New owner - few codes and misc problems

Hi all, picked up a '99 996 off my uncle today after 7 years of ownership. He's a true Porsche enthusiast that has restored from the shell up - I think - two 901's. My/his 996 is arena red on grey, 6-spd, sunroof, no additional speakers, and stock - currently sits at 96,xxx miles. A few things I'm running into as I get going: - the red light on temp gauge was flashing at me today. The car was sitting for 3-4 hours after a 45-min drive and I still couldn't get the coolant reservoir cap off to get a better look at the coolant level. It ended up going away anyway, but I will check tomorrow morning. Also, my cap doesn't have any visible numbers on it, only German language with two arrows on the north and south ends of it pointing to the left - haven't been able to get it off to check the bottom though. - the fan on the trunk lid works (I can activate it with my Autel computer/reader), but never seems to turn on, even if I let her sit for a bit after a hard drive. Temps never go above/beyond 180ish. Normal? - slight vibration 70+ coming from the rear, though I am almost certain it's the tires/alignment and/or a bad rim. - when car is off, error codes 1539 and 1121 (refer to owner's manual and oxygen sensor heater bank 2 sensor 2 - current draw too low (respectively)) - when car is on, error codes in addition to 1275 and 0139 (oxygen sensor ageing delay, bank 1 and 02 sensor ageing behind cat. c., bank 1 (respectively)) - she doesn't lock either...? All in all it pulls great, doesn't randomly die on me, starts up every time, no misfires, etc... Seems to be well sorted outside of the hiccups mentioned above. Thinking of taking it to someone in the Philly area to give it a thorough look over and do an oil analysis. If anyone has a recommendation, please do let me know. I'm doing all the reading I can. I don't really know anything about these cars other than small nuanced stuff. I am mechanically savvy and can do my own work, but this is going to be a big learning curve for me. I come from a background of e46 and e36 M3's, but they're completely different cars - really looking forward to getting into this and sorting it out. Cheers-

I can�t help with the codes but I thoroughly agree with your thought about having a shop give it a thorough once over. I can tell you from recent experience that you want to make sure it�s a car worth investing time and money into sorting. Bore scoring is a real thing. Have an invasive post purchase inspection done (sump plate pulled and bore scope the cylinders) and go from there. You seem mechanically inclined so you can do most of this yourself.

Will do, plan on dropping it off either Monday or Tuesday as I'll be away. Can't seem to get the radiator cap open, can't locate the camshaft position sensor (bank 2) either. The fun begins.

It really looks like u have 1 or more bad o2 sensors. They share a ground so sometimes 1 sensor will effect others. A good scanner can read the o2 values real time. It can also be bad cats? A shop should be able to diagnose the issue. bank2 cam sensor is bassically under the ac compressor. Lots of wires, beltsn pullets amd hoses in the area.

Don't look for the bank 2 cam position sensor. You won't like its location. I had to drop the engine to change that one sensor.

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Found bank 2 - just played around with it. Jim (previous owner) said when he ad the AC compressor replaced, he thinks the guy pinched/messed up one of the wires for that sensor since it's right there. Jim has played around with the wire there and the light has gone off for a good amount of time - sort of repeats itself though. Maybe a bad ground? I'm going to post a few pictures later today of the engine bay - some things seem a bit jig-rigged but nothing that can't be fixed, but would like your guys' input on it.

If the coolant reservoir has never been changed it is likely weeping as the flashing red light on the temp guage is telling you coolant is low. When mine cracked it dripped onto the exhaust headers and evaporate so I would never see it on the garage floor. It eventually got to a point where it was leaving puddles. Take a good looks with a mirror all around/under/behind the tank for signs of leakage.

Descriptions below each pic. ---- Looking over the MAF at the green wire. I believe that is the engine bay temp gauge zip-tied to that bracket (??) - may be what's causing the flashing red temp light every now and then? This black wire is what's connected to the green one - it goes over the AC compressor to the left and down. Needs a wash. general pic.

Unusual that you cannot turn open the expansion tank cap. a rubber wrench may help Wrench looking at the black cap it looks like the reservoir may had been changed with a non Porsche tank. People here dislike the non Porsche replacement as they often have high failure rate ie cracking

Coolant�s definitely low�should be up to the bottom of that wider area where the cap and bleeder valve are.

