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I am trying to bring back to life a '92 964 C4 (non turbo) and it's going fairly well (I think). It has been in dry storage for 15+ years. The body is perfect. No rust. Very low mileage.
However, in accessing the fuel return line on the LH side of the engine bay, I discovered 3 electrical connectors that were in various states of decay. One of them had almost no plastic left on it and when I touched it, the remaining plastic crumbled. Hmmmm. Not nice. I am thinking heat and age maybe? Anyway I am appealing for help in identifying what these connectors do. I have searched on the net, in the forums and various manuals and tried tracing the wires. Disclaimer: this is my first Porsche so this is all new ground for me. If the wires are short in length I would replace them with OEM parts, but if not I am thinking of splicing a new connector onto each wire. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I have attached 2 photos. The first shows the general location of the connectors that are attached to the large bracket that also holds the fuel return line. The 2nd photo is a close-up of the damaged connector.
Large shiny bracket holds the 3 connectors and fuel line
Note the exposed wires where the plastic connector used to be.
I have an extra engine wiring harness somewhere...pm me and let's chat and see if we can't find the parts you need on my harness. And if they are there, you can buy the harness for the parts (or if it's the right harness for your car, just swap it out.)
Thanks!!! This is exactly what I was looking for. Now that I know what they do, I can figure out where the wires go and how easy/expensive it will be to replace.
Also a thanks to Goughary and Wallra. Goughary, I will PM you after I do a bit more research.
Cheers.
Note that some sellers for new crankshaft sensors have later plug versions which require modification of the Harness. I recall someone posting that there is a cheaper Bosch version with the correct plug for the 964. Worth a search.
Looking at your pic in more detail, it appears your connector and pins are intact and that it is the rubber boot that has disintegrated. The boot should be part# 94461212800 (someone please confirm) and if so, it is a fairly common part, VW, BMW, Renault, Vauxhall, etc... all use that boot and here is what looks like installed on the connector
Note that some sellers for new crankshaft sensors have later plug versions which require modification of the Harness. I recall someone posting that there is a cheaper Bosch version with the correct plug for the 964. Worth a search.
I wish it were just a boot problem, but now that you mention it, the entire boot appears to be missing as well. Dust in the wind? Here is a better picture. I definitely need the right connectors but you are correct that the pins are intact. If I can obtain just the male side of the plugs, then I can slide the old pins into the new connectors. If you look closely you will see that the other plug has already cracked and chipped so I will be looking to replace all three male plugs. It looks like Porsche used a different type of plastic for the male vs female side of the connectors. The side closest to the engine is what has failed.
Thanks again to all who have jumped in to help. Great info!
Foreground-totally crumbled Background- cracked, chipped and ready to crumble
The good news is that all of these sensors (with integral wires and connectors) are available.
The bad news is that it would set me back about $400 and require a lot more disassembly to get them installed. This is particularly hard to swallow when the sensors themselves are probably fine.
So here are my plans so far:
PLAN A - Find someone who has a pile of dead sensors sitting on a shelf somewhere and is willing to part with the three that I need. I would then move the connectors from the dead sensors to mine. This is my preferred option as it keeps the car as close to original as reasonably possible.
PLAN B - Find a matching connector from a supplier.
PLAN C - Find any roughly similar automotive connector in a matched male/female pair and discard the Porsche ones. The downside here is that they won't fit into the steel bracket like the OEM ones.
For plan C, it would be ideal if I could get a connector that would accept the flat pins so I would not have to cut or splice any wires. The flat pins look fairly standard and I measured them as 0.113" wide by 0.035" thick. (2.87 mm wide by 0.89 mm thick).
This connector certainly looks like it might fit. However I have already ordered some TE Connectivity connectors that I also believe will work. FYI the original AMP connector company is now owned by TE Connectivity. The connectors were only $6 each so no big deal if they don't fit. I will post results here.
Did you find the associated male connectors through te as well?
I did. Or at least I think I did. TE listed the male connector as "compatible" with the female so I am hoping that means they will mate. The male connectors are on their way. I did not need the females but TE has those as well.
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Help - unidentified crumbling connectors
Mystery connectors solved.
