Hey all, wondering if anyone can tell me what it means when you get just a down arrow warning light without any other warning lights on a 1986.5 automatic. Happened to me once while taking a "strong" corner but then went away, again while just driving straight down the freeway. After the second time I was getting ready to do an intake refresh so I just parked it and forgot about it. Now that I finished the refresh, I took it for a test drive, and it came back while driving at about 35mph. I initially thought maybe a light was out but tested my dash lights and they all seem to be working.

Sorry if this has been covered, I promise I've been searching and can't seem to find anything on the subject.

Dash light while driving

Testing dash lights

 

based on your picture the brake fluid is low.
That said best info is in your owners manual.

 

That's very interesting! Your Idiot Lights are completely different that the ones in my 86.5. My dash doesn't have any arrows at all. Disregard the big green light in the upper left, that's my G4 Knock Light.

 

Thanks @Mrmerlin I thought the same thing at first and checked the fluid level and it was full, I also would have thought the actual brake fluid level light would have come on.

Also, my owner's manual doesn't match my dash light cluster. It shows an antilock/ABS where my top arrow is, and my car has ABS but no dash light for it. Maybe an ABS issue?

 

I wonder if someone swapped out the right gauge cluster (oil press. and volts) with a gauge from a 944. I believe the 944 on some years had the SERVO light associated with the power steering.

example of a 944 instrument cluster, though admittedly is doesn't have the SERVO light illuminated

.

 

I was noticing that the only example I could find that matched mine was a 944. And... now that I'm thinking about it the servo light comes on when my parking brake is on.

I'm guessing it is an ABS warning and I need to get the correct gauge back in.

Thanks all!

 

First thing I'd check for an ABS light is under there rear of the car where the sensor wires pass over the CV shafts. the support grommets tend to crumble with time and the wires drop down and drag on the CV wearing through the wire insulation and potentially the wires if left rubbing long enough.

 

It looks like your pod may have been swapped to a different set of gauges from another model like a 944,
the 928 doesnt have the arrow heads at the warning lights.
Disconnect the battery and remove the pod then remove the gauges.
Look for a part number sticker on the gauges that will tell you what they are for.

NOTE I have never seen this done before putting in a set of 944 gauges into a 928,
it doesn`t mean it won`t work .

 

Check out this thread from 11 years ago. Same car perhaps? Does your cluster appear to have LEDs? If it's not the same car.... It was also an 86.5 suggesting a production snafu. Would be interesting to compare build dates. If it was a production issue then it's another but small aspect that makes the 86.5's unique.

I could see it being a build snafu, both the 944 and 928 were in production at that time. Perhaps a look at the back of the cluster for witness marks could provide some clues.

https://rennlist.com/forums/928-foru...ervo-lamp.html

 

This is interesting.

Thanks for identifying the gauge as a 944 @76FJ55 and thanks for the tip on where to start troubleshooting the ABS issue.
Thanks for the link @icsamerica. I don't think it is the same car as mine is a two owner before me, and the last owner had it 30 years and is in his 70s now and wasn't into doing the work himself. He had Porsche shop in Portland do all the work. Maybe they swapped it or maybe it is a weird factory issue.

I'll have to pull the cluster and see if it's a weird factory fluke or was replaced at one point. That will be down the road a bit. I at least know what the light is referencing and can work on that, and I also have a high idle after my intake refresh, I need to figure out first. I'll do some initial testing on that (maybe vacuum?) and then start a separate thread on that as needed.

 

Oops, I see you figured out why (sort of) so this data point is not all that useful...

My '86.5 has no big arrows like that either.