First Post - new 928 owner w/ pics
03-17-2014, 07:44 PM
#31
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Welcome and congrats on the 928!
BTW - If you are not a PCA member yet, feel free to join us at our local Area Meeting this week at the Fox & Hound at NorthLake. Wednesday March 19th. We start gathering at 6. Meeting starts at 7:00.
As an added bonus one of the few people in this area that are qualified to work on 928's will be in attendance at the meeting (Jim Burton w/ Hendrick Porsche).
BTW - If you are not a PCA member yet, feel free to join us at our local Area Meeting this week at the Fox & Hound at NorthLake. Wednesday March 19th. We start gathering at 6. Meeting starts at 7:00.
As an added bonus one of the few people in this area that are qualified to work on 928's will be in attendance at the meeting (Jim Burton w/ Hendrick Porsche).
FYI, I have already joined the PCA, but haven't received my packet of stuff yet.
03-17-2014, 07:53 PM
#32
Rennlist Member
Electrical glitches in order of annoyance:
- Radio won't keep station or pre-sets when the key is turned off, have to reset the station from 87.9 each time. Original Koln Blaupunkt with tape deck (I got rid of all my cassettes in the 90's). Not sure on this, as I have an aftermarket system... but it sounds like all radio power is fed thru the ignition switch. Does your clock stay on time? If so, see if there is a 'standby' power lead from the radio that may have gotten disconnected & connect to clock power supply.
- As soon as I start to move the main warning light comes on, once I hit the re-set button it stays off until the next time I turn the key. Does this trigger a dash warning light also? If it triggers the ABS (as you said, after starting to move) light, it sounds like a wheel speed sensor. IIRC, there are threads here about OB sensors being part of the hub & prone to issues & corrosion. IF no other warning light comes on, check to make sure all of your sub-system warning lights work. Turn key to 'ON' but do not crank... this will light up every warning light to verify their function. Compare the dash layout for your particular model with the diagram in the owner's manual.
- fuel gauge registers the right amount of fuel at startup then drifts upwards after a few minutes. I guess the good news is I always have 3/4 tank of gas, if I actually believed it. I've not been daring enough to find out if the low fuel light works yet. Sounds immediately like the fuel level sensor... easily replaced through the hatch floor on passenger side. Mine fluctuated like crazy until I replaced it.
- Driver side speaker goes in and out and crackles a little, passenger side does not seem to have a problem. This and the driver door courtesy light may be related... pinched power wire in the door jam (may be outside of the plastic wiring channel that is there to prevent such a thing) would certainly cause audio interference and could make the light work intermittently & more likely on the driver door rather than passenger because it gets used more.
- Driver door courtesy light goes out once the door is 1/3 open. [see above]
- ABS warning light is on all the time. [see above]
- Once (and only once) my passenger side window would go down, but not back up. It was cold that morning, in the afternoon it worked fine and has never had the problem again. Mine don't want to cooperate in cold weather either... and these cars were made for German winters! Not sure if it is a lubrication issue, but sounds plausible. Warmer weather will make hinge points operate freely -kinda like humans!
- trunk lid releases (next to driver and passenger doors) don't work. Very few still have working trunk releases, because at some point in time someone pushed down on the button instead of lifting it... breaking the **** or the switch itself. May be as easy as replacing the switches!
- Radio won't keep station or pre-sets when the key is turned off, have to reset the station from 87.9 each time. Original Koln Blaupunkt with tape deck (I got rid of all my cassettes in the 90's). Not sure on this, as I have an aftermarket system... but it sounds like all radio power is fed thru the ignition switch. Does your clock stay on time? If so, see if there is a 'standby' power lead from the radio that may have gotten disconnected & connect to clock power supply.
- As soon as I start to move the main warning light comes on, once I hit the re-set button it stays off until the next time I turn the key. Does this trigger a dash warning light also? If it triggers the ABS (as you said, after starting to move) light, it sounds like a wheel speed sensor. IIRC, there are threads here about OB sensors being part of the hub & prone to issues & corrosion. IF no other warning light comes on, check to make sure all of your sub-system warning lights work. Turn key to 'ON' but do not crank... this will light up every warning light to verify their function. Compare the dash layout for your particular model with the diagram in the owner's manual.