No clue on that spliced in green wire. U would have to pull parts to see what it goes to and the color of the wire that its tapped into. the zip tied temp sensor goes into rubber grommet on top of the intake between cyl 4 and 5. It has nothing to do with your low coolant light. It will affect when the engine comartment fan turns on. Btw they dont turn on all that often. the cap on the coolant tank is probably way over tightened because it leaks. Aftermarket tanks r known to have bad threads.

Fix that broken oil fill tube, its causing a vac leak - I don't care how well its taped together. Use alligator pliers to get the coolant cap off. Looks way low on coolant as @Boff says above.

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Will get the cap open and fill somehow. Just don't have a spare in case I break something... Didn't even realize there was something wrong with the fill tube... what's wrong with it?

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Is it taped right before the flex section ? They break a lot and as someone who has tried to tape it back together, can speak from expereince in the futility, From a zoom - looks like actually may be a PN label, in which case, forget what I said about fixing it and instead I will say - be very careful fiddling with it or else the above will become appropriate

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Ah, that's a pn sticker. Oil level is right at the top dot too, assuming about a half quart too full which I don't think is an issue... Regardless I want to change the oil. Mobil 1 5w-40 for me - may make the jump to 10w-40 as I live in Philly but don't know yet. That wire goes to the front of the AC compressor btw. Edit: coolant is about halfway up the exp tank. I had the intake off to clean out the throttle body/maf and got a good look at it. I'm going to hold off on adding coolant until I have a cap - coolant is also pink which is a good sign - all I have right now is distilled water. Also, cam sensor bank 2 looks to be covered in some black stuff - I don't think it's oil, but the actuator for bank 2 is also pretty black/covered in the same stuff. Hoping it's not the actuator and I can just replace the sensor. 02 sensors are still throwing those codes too. Edit: ^ think that stuff I'm talking about is coming from pass. side motor mount.

There is a check valve elbow for the aos crossover hose in that area. It may be leaking oil?

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The tank looks pretty white so probably not old, but as said above it could be an aftermarket tank which can be trouble and short lived. A cap that tight that could be indicative of a problem. I like the cap tight but typically I can hand loosen however at times a large channellock pliers has been needed. That cap just does not look right to me either. There should be low and full marks on the side of the tank below the cap area.

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There's a min/max line south of the cap when eye-level with it

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Hmm, don't know. It hasn't used any oil at all for the week I've had it. And I've been driving it...

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It would not be a big leak, the elbow also has an o-ring. There is very little crank case pressure at that point. It may be a weap thats mixing with dirt. There r a few things in that area that it could be. Also old spilled power stearing fluid can also make its way down under the compressor to that area. just spit balling

My car was running perfectly when the flashing red temp light came on. Unfortunately, it ended up being intermix due to a cracked head. Had to replace a head and ended up replacing both plus a lot of other things while I was there. I hope this isn't what happens to you, because it wasn't cheap.

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Damn, sorry to hear that. I hope that's not the case - it has only come on twice and both times were after a long drive. My exp. tank is showing pink coolant about halfway, however it isn't hitting the "min" line so I guess it's still low. Car does not overheat and runs great otherwise. Just changed the oil tonight - it was almost black - needed one badly. Cut the filter and looked fine. ~9.7 quarts of mobil 1 0w-40. Running the 0w to see if the cam code magically disappears - have read that can happen.

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Sorry to hear about the cracked head. Would love to hear about what happened and how you resolved it.

Get a scanner on it and read the cam deviations. It will let u know if the variocam pads and actuators r healthy. It will rule out some things or point u in a direction for the cam issue. im off i95 on the DE/PA line. Not far from u (thought u said u were in Philly) and can read it if u dont have a decent shop to go to.

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Would appreciate that man. I'll PM you.

Also, is my model an early one? VIN looks to be low: WP0AA2999XS620083

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That's very low...look at the door jamb sticker and see what it shows for production date (month/year) and report back!

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thought so - 1/98... pleasant surprise...

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Haha, check this out - found one of the previous owners of my car per this thread: https://rennlist.com/forums/996-foru...est-996-a.html Or just google "who's got the earliest 996" User nineelleben has the same VIN and obviously, the same car.

