4 captured repliesDiscussion pagination complete · Source accounts, not a confirmed diagnosis
THIS DISCUSSION / SOURCE-DERIVED OVERVIEW
Discussion summary
YOUR RESEARCHWhip-whine on cold start
Reported or suspected cause
variocam solenoid/actuator acting up
Reported cause
No successful repair reported for this finding.
1
Identified cause
0
Suspected cause
0
Reported fixes
Read evidence and context
Explicit resolution reports before identified causes, performed actions and suggestions. Within each level, matching component labels precede direct query mentions and inherited thread context; successful versus unsuccessful discussion counts, owner confirmations and independent discussion support determine order. This is not a probability of success.
Discussions that report identifying a cause
1
0 original-poster resolution reports. Counts can overlap; they are not unique people or a success rate.
0 discussions have direct query context; 0 report a fix in that context. Other evidence may inherit the discussion’s subject.
Reported cause
Turned out to be a VarioCam solenoid/actuator acting up.
Leading evidence: 'variocam solenoid/actuator acting up' (1 discussions report identifying this cause; no attributable repair resolution). Across 1 matching discussions, the most frequently mentioned possible cause is 'variocam solenoid/actuator acting up' (1 discussions; 1 report identifying it and 0 suggest it). The most frequently discussed action is 'Replace solenoid and actuator' (1 discussions). For that action, 0 discussions report a resolution and 0 report an unsuccessful attempt. No action has an explicit, attributable resolution report under the current rules. These are forum reports and suggestions, not a confirmed diagnosis.
Source reports, not a diagnosis or a success probability. Counts refer to discussions and can overlap.
Explicit resolution reports before identified causes, performed actions and suggestions. Within each level, matching component labels precede direct query mentions and inherited thread context; successful versus unsuccessful discussion counts, owner confirmations and independent discussion support determine order. This is not a probability of success.
Discussions that performed work without a confirmed outcome
1
0 original-poster resolution reports. Counts can overlap; they are not unique people or a success rate.
0 discussions have direct query context; 0 report a fix in that context. Other evidence may inherit the discussion’s subject.
Performed · outcome unconfirmed
Both the solenoid and actuator on the passenger side cylinder bank were replaced.
Counts describe captured discussions, not unique people or a diagnosis. Author identities are not reliably stored. Exact duplicate evidence is counted once across matching discussions; one discussion counts at most once per action/state. Multiple repairs reported together remain a combination. Suggestions and failed attempts do not establish a fix. Matches cover whole discussions and can include related faults, model variants and incomplete threads.
4 eligible posts · 0 unverified posts · 1 discussions match the subject in their title or opening post.
Rennlist: 1 discussions
0 evidence records excluded for query context · 0 excluded by outcome qualification · 0 adjusted by outcome qualification.
0 acknowledgements have no verified action link; they do not establish a repair result.
Generation: 20261026T113718Z · outcome-qualification-6. Deterministic extraction; no AI model inference. How we use sources
Is this the beginning of the starter's death scream? This happens ONLY when the car is starting cold, and apparently only when it's reasonably cold in the garage. 45� outside this morning and this is what I got. (mp3 attached)
Yesterday's cold start was followed by a terrible cold idle that almost died, revving from 1200 down to 200, up and down, almost like it was flooded. But today, as you can hear, it's fine. Just that starter whine.
I did get new belts, plugs, clutch, IMS, RMS last week. But this really doesn't sound like a belt squeal, does it?
Regarding the noise what Ahsai said.
My Boxster was making a similar noise, though IIRC not as bad, but similar and the same conditions.
Dealer tech said -- and it is what I had suspected -- starter overrun clutch was hanging up/dragging a bit. Said it is gets bad enough the starter can be removed and either replaced or sent out to be rebuilt. There's a shop in the area that does starter rebuilds and one of the Porsche techs is familiar with its work and recommends it. I do not know if the overrun clutch is available separately or if it can be removed, disassembled and cleaned and repacked with grease and resurrected.
As for the engine behavior: Something similar occured to my Boxster some few years ago but not at cold start but after a 30 mile highway drive from home to office. Turned out to be a VarioCam solenoid/actuator acting up. No CEL but a pending code pointed to these as the likely source of the behavior.
I turned off the engine and upon restart the engine was fine and it was fine all the way home. But the engine started acting up again when I was driving it to the dealer to have this looked into. Both the solenoid and actuator on the passenger side cylinder bank were replaced.
Thanks, everyone. The starter I will monitor. As it's occasional, I'm going to hold off a bit, knowing that I may need to take care of it soon. The idle thing hasn't recurred.
This is a source reference. Confirm exact model applicability in the original material.