- fuel gauge registers the right amount of fuel at startup then drifts upwards after a few minutes. I guess the good news is I always have 3/4 tank of gas, if I actually believed it. I've not been daring enough to find out if the low fuel light works yet. Sounds immediately like the fuel level sensor... easily replaced through the hatch floor on passenger side. Mine fluctuated like crazy until I replaced it.
- Driver side speaker goes in and out and crackles a little, passenger side does not seem to have a problem. This and the driver door courtesy light may be related... pinched power wire in the door jam (may be outside of the plastic wiring channel that is there to prevent such a thing) would certainly cause audio interference and could make the light work intermittently & more likely on the driver door rather than passenger because it gets used more.
- Driver door courtesy light goes out once the door is 1/3 open. [see above]
- ABS warning light is on all the time. [see above]
- Once (and only once) my passenger side window would go down, but not back up. It was cold that morning, in the afternoon it worked fine and has never had the problem again. Mine don't want to cooperate in cold weather either... and these cars were made for German winters! Not sure if it is a lubrication issue, but sounds plausible. Warmer weather will make hinge points operate freely -kinda like humans!
- trunk lid releases (next to driver and passenger doors) don't work. Very few still have working trunk releases, because at some point in time someone pushed down on the button instead of lifting it... breaking the **** or the switch itself. May be as easy as replacing the switches!
03-17-2014, 07:57 PM
#33
Nordschleife Master
Well, you got very very lucky. Many (most?) cars imported in that era got butchered pretty badly to meet the regs. Crappy side marker lights, black bumperettes that required removal of the rear fog, H4s (best headlight available for the car) replaced with inferior and uglier (opinions vary a little) DOT compliant lights, front fogs replaced with US parking lights, a few other things. You have what looks like a mostly original car. I'm pretty envious.
Best guesses:
Radio isn't getting "constant power." There's a solid red wire that provides power for the memory when the car is turned off. It's on fuse 24 - the interior light circuit. You say you have inside lights (most of the time) so the circuit is good. The wire may be disconnected, may be broken.
Main Warning Light - It's called the "Central Warning Light" or CWL (terminology is important so everyone knows what you mean). If it's coming on, there should be an "information" light coming on on the dash too. That's the idea behind it. The CWL is telling you there's something wrong, and the dash will tell you what it is. If you can reset it, it's "minor" fault, if it's a "major" problem, the light won't go out. It's probably coming on because the ABS light is on.
Don't know about the fuel gauge. It might be the sender. It might be a wiring issue.
Driver side speaker and interior light - Sounds like a broken wire or two. Fairly common in a car this old. The flexing of the wires over the years will break the copper wire inside the insulation. It can be a pain to find the actual break. It may be easier to replace a fairly long length of wire to make sure the broken section is gone.
ABS light - Possibly a wheel sensor. Maybe a wiring issue. I'm not too familiar with it because I don't have it (no need to know for me).
Window switch - Sounds like the switch (fairly common). If it does it again, try wiggling the switch as you are pressing it. Also, watch the voltmeter as you press it. If the voltmeter doesn't move, then power isn't being drawn and it's likely the switch. If it does move, then power is being drawn and it's a motor or stuck glass issue.
Hatch releases - They can be problematic. Are you hearing anything when you pull them? If so, it's likely a motor/linkage issue. If not, then it's likely a fuse or wiring issue (fuses 24 & 26).
There are threads on the fuel tank sender, ABS, window switches and hatch release. Searching around will find them. I've found that searching for stuff is a good way to find out what I'm looking for. Mainly because I usually have to dig around a while and find stuff applicable to the problem that I didn't know to look for.
Hope this helps.
Edit to add: Barry beat me to it. But it looks like we agree on most of it.
Best guesses:
Radio isn't getting "constant power." There's a solid red wire that provides power for the memory when the car is turned off. It's on fuse 24 - the interior light circuit. You say you have inside lights (most of the time) so the circuit is good. The wire may be disconnected, may be broken.
