Ignition switch problems, need advice/ help - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

Had trouble last week getting my key out of the ignition and noticed it no longer kicked back to on once started so I did a search and ordered the electric piece of the ignition and researched Pedro's garage. Got the new piece in and changed them out this morning but ran into a pretty big issue, when I reconnected my battery and went to start the car I got the Airbag error and all other lights on, but the key would not turn. I have since disconnected the battery and removed the new part but does anyone have any ideas what might be wrong here? I ordered the part from Autohauz and it is the Meyle unit. Has any else experience similar or have any ideas as to what may be wrong? I did not have any error lights or electrical issues before changing the switch.

Got it working now and no lights at all. Thanks,

Glad you got it to work out. In the future, no need to disconnect the battery. Just replace the switch.

I had read that it could be done either way and figured disconnecting would be the safer bet. Hopefully there wont be any need to do this again in the future though as I had a real hard time getting into position. The job took mere minutes but me not being a contortionist made it a lot more difficult at 6'2 and 250. lol

My key doesn't stick, but I have to manually turn it back or it will stay in start mode and the starter will wine. Is this the same issue you had? If so what is the part or can you post a link as I am not familiar with "pedro". Thanks Markp.

the part # you need is: 4A0 905 849 B It's a common VW/Audi part. You can buy it for ~ $10 online from ************************************************************ or check w/ a local Audi or VW dealer. Many times P-car dealers try and sell/tell you a new complete ignition tumbler along w/ the switch. Obviously mucho dinero. Incidentally, do you not get a noticeable 'clunk' when you pull the key out of the ignition switch? If not, you definitely have an ignition switch issue which you want to jump on ASAP before your battery gets drained. Anyhow, Pedro is one of if not THE most passionate and generous Boxster enthusiasts I have ever met. He runs a biz in south FL called Pedro's Garage . Aside from selling some Boxster performance products (techno brace, technoTorque among other things), he contributes many DIY write ups to help even not so well equipped shade tree mechanics care for their Boxster and most importantly save $$$. Incidentally, I do have a technoTorque (which is new to the market) installed in my '99 and I must say I am convinced of it's benefits and claims.

Hey thanks, when i googled it the part came up as $35.00. I hope its something I can do myself. I am changing my rear bumper cover currently. Actually that is pretty easy, just about 6 screws and a few hex nuts.

It is easy, but you need to get a very small "hobby sized" flat head screwdriver to loosen the set screws holding the switch down. I've had a set of small flat and phillips head drivers for years that I used to work on r/c cars and planes with.

I assure you it can be done, I ended up just cutting one of my smaller screw drivers down to size in order to remove the screws. Also, my problem started out exactly like yours. My key stopped returning after ignition, luckily the starter disengages on a Porsche and doesn't keep trying. I'd suggest ordering the part right away. I found better prices than $35.00 in multiple locations even though $35.00 is not expensive for what you save by doing yourself, you may want to look around.

Wow!! Pedro's site is amazing. I ordered the part from my autozone as they will have it tomorrow and it was only $8 more than autohouz(with ship). This project looks like a no brainer. I have always been kind of handy with this kind of stuff(for a suit). I just hate throwing money away to let some one else do something I can do myself(Just like most of us). I have already taken my rear bumper off to replace it with another one that isn't damaged. Next I might look into the 60k tune up. I am 50 miles away from the nearest P-mechanic. I have changed the brakes and blead them on my V-max cycle, so I am sure I can follow detailed directions. Thanks a lot for the helpful links!!

ok, the project is a no brainer, if your hands are like frickin tiny. Good god pedro must have like little people hands. I got to the part and couldn't for the life of me get the screw driver even close(watch size driver). I had no problem contorting my 6'2" fram under the seat, and the airduct was easy off. I finally said to hell with it(for now) after about 10 tries. The airduct was easy off, but a massive pain to get back on. Well i will try again later when i am not all worked up and frustrated. Oh my porsche ate my watch screw drive. Damn thing dropped down behind a side panel.