That is one EARLY car congrats!

a quick update- -channel locks to the exp. tank cap worked. Would like to clarify that the idea is to not get the channel locks around the entire cap, rather a corner of it or two of the "ribs" and twist from there - it will break free. Someone just tightened it a lot, but I added distilled water and it's fine now. - vacuumed out some leaves from the front rads. all clean now - codes for 02 sensors went away by themselves, now am just left with 1539 - think I'm going to start with replacing the camshaft pos. sensor on bank 2 and go from there. No loss and power and the thing runs great otherwise so I think everything is still working fine. Planning on taking it down to jeeper (fellow rennlister) to read some cam values and rule out more serious problems. - code P0506 popped up after I removed the intake box and cleaned the TB and MAF. It idles around 800, and around 600 on a cold start just fine. Not too worried about this but what I think is happening is the ecu is telling the car that it's idling too low (cpde 0506), so it raises the idle. However this is a fault because the car isn't idling too low, or maybe it is and it actually does need to raise the idle. Idk, regardless I want to go back in and clean the maf/tb/ICV, although I believe the issue is electrical so will more than likely be replacing the maf at some point if the cleaning route doesn't work. -changed oil with 0w-40 M1. no bits found in oil filter/looked fine. Plan on dropping the plate and cleaning out the pump and baffles at some point - prob next oil change. Coming from a BMW background, I am amazed at how easy it is to access something like this haha - wash/detailed/interior detail/deep clean tomorrow by a place I am good friends with the owner at - great handwashing/detailing place in the Philly area if anyone wants to drop me a dm for the name. Car has been good to me thus far.

1539 went away today after I filled up the gas - I did not clear it myself. I was also playing with the connector coming off of the variocam solenoid on bank 2 this morning so maybe that was it. PO said he has gotten it to go away in the past by doing this. But, I'm also wondering if running the 0w-40 helped the issue - it definitely needed an oil change. Car still runs great, feels like the idle has smoothed itself out and sounds/feels fine. I've been spending a lot of time with it so maybe the Porsche gods are just smiling down on me. That, or the fact that it's just being driven - it was driven just under 10k miles over 7 years prior to my ownership and sat most of the time under a cover. No idiot lights on the dash as this time - hoping it stays this way. If it comes back, I'll try fiddling with the connector again and report back. I don't think it would have anything to do with filling up gas.....

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If it comes back you likely have a bad solenoid that bank. Don�t let a tech drop the motor it can be replaced with the motor in place; yes even bank 2. Keep searching until you find a tech that can do it. Will save you at least $5K.

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What does it cost to do both banks if you don't drop the engine?

If it were my shop it would be the same price if doing pads and actuators. I have done it both ways and if i was gonna get paid and be responsible for the repair the engine would be removed. Just changing the solenoid is a lot easier since all u have to do is lock the cams and pull the cover. The header and muffler may have to be removed too so those bolts can f you.

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orrrr I can pop my porsche cherry- I�m sure pepboys has a set of camlocks I can rent. edit: praying it doesn�t come back. If it does come back and goes away again after fiddling with the connector, then wouldn�t it be safe to say it�s a connector issue? The plastic bracket is broken on that side so the connector is free floating near that one ground wire. Doesn�t sound good when I write it out but I�m almost sure it�s fine (lol). could prob take some cleaner to it and reconnect to see if it comes back/goes away again. Again, car drives fine/drove fine prior to this so not sure. edit x2: maybe a dme issue? Would like to. Rack that open and see if anything�s up. It�s under the rear seat right?

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That's good but to really clean them you need to remove the bumper and separate the condensers from the rads and clean there too.

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ooo me likey. Will do

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it very well might just be the connector or a bad wire to the solenoid. When hooked to the scanner we may be able to get it to "act up" and see it in the numbers. I doubt its a dme issue as u can change the result by wiggling the wire off the sensor.

@De Jeeper Cool, will keep you posted. Detailed it today - first wash so decided to do it myself. Cleaned up nicely - will post some pics tomorrow.

In Philly tonight for NYE - decided to put her in a garage. One floor below me in the garage -

Love this interior.