Main Warning Light - It's called the "Central Warning Light" or CWL (terminology is important so everyone knows what you mean). If it's coming on, there should be an "information" light coming on on the dash too. That's the idea behind it. The CWL is telling you there's something wrong, and the dash will tell you what it is. If you can reset it, it's "minor" fault, if it's a "major" problem, the light won't go out. It's probably coming on because the ABS light is on.
Don't know about the fuel gauge. It might be the sender. It might be a wiring issue.
Driver side speaker and interior light - Sounds like a broken wire or two. Fairly common in a car this old. The flexing of the wires over the years will break the copper wire inside the insulation. It can be a pain to find the actual break. It may be easier to replace a fairly long length of wire to make sure the broken section is gone.
ABS light - Possibly a wheel sensor. Maybe a wiring issue. I'm not too familiar with it because I don't have it (no need to know for me).
Window switch - Sounds like the switch (fairly common). If it does it again, try wiggling the switch as you are pressing it. Also, watch the voltmeter as you press it. If the voltmeter doesn't move, then power isn't being drawn and it's likely the switch. If it does move, then power is being drawn and it's a motor or stuck glass issue.
Hatch releases - They can be problematic. Are you hearing anything when you pull them? If so, it's likely a motor/linkage issue. If not, then it's likely a fuse or wiring issue (fuses 24 & 26).
There are threads on the fuel tank sender, ABS, window switches and hatch release. Searching around will find them. I've found that searching for stuff is a good way to find out what I'm looking for. Mainly because I usually have to dig around a while and find stuff applicable to the problem that I didn't know to look for.
Hope this helps.
Edit to add: Barry beat me to it. But it looks like we agree on most of it.
03-18-2014, 05:35 PM
#35
Rennlist Member
Oops, late to the party, but a big WELCOME!
My daughters 84 Euro is same spec as yours, and I know ( because its here in my garage) how much fun it is .
I'll drive it any day over my 81 or 86....
My daughters 84 Euro is same spec as yours, and I know ( because its here in my garage) how much fun it is .
I'll drive it any day over my 81 or 86....
03-18-2014, 06:15 PM
#36
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03-18-2014, 08:32 PM
#38
Nordschleife Master
03-18-2014, 09:01 PM
#39
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Totally lucked into it. A friend of a guy I work with owned it, didn't actually have it for sale but he was open to selling it. He didn't feel like he was driving it enough, so he was willing to part with it.
After looking on the internet for a few weeks I had accepted the fact that I was going to put several grand and a lot of elbow grease into a high mileage car on top of the purchase price. Probably have to travel out of state to go get it. This one was literally a mile from my house, no joke. I gave the owner what he told me he wanted for it without haggling. Done. The hiccup was that it snowed on the Friday I was going to pick it up and I had to wait an agonizing weekend to finally get it.
I just didn't think I was going to find this car anywhere else, I'm still pretty convinced of that. Very few things in my life have worked out like this (so far).
After looking on the internet for a few weeks I had accepted the fact that I was going to put several grand and a lot of elbow grease into a high mileage car on top of the purchase price. Probably have to travel out of state to go get it. This one was literally a mile from my house, no joke. I gave the owner what he told me he wanted for it without haggling. Done. The hiccup was that it snowed on the Friday I was going to pick it up and I had to wait an agonizing weekend to finally get it.
I just didn't think I was going to find this car anywhere else, I'm still pretty convinced of that. Very few things in my life have worked out like this (so far).
03-19-2014, 02:51 AM
#40
Burning Brakes
(it was picked-up on Monday)Enjoy!
04-20-2014, 12:11 PM
#41
Drifting
I must have missed this thread, great purchase, 1 of the nicest euro's, which makes it 1 of the nicest 928's. Wash it twice, clay bar it, then Meguiars NXT tech wax. Clean and sand all ground points! Hopefully the TB is all good. Adjust the throttle cable. Then when you feel like it examine the fuse/relay panel, replacing all fuses and buy spare relays. Then look into J Speakes chip upgrade.
04-21-2014, 05:05 AM
#42
Burning Brakes
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04-21-2014, 07:38 AM
#43
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BTW, I just watched Risky Business again the other night. I'm pretty sure that was when I first fell in love with this car. The sound of that car in the movie was my "you had me at hello" moment.
04-21-2014, 11:45 AM
#45
Pro
Very nice - love the color. Congrats!