'04 CTT TLC thread
06-05-2017, 06:13 PM
#136
Three Wheelin'
Mid-2017 update @ 170k miles.
Jalopnik featured us again: http://jalopnik.com/just-a-porsche-r...eep-1795167835
Jalopnik featured us again: http://jalopnik.com/just-a-porsche-r...eep-1795167835
11-01-2017, 08:10 AM
#137
Race Car
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Location: Jacksonville, FL Duval County
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174k mile update
About a month ago, I had the CTT running about as well as it ever has been.
The car had been plagued with soft braking that wasn't exactly confidence-inspiring. Replacing the rear pads, which were near but not at the wear indicators, reduced some pedal play. Earlier I had also replaced the brake master cylinder which helped. Installing EBC Yellow Stuffs for the front pads was the final thing that got the braking back on track. The Hawk HPS 5.0 were just too low of torque; the EBC have a nice initial bite even though they are dustier.
I had been struggling with some random pops and shudders in the front suspension; notably when having the steering at full lack backing out of a parking spot and going forward again.
I finally worked up the nerve to remove the front struts and replace both upper arms and strut mounts. This job is not hard! I always assumed it required removal of the fusebox or something; it does not. A couple of torx bolts in the engine bay to remove the firewall partitions is it. Also, unscrewing the air lines from the air springs is no big deal either. As I didn't replace the air springs, I didn't have to do anything with the Durametric or refill the strut pre-charge or anything.
The passenger strut mount had disintegrated and all the upper arm bushings were worn. Replacement resulted in a steady steering wheel during hard cornering and absolutely no weird noises.
My front left CV axle had suffered an outboard boot tear in April 2016; the replacement axle suffered an inboard boot tear but was replaced under warranty. I am not sure if there is an underlying issue or just bad luck.
Seeing as how all of my suspension and braking issues were resolved, we made another video demonstrating how the CTT is both track and off-road capable, albeit with pretty tame off-roading. Note that deep mud ruts are no friend of the Cayenne:
The car had been plagued with soft braking that wasn't exactly confidence-inspiring. Replacing the rear pads, which were near but not at the wear indicators, reduced some pedal play. Earlier I had also replaced the brake master cylinder which helped. Installing EBC Yellow Stuffs for the front pads was the final thing that got the braking back on track. The Hawk HPS 5.0 were just too low of torque; the EBC have a nice initial bite even though they are dustier.
I had been struggling with some random pops and shudders in the front suspension; notably when having the steering at full lack backing out of a parking spot and going forward again.
I finally worked up the nerve to remove the front struts and replace both upper arms and strut mounts. This job is not hard! I always assumed it required removal of the fusebox or something; it does not. A couple of torx bolts in the engine bay to remove the firewall partitions is it. Also, unscrewing the air lines from the air springs is no big deal either. As I didn't replace the air springs, I didn't have to do anything with the Durametric or refill the strut pre-charge or anything.
The passenger strut mount had disintegrated and all the upper arm bushings were worn. Replacement resulted in a steady steering wheel during hard cornering and absolutely no weird noises.
My front left CV axle had suffered an outboard boot tear in April 2016; the replacement axle suffered an inboard boot tear but was replaced under warranty. I am not sure if there is an underlying issue or just bad luck.
Seeing as how all of my suspension and braking issues were resolved, we made another video demonstrating how the CTT is both track and off-road capable, albeit with pretty tame off-roading. Note that deep mud ruts are no friend of the Cayenne:
11-01-2017, 08:16 AM
#138
Race Car
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Following the video above^^ I drove the Cayenne (covered in mud still) around town and to work the next week. I even drove it to Charleston and back, about 450 miles round trip. I was pleased that no issues arised despite the hard flogging. The car got a lot of odd looks with the mud on it, including a couple of mall-crawler clean Jeep guys yelling "WTF!?" as they drove by.
I think the battery is starting to go; I get random "PHC Failure" which is hill control. This may be due to my brake master cylinder replacement. I did not re-calibrate the master cylinder pressure sensor and I believe I was supposed to. But, that was awhile ago and the PHC faults just started. Also, the car is a little slower to start now, but sitting overnight on the charger makes it start quickly the next day. Hence my belief that battery capacity is reduced.
However, the battery is not my biggest concern now. I backed the cayenne out of the garage this week to discover a few ounces of ATF on my drip pan...and after some cleaning it looks like the torque converter seal is done.
Normally these seals fail when plastic cooling pipes burst and soak the seal. Now, I clearly got the underside of my cayenne good and wet on multiple occasions, but I think getting the torque converter seal wet would be pretty hard to do just driving through mud.
I've had a *very* slow RMS leak for awhile, maybe that contributed. All in all, I chalk it up to 174k miles and 13 years of service- a good run for any seal.
Either way, it looks like I'll be yanking the transmission off in the near future. I may swap in a junkyard trans just to get something on there with less miles.
I think the battery is starting to go; I get random "PHC Failure" which is hill control. This may be due to my brake master cylinder replacement. I did not re-calibrate the master cylinder pressure sensor and I believe I was supposed to. But, that was awhile ago and the PHC faults just started. Also, the car is a little slower to start now, but sitting overnight on the charger makes it start quickly the next day. Hence my belief that battery capacity is reduced.
However, the battery is not my biggest concern now. I backed the cayenne out of the garage this week to discover a few ounces of ATF on my drip pan...and after some cleaning it looks like the torque converter seal is done.
Normally these seals fail when plastic cooling pipes burst and soak the seal. Now, I clearly got the underside of my cayenne good and wet on multiple occasions, but I think getting the torque converter seal wet would be pretty hard to do just driving through mud.
I've had a *very* slow RMS leak for awhile, maybe that contributed. All in all, I chalk it up to 174k miles and 13 years of service- a good run for any seal.
Either way, it looks like I'll be yanking the transmission off in the near future. I may swap in a junkyard trans just to get something on there with less miles.
11-01-2017, 08:23 AM
#139
Race Car
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Also an update on the headliner and the running boards: As you can see in the video; the brackets and bolts (the bolts are special heads) ARE still available from Porsche. ECS got them to me but it took several weeks. The hex nut-serts I just bought on Amazon.
Took the car to a headliner shop; he said he could use a similar color "street suede" which is knock-off alcantara, but that it would be $950 to do. He could knock a couple hundred off the price if I delivered just the headliner to him and did the R&R labor myself.
Not really the price I was hoping for.
Took the car to a headliner shop; he said he could use a similar color "street suede" which is knock-off alcantara, but that it would be $950 to do. He could knock a couple hundred off the price if I delivered just the headliner to him and did the R&R labor myself.
Not really the price I was hoping for.