My experience started the same. I took my time to remove the red paint that is covering the existing screw heads and then got a 110 lber to finish the job. First time my wife was able to say she fixed the car, lol. There was no way I was getting my hands in there from the bottom. Some folks have found it easier to remove the headlight switch and air vent and access the screws from the side instead of the rear. This may be an option for you as well.

Thanks, I definately might have to try removing some stuff. Can I do damage to the ignition system if I just wait a while?

Seems like just about everything electronic is somehow tied in through that switch. You can end up with lots of issues such as alarm going off, key stuck, engine running after turning off, battery draining dead, etc. I would not wait too long as it could strand you as well.

Ok, just finished up the ignition switch and it works like a champ. Here are some helpfull hints. http://www.pedrosgarage.com/Site%203/Replace%20Ignition%20Switch%20%20%20.html 1.) remove the air vent underneath just slides off, no screws. if your fat hands(like mine) won't fit. I found a pretty easy and medium labor intensive. 2.) remove top drivers side panel. 2 screws on the side(open door.) pull head light switch forward and use a small screw driver to release bottom metal thingy and the switch pulls right out, no pressure. You need a star (t-15 i think) to get the screw out of the light switches long hole. I had to make another trip to autozone for that(fricking idiot germans). Now just pull the whole unit towards you. It takes a little force because of the vent seal thing. Nothing realy to break so just work up the sides and then the top. Make sure not to lose the pink screw clips. 3.) remove the one screw in vent behind light switch(this is a must and is most the trouble, but I found a cure to your ills). the vent just drops down to the floor. 4.) now both screws are visable and easily removed with a small screwdriver(I mean small). Mine took little effort to loosen screws a few turns. Now it should fall off. remove the wire harnes on back. 5.) now you need to slide under to see which way the half moon thing is facing. I tried to align the new switch with the old but it was off. The unit will slide right on snuggly when it is aligned properly, it will not fit snug if it isn't. tighten screws and snap the electric harness back on, turn key to make sure it works before you put everything back together. 6.) Now here is the time saver. you need to push the headlight switch wires down to the right and stick a towel in the vent so you don't lose the screw(yep I lost one). If you lose a screw 1 of the 4 fuse box screws fit perfectly(I will replace that later). I had to take the fuse box housing off to retrieve a screw driver I lost anyways(oops). put it all back together and it should work like a champ. 7.) if the pink screw holders slide out of sink on the door jam side , just use an ice pick to realign them. The hardest thing was trying to figure out how not to drop a screw until I got the towel out, oh, don't forget to take the towel out, Thanks to pedro for the general idea, and thanks to spyder for suggesting going through the vent hole. I got my part through auto zone for about $20 next day pickup. HEY SPYDER, my replacement wasn't white is was black and identical to the first one. What was yours ?

Glad you were able to work it out, great write up! Mine was black as well. I didn't line up the half moon correctly the first time which was part of my problem but we pulled it back out and got it right the second time. My wife gets a kick out of telling the family how "she" fixed the Porsche. LOL

LOL(wife), I am going to tackle the sparkplugs and the serpentine belt tomorrow. The belt looks like cake.

Yes it is.

Just replaced the ignition switch this morning. Thanks to all on the great DIY advice from forum members about the job. What I found in doing the job is that there seems to be some tangible benefits from both practicing yoga and having lowered GT3 seats in the car. I got to the switch assembly by putting my back flat (sorta) on the seat bottom with my legs up in the air on the seat back. That gave me both hands free and a clear view of where to work with my head stuffed in with the pedals. Quite a bend for my 5'10" 180 lb 59 year old body, but hey thats why they make advil... BTY, I did not think I was having any problems with my original switch, I just replaced it as part of my 90K service I am doing on the car. But I did find that the new switch fixed one glich I was having. With the old switch, at idle, the dash lights would sorta flicker, I thought it may be my battery. But with the new switch in place, the dash lights are stable and bright at idle, cool, Ed :dance:

A few pictures of my old switch, pretty bad shape; all of my electrical gremlins were sorted out when I replaced this a few weeks ago. I found getting the ac duct back in place to be the most tedious portion of the job. Thanks to all for the DIY steps and advise