Second post, so please take it easy on me if these question have been asked before.

1. The rubber on the temperature **** of my Cayman is worn and looks rather unattractive with the white button showing through. Has anybody come up with a quick fix for this? Does someone make new replacement buttons that will not suffer the same fate? Or, should i remove the buttons, strip them of their rubber and paint them with an industrial grade paint?

2. I've noticed the car requires a warm up period. It has some small misses, etc. when I first start it up and then for about 3 minutes. There is also a light ticking noise coming from the drivers side. The car runs great, so i assume this is just due to the high performance engine, but perhaps I assume too much and the car needs a tune up.

3. Aftermarket Radio. I like the factory Radio and the Bose speakers are awesome. However, i would like to have the capability to plug in my i-pod and to use bluetooth with the car. I might also want to add a GPS system. Which aftermarket systems have some of you installed?

4. I've read about engine failures or issues with the piston crowns breaking apart. I have to say that this makes me somewhat nervous. However, i bought an extended Warranty, so hopefully if something decides to break, i will be covered. About what percentage of the cars have had issues with their engines? I just found this information last night and was surprised that i had not stumbled upon it in the past. I hope that the numbers of cars that are affected with this issue is relatively small.

5. OIL-is there anyway to check the oil to see if it is dirty?

6. How do I check the air filter?

Thanks and i look forward to being a part of the forum!
Chris

 

Not a Cayman owner, but I'll put my 2 cents in for #2. Even if you don't have a check engine light on I suspect a dirty MAF, because mine did the same thing before giving me a CEL. Cleaning it may or may not make a difference. Cleaning it (on a 911) is pretty easy and is worth a shot, but if it doesn't fix it I still wouldn't rule the MAF out.

 

By MAF do you mean Mass Air Flow Sensor? If it was dirty, would it not have a misfire all of the time instead of just when it is cold?

Thanks

 

Welcome, Chris!
Just my two cents, don't give them too much credence!
1) Rubber on the ***** is a common issue, and I'm kind of surprised they have not rectified it yet..
Should be available from your preferred P-car parts warehouse for reasonable monies. The ones for the Box (likely the same) are like $15-20 through Suncoast Porsche Parts..
For some reason, the VAG (VW, Audi, Porsche) family fell in love with rubber coated plastic about 2000, and it looks for crap after 5-7 years... (one of the few advantages to my 97)
2) Have it checked out, and if it does not void your warranty, by an independant Porsche specialist. Find someone (a great reason to get to know a shop) who has the ability to scan the computer with Porsche specific software.. Durametric is great!
Or, if you want to make a commitment to the new girl, buy the enthusiast kit from Durametric, and scan your ECU yourself. It is just good stuff to know.
Your intermittent miss likely has a code associated with it, coil packs are notorious.. (often before the engine needs a set of plugs!)
The ticking when warming up should be about the weight of the oil. I know my lifters are more likely to tick with light oil, and when hot..Do an oil change if you are not sure... You need to have a baseline, so you can be sure it is getting done promptly (or even a little early!)
Oil changes seem to be one of the keys to long engine life....
3) I dropped a Clarion CD / USB deck (love the european style) into my Box, which had the Premium Nokia stereo w/ amp. You can run the Pre-amp outputs directly to the stock amp and get good results, but I know my head unit has a 6v pre-out, and it is able to drive the amp and speakers to the point of distortion. A more reasonable 2-4v pre-out would likely be ideal.
4) not really a question, but deserves answering anyways:
Take good care of the car, and she will take good care of you. These engines do have their failure spots, and all you can do is ***Change the oil! -and- cross your fingers, -and- extend the warranty when applicable..
5) I can only assume you want to see if the oil is dirty to determine wether or not to change it?
See answers to #2 and 4.
Also, Change the oil!
and if the high cost of oil changes (9 qts Mobil 1 + good Mahle filter for me)dissuades you from doing them, now may be a good time to sell the car...
Everything else will cost more.Wait 'till tires cost you $1k....
6) Air filter is likely acessed from the top engine compartment lid, and on the driver's side of the car.Owner's manual should cover this, as it is an easy replacement..

Above all, have fun, and drive it like you stole it!
Porsches are meant to be driven.
-Brad
P.S. Change the oil!

 

Pretty good answers for a jetta guy you should come by more often.

 

Just put another 200 miles on her today. God i love this car!!!

So, what your saying is, i should change my oil?

-I might have said this already, but i have a 4 post lift, so changing the oil shouldn't be a problem. I noticed some rot in the sway bar rubber bushings when i crawled under the car yesterday. They are not to the point of replacement yet, but i think i will go ahead and pick a few up for when i have a solid weekend off in the near future.
-I have no idea if the used car dealership changed the oil or not, or if they used the correct oil, so i will probably go ahead and change it out tomorrow. Hopefully i can find the recommended filter and oil locally at a NAPA, O'reillys, autozone, or advance auto parts.

I really appreciate you taking so much time to answer my questions! I have a lot to learn about this car since i am use to working on sixties muscle cars and pushrod engines. :0

 

Changed the oil today and yup, it was pretty dirty. Not black yet, but looked like chocolate syrup. The filter was pretty dirty as well.

Advance auto parts had the Mobile 1 0-W40 Sythetic oil and the L25316 Purolator filter that is made in Germany. It looked identical to the filter I removed from the car. I did not change the crush washer since it just looks like a regular washer to me. I just went for a 70 mile jaunt to Barbers Motorsports and back and no leaks. The car registered as too full on oil initially, even though i did not put the full 9th quart into the car. I started, let it sit for 40 minutes and then checked the oil again and it was right at the top bracket. I put the extra half quart of mobile 1 in a plastic bag in one of the storage compartments just in case it ever reads slightly low in the future.

After the oil change i was pulling out of the driveway and thought i saw smoke coming from the rear of the car. I freaked out and shut it down immediately. I then restarted the car and went to the rear of the car-just lots of condensation on the muffler tip-shew!!! It scared me pretty bad though at first. I've changed the oil in probably around 100 cars over the years, but since this was the first time and these cars are so particular about the oil and oil level, i was a little jumpy!

 

Smoke most likely from over filling the oil.

 

NO! It was from condensation evaporating from the tip as i mentioned above, but it still scared me at first. No offense, but i am not sure how you missed that in the above post. I took extra care and precautions to make sure that it was not overfilled.

 

#1, i had many interior parts replaced under warranty by porsche if the paint is peeling. not sure what your exact extended warranty policy is, but you may be able to swing it.

#2, ticking has always been on the cayman on start up, if it is still there after warm up, check lifters.

if you're smoking on start up consistently, i would check the air oil separator. this is a common issue that may come up, you can upgrade to the motorsports aos and eliminate the problem.

nice choice of car, it's a real joy to drive!

 

Thanks!
-I bought an extended warranty that looks to be junk. It is the MasterTech Vehicle Protection Plan that the used car dealership talked me into. since i was driving the car 600 miles home, i decided it might be a good idea to get something for the trip. however, I just googled the company and fraud alerts popped up everywhere. I have 60 days to cancel it.

-Fortunately, the car is not smoking at all. If it had been, i would have walked away from it at the dealership. What i have seen twice now is just condensation. It happens when I start the car and only run it briefly at idle, shut it down, and then start it up again. Im just not used to seeing the steam rising from the center rear of the vehicle since i have owned an SUV for the last 7 years with passenger side exit exhaust. I have not noticed any smoke upon initial start up or any oil on the exhaust tips or inside of them. When i have seen the steam, i have checked the tip and they have been wet with condensation build up. However, i will keep an eye on it and make a note of your post for future reference.
Thanks again!