In my 2005 Boxster, when I turn on the ignition key, but not far enough to engage the starter motor, there is a squealing or screaching sound emitted from behind the front bumper, just below the lip where it meets the trunklid to the left of the latch. There's some sort of electronic gizmo there with a cable that appears to be related to the latch. The sound lasts for a bit less than a second, then stops. Annoying as hell.
I don't think it's the fuel pump, given that;
1. I removed the fuel pump fuse without any change in the noise;
2. the fuel pump is located near the battery, isn't it? (not at the location where the noise is emitted.)
There were posts a year ago about the same sort of noise, but I couldn't find any containing the actual diagnosis.
I welcome comments from anyone who can offer a solution.
Roger
I can't say for sure, but there's a front control unit that sometimes goes on the fritz. There may even be a TSB on this. From what I've read, though, you get an error message on the screen and not a squealing sound. I found out about this after causing static electricity when I used a microfiber towel to polish the headlight covers on my '05. I lost no functions and my dealer was able to simply do a reset for just
$120. Is everything functioning in your car, including the hood latch? Any battery issues that might be causing this?
Thanks for your reply.
Yes, everything is working as it should, and no error messages.
The dealer is 3 hours away, and now that the car is out of warranty, my preference is to do as much diagnostics/maintenance/repair as I can, which is where, of course, boards like this are particlularly handy.
R
The only thing I can add is that I recall getting some kind of sound like that up front as my battery was dying (after trying to charge it multiple times), along with the gauges flipping back and forth for a second or two. If you have the original battery in the car, as I did, you should probably replace it. That's a relatively cheap fix -- $146 for me -- as long as you don't take it to the dealer. You can install it yourself in about 10 minutes. Beyond that, I'm going to have to leave things to the folks on here who are more technically skilled than I am. You also probably know that the electronics on this car are fairly complicated. I've read more than one post in which the owner tried his own fix, mucked things up and then had to take it into the dealer anyway for an even heftier repair bill.
Good luck!
Good advice on the battery - I replaced it last year and it's fully charged.
Also good advice on the electronics. I'm reluctant to mess with it until someone says 'I'm familiar with the problem and here's the fix'.
I could remove the front bumber and likely identify the source of the racket, but then I'm stuck with the bumper off until I get the part(s). And that assumes I would be able to identfy the culprit AND be able to replace it myself.
Could it be the horn shorting out somehow??? I can't imagne what else would be in that area.
