987.2 Cayman Rear Speaker (Sometimes) Not Working

Hi guys, I've got a 2010 Cayman S with PCM 3.0 and I'm having a problem with the left rear speaker intermittently not working. For example, yesterday after a long drive it stopped working (verified by adjusting the fader/balance) and by this morning it was working again. I can't seem to tie its failure to any particular action on my part. Obviously this could be one of a few things. For starters, do the rear speakers go through the ASK amp? I know the amp is problematic, but I've been told that the rears are a direct feed from the head unit - is this correct? If it's not the amp, is the rear speaker connector easy to get to anywhere, like behind the seats? Or even just somewhere I could find the wiring diagram, as I'm not even sure how this sucker is wired up. Thanks for any suggestions. Removing the radio and/or the rear speaker looks annoying, so for a minor problem like this I may just live with it rather than just ripping everything apart, but figured I'd ask if folks had any easy ideas or had seen this before.

The intermittent nature of the problem makes it challenging. I would open things up once, bring out the wires (splice and extend if need be). When it fails, measure the resistance to the speaker, and the voltage of the signal. Then, if there is an electrical connection between radio and power amp, you'll likely have to do the same there. Divide and conquer, and expect it to be a connector, or less likely, a bad solder joint inside something. But my bet is a connector. Sorry you have this problem. Edit: The other thing to try, if you have two rear speakers, etc, is switching left and right in order to isolate the problem. Connect left output to right speaker, etc.

Sounds like a loose wire. Have you checked the frunk to make sure there's no damage to cabling at the amp? I don't have wiring diagrams for 987.2 , but here's the non- Bose diagram for 987.1 . (On the Bose , all the speakers only connect to the amp)

If, as might be implied by your post, it only stops working after the radio's been on a while I'd suspect a bad voice coil. Heats up and opens the connection and then works again after cooling off. Swapping speakers side to side would verify this. A bad amp channel could also behave this way. The speaker swap side to side would help narrow this down also. Still check the amp output before changing the amp to verify. If it's random in happening anytime or when going over bumps a bad connector, loose wire or either of the above would also be possible. The intermittent nature guarantees that finding it will be a PITA. Seem to recall an article or thread on this site where someone replaced speakers for better sound. The info you need to access the rear speakers might be there. I don't recall the MY though that the work was done on. Good luck.

Thanks gents. Yeah, that's the wiring diagram I have, but it isn't for the 987.2 , and also it doesn't show the radio or rear speakers. I've done enough electrical troubleshooting over the years to know there probably wasn't an easy answer to this, but since I'm new to the car I figured I'd ask. I'll probably see if I can come up with some consistent way to reproduce the problem before doing anything.

Okay, I got fed up enough with it dropping out and crackling that I pulled out the rear speaker. Turns out the connector was cracked at the speaker (possibly from the factory...dunno) and was only making intermittent contact. This was not a fun job, especially since I do not enjoy interior work. You need to remove three panels to get to the speaker, and it's tough to do without breaking the plastic panel bits or scratching up the horribly scratch-prone surface of the trim. Managed to do it without major damage, though. The service manual has decent instructions: you need to remove the rear silver trunk trim, then the whole C-pillar cover, and then you can remove the cover that holds the speaker. The stock rear speakers, like most OEM speakers, are really junky. As in: the cheapest pair of $20 speakers you could buy on Amazon are probably an improvement. They are 4" and most aftermarket speakers in that size should fit with a little tweaking. The speaker I pulled out was bad enough that I ended up doing the work to replace the other rear one while I was in there.

Hi gubi, thanks for sharing these useful informaiton. Just wonder where did you get the service manual? I'm just looking for one. Thanks!

I got a subscription to Alldata . They have the 987.2 factory service manual: http://www.alldatadiy.com

Is it the same as the one on worshop-manual.com? 6039 pages or something. It’s really not good but it’s the only one I could find for free. If the one from alldata is better, I may consider to subscribe as well. Porsche Workshop Manuals > Cayman (987) F6-2.9L (2009) > Relays and Modules > Relays and Modules - Accessories and Optional Equipment > Antenna Control Module > Component Information > Service and Repair

Is it the same as the one on worshop-manual.com? 6039 pages or something. It’s really not good but it’s the only one I could find for free. If the one from alldata is better, I may consider to subscribe as well. Porsche Workshop Manuals > Cayman (987) F6-2.9L (2009) > Relays and Modules > Relays and Modules - Accessories and Optional Equipment > Antenna Control Module > Component Information > Service and Repair