and thought it was the auto lock system, although I hadn't opened the car door or locked it or unlocked it recently. The next time I went to drive it, it had the message "system fault visit workshop". Everything seemed to work fine. I brought it to the dealer I purchased it from and who has done the regular service on it. They unplugged the front control unit, waited 5 minutes and plugged it back in. They said that didn't fix the problem and that they would order a new front control unit. They charged me $136 for the diagnosis. The replacement unit would be $528 + $126 labor. I asked them to contact Porsche and ask if they would cover the repair since it seems like a manufacturing defect and not something that should happen. The service manager asked how many Porsches I have owned: I own two Porsches now and had one other previously. Today he called and said that Porsche would not offer any goodwill coverage. Wow I am really disappointed. I was just talking to the salesman about moving to a 911S cabrio too. I'm going to seriously think about what I want to do. The service manager said the dealership would go 50/50 with me. So it would cost me about $327 I guess. I'm happy with the dealership but not with Porsche. However in the lst few days the message has NOT been coming on. So maybe unplugging the control unit did actually work. I guess I'll wait and see what happens. Of course there's no assurance that the new unit would be any better than the old one. So bottom line - don't use a microfiber cloth on your headlights!

Sorry you had the same problem. Porsche is very good at making money from -- and denying responsibility for -- its own design defects. It's an interesting business model. If you're no longer seeing the message, I would just continue to drive the car and not worry about it. I had to fork over $125 to the dealer just to reset things and eliminate the annoying message, but I've had no control units replaced and my car is doing just fine. Still, I'm very careful to keep those rags away from the headlights . Pathetic.

I washed and waxed my 05 987 s yesterday. I polished the headlight lenses with a microfiber cloth. After completion I now have the "System Fault, Visit workshop" error. The tail lights are on anytime the ignition is on. The red exclamation point in the tach is lit, but will go out if I turn on the turn signals. I have been reading a lot of posts about this issue. It appears I blew the front control module. The one thing I have noticed is everyone seems to take it in stride. Is no one upset that you can blow a control module just by cleaning your car? I am. update I took my Boxster a local shop. John, the owner put it on his Durametric Diagnostic Tool and reset it. Everything is fine now. I guess I will be removing the headlight assemblies when I polish them from now on.

I occasionally had a similar problem - the emergency frunk actuator release solenoid would freak out every couple months. When the car would run a system check at ignition on the actuator would get stuck vibrating/buzzing/making obnoxious sound. I could clear the code and reset it, but it would come back eventually. A few weeks ago I decided to replace that actuator. We will see if that solves the problem.