Hmm.... Just plugged in my scanner and the only code that is still showing is 1539. I guess I was wrong, it didn't go away, but the CEL light did, and I didn't clear it myself. Maybe the bulb did burn out but I really doubt that.... Does the ecu do something to "reset" itself after you fill up the gas? I am showing an 8 on readiness, meaning it has gone a full cycle. The light is not on but the code is there (and it is marked as current). Either way, found this really helpful write-up by Ahsai - - - - "Since you have Durametric, the diagnosis should be relatively easy. Just keep in mind there are a few things that can be the culprit and you have to eliminate them one by one: DME, wiring, solenoid and actuator. i would recommend the following order: Use Durametric to activate each bank when engine is idling, the engine note and rev should change. If not, unplug the bank 2 solenoid and use a 9v battery to power it while the engine is idling. If it activates with the 9v battery, that means the DME/wiring is the culprit so you trace upstream the wire to the DME. Check power to solenoid and DME internal transistor. If it does not activate with the 9v battery, that means it's either the solenoid or the actuator. Ohm out the solenoid (13 ohm or so). If that passes, remove the solenoid and use a 9v battery to power it. If the pin extends 1/8" or so, the solenoid is fine. Then the problem is the actuator." - - - I'd like to get my hands on a Durametric. I do have an Autel computer.... is the Durametric different in a significant way? Regardless, I'm thinking of unplugging bank 2 tomorrow and hooking up a 9v to it. As Ashai states, if the idle changes, the actuator and solenoid are working. I'm hoping I will hear the idle change. On another note, someone did something weird with that green wire coming out of the harness on bank 2. It looks like it's going to the front of the A/C compressor, but since I still don't know this motor well, I'm only assuming it's what gives the AC's clutch the juice when I turn it on. It's not a ground wire. I put a picture of it here in one of my first posts. There was also a dead mouse I found near the back right tailight when I had the airbox removed- not sure if the little guy was hanging there when the car sat. He (she?) is definitely long gone though and has been for a while.... Doesn't look like anything was chewed up.

Its probably a stored code now since the check engine light went out. Just clear it and keep driving to see if it comes back.

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Ok cool - thanks

CEL code cleared, has not come back in 500 miles and is showing an 8 on the readiness cycle. No current or pending DTCs - knock on wood that it stays this way. I do believe it was from the spotty connection, but time will tell. Car runs great. Todo: - inspect pickup and baffles/remove of debris if any - Milltek exhaust (the best sounding exhaust IMO, and keeps the stock tips) - Bilstein sports (will most likely be keeping the stock springs) - swaybar endlinks - Trans/engine mounts to be safe and sure - new tires/balanced - rear rotors and pads

Bilstein Sports (B8 ?) - if so, they�re engineered to work with sport springs (meaning they�re shorter than stock struts/shocks). As such, stock springs will be loaded at all times and will be operating outside of normal parameters. Some people say - ahhh no big deal, should be fine. Some say, no good... Just giving you a heads up

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I say no good, thanks for the info. What springs do you like with the B8's?

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If no CEL, and no rough idle, and cam deviations in spec, then you are likely good to go. What are your cam deviations?

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I don't know - can I read them with an Autel? That's what I have - no Durametric (yet).

CEL still gone. Nothing popping up, even on the Autel. Only issue with the car is that it doesn't lock. I'll sort that out in the future - doesn't bother me right now. This will be my last update for a while until I do something significant with the car. I have some plans for it, so hopefully will be a fun revisit when the time is right. Oh, and I fixed the windshield washers today. The hose behind the positive end of the battery was disconnected. Hooked her back up and it's good as new. Other than that, she is my daily and am looking forward to many more miles with her. Only thing I may do in the near future is change the oil because I want to drop the sump plate and clean out the pickup, baffles, and inspect the plate. Its been about 2k with the Mobil 1 0w-40. Thinking of going with Motul 8100 x-cess, or 300v, or Castrol 5w-40. I live in Philly and it does get into the teens on some nights. LNE has an article that lists 8100, but renn seems to like 300v. The Mobil 1 does seem to leave my oil cap and filler tube with that buttery crap more often than not. I do drive it like a Porsche and I do not take quick trips, so it has to be the oil. Dipstick is clean, so no worries there. And no, this is not going to be an oil thread haha.

Hi guys, quick question about sump pan sealant. Did second oil change tonight and dropped the pan. Used Permatex "the right stuff" to reseal. Bottle says to wait an hour to torque the bolts, saw that after I torqued to 7.5nm but I think it's fine...? More importantly, it says to wait 90-min to add any fluid, but I'm reading that some of you are saying to wait a full day before adding fluid. Safe to drive it tonight or no? I waited ~2-hours to add ~10qts of oil. Oil is currently in there but haven't started her yet.

Probably too late but that stuff seals up good pretty quick. Go for it. They tell u to wait because its good for larger gaps and they want full cure so u dont blow it out. On a good pan it will seal fast

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Yeah it's fine, just took it out for a spin. This idle tick is really getting to me though - sending you a PM.

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@GC996 the engine had to be removed and both the block and heads needed to be inspected. The block was actually in fairly mint condition which was a welcome surprise. One of the heads was cracked enough to cause the issue. Both heads were sent off to a machine shop that has experience with these cars. Heads re-installed along with various other preventative maintenance items. Car runs great so far. It's been about two months.