I've had a recurring problem with my P4S. The @#$% alarm keeps going off!

I leave it parked at work, outdoors, in the sun. Daytime temps around here can hit 100 or more, so I leave the sunroof open, window shades up. The last few times I've taken the car to work (I usually drive the 911, at least in the summer) the alarm has gone off repeatedly. It happened again yesterday.

My dealer first upgraded some computer software, which didn't fix the problem. Now they appear to be stumped.

Has anyone else experienced this? If so, has anyone figured out the reasons or the cure?

TIA.

DMoore
'10 P4S
'09 C2S

 

Owners Manual, page 249 under "Avoiding False Alarms"

Always close the slide/tilt roof and all door windows.

Cheers, JohnnyB

 

But I've owned numerous other cars with sunroofs, including 2 911's. I've never had this problem with any other car. If I can't leave a window or the sunroof cracked open, the temperature inside the car becomes ridiculous. Seems like bad design to me, if that's really the bottom line.

DMoore
'09 C2S
'10 P4S

 

I don't have the manual in front of me, but I think that there is some sort of ultrasonic detector inside the car which triggers if there is air disruption (like a breeze through a sunroof). The same thing happened to me with my PS and my Maser QP. If your car gets that hot, try the new thermal film on the windshield and the side windows. Also try a deployable windshield reflector. These are quite effective.

 

I leave my car with the moonroof popped open all the time, but I always leave the shade pulled closed. This leaves an opening to vent air, but not allowing too much flow of air (or bugs) in/out of the car.

Of course, I might just be lucky that it's never created a false alarm...

 

I have had this problem as well and it drives me crazy. I thought that if I disabled the interior alarm (with the button below the B pillar between the front and rear seats on the drivers side) that this would resolve the issue. Nope, it still goes off. I then read the manual and it stated that one should set the parking brake when disabling the interior alarm, but this did not work either.

This is such an annoying issue!

 

Took the car to the dealer, here's what they told me.

(1) Tough. That's the way it's designed. They said the interior motion sensor is so sensitive they set it off with a shadow. (I doubt that, but it makes a point, doesn't it?)

(2) Turn off the interior motion sensor each time you park the car. I asked if there's any way to turn it off permanently? No, was the answer. Will I forget to turn it off at least 1/2 the time? No doubt. So that's only a partial fix, at best.

I suggested that someone should tell Porsche that some of their cars end up in hot climates. I was in Palm Springs today. They're having a cold spell, only 102. I left the car buttoned up to avoid setting off the alarm. When I got back in you could have fried an egg on the front seat.

It just seems to me that (repeat after me) "On a car this expensive..." they should give you an option to leave the sunroof or a window cracked open without having to find ways to defeat the built in systems. As I said in my previous post, I've never had this problem with any car I've ever owned before... until now. God Bless Progress!

Grump, grump, grump.

DMoore
'09 C2S (with an alarm I can control)
'10 P4S (with a mind of its own)