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All the rest inside is purely mechanical, so the entire lock/unlock procedure is dependent on the position of the slider on the worm gear, and I believe the microswitch needs to have power to determine whether the microswitch is open or closed (thus fortifying my belief that the car will not lock/unlock without power...and I proved that when I disconnected my battery for this project and could not lock or unlock the car).
BTW - my pic in post #12 shows the linkage BEFORE I took anything apart. I studied my picture in relation to OP's and for the life of me could not figure out what he was talking about moving the slider lock back on the threaded part, and then it dawned on me that mine was already out of the locked position. I figure I dodged a pretty good bullet that that piece held together all these years without the slider locked back in place. The things you find.......
Okay, as a final follow-up to this DIY I have this to say: I replaced the drivers side door latch mechanism over the weekend. To the OP who rated this a 1.5/5 job, I have to totally disagree. This is an extremely tricky job. You will be working one handed and in the blind for the most part. Getting the door latch in is one thing, but the most difficult part is getting the cast aluminum backing plate in while lining up the lock pin and at the same time re-inserting the door handle with the hinges from outside. This was like trying to figure out a chinese jigsaw puzzle with one hand while your eyes are closed. There is no way to see what is going on, or how things are lining up way back up in the door. It is all done by feel and guessing. I got so frustrated I had to walk away at least five times and take a break. I was sweating my a$$ off and almost thought this was going to have to go to the dealer because I can't figure out how to do it....that is how close it was. And that is very unusual for me.
I apologize if I lead you on to believe this was going to be easier than it was! I would agree that this the trickiest aspect of the job, but I'm glad you were able to finish the task. If I recall correctly, I believe I left the exterior handle with just the nuts on the back of the aluminum name just started so it had enough slop to guide in the flat bladed pin while getting the door lock into position. You were right in that it's movement done purely by feel.
The only things I remember from doing this job is that your hands will get shredded if you're not careful and to put masking tape around the outside of the door to prevent scratches when you're fiddling around trying to line things up.
I apologize if I lead you on to believe this was going to be easier than it was! I would agree that this the trickiest aspect of the job, but I'm glad you were able to finish the task. If I recall correctly, I believe I left the exterior handle with just the nuts on the back of the aluminum name just started so it had enough slop to guide in the flat bladed pin while getting the door lock into position. You were right in that it's movement done purely by feel.
Hey...no problems here. No apologies necessary. In fact your write up is fantastic. I've been wrenching on all sorts of things since I was just a young kid. 6 years in the Navy as a Machinist Mate. I have also worked on all of my cars since I was 17. Now I'm 62. I would have tackled this job anyway, even if you gave it a 5 out of 5. Just wanted others to know that this is tricky and one will need a great deal of patience, and maybe even another set of hands to help.
Thank you guys for such a nice write up! And yes, hats off to sweet victory for a great DIY thread!!!
I've changed these locks out before on other cars and personally think Porsche's locks are just about as good as other cars. They get old and dirty, loose their lubrication, and the electric actuators/microswitches foul up and then shaaa bang!... you're locked out of your car and it's never at a convenient time or location! The telltale sign is that it becomes harder and harder to unlock or open the doors. This can happen during the cold and hot months. The locks are not prejudice to weather. They can "lock up" (no pun intended) at any time.
What makes it more frustrating for Porsche owners is the way they engineered the locking and security aspect of these cars. How many threads have you read where someone was locked out of their 996 and couldn't get access to the battery or rear deck lid to jump the car off? Fortunately, we have more information then ever before to alert us to these problems. When the cup-bearers fall over dead, we learn what wine to avoid.
Well, I had errands to run this morning so I ended up locking and unlocking at least 5 times this morning. Everything was perfect. The difference is amazing. Seems I never noticed the steady deterioration of the lock cylinder and latch. Before it was kind of sloppy, almost loose in the lock/unlock sequence, and then of course it crapped out totally. Now it is like a snap and clunk...locked. Beautiful....and peace of mind to boot! Please remember to relocate your frunk emergency release cable to just behind the front bumper tow hook plug. It works great from that location.
Great write-up....but I have a question before I jump into this:
When I lift the driver side door handle ('99 Coupe) I can hear the switch actuate, but the window barely moves. Passenger side seems to operate as designed (same sound, window lowers slightly).
A switch should operate as a simple "on/off" device, correct? Would the fact that I hear it "actuate" but the window doesn't lower suggest the switch is fine?
If I tackle this project, just want to make sure I hit the cause of the problem.
If you can push the window down after you hear that noise then it is most likely the window regulator. Something broke and now there's too much slack in the cable to lower the wind half an inch
^^ That is correct. Over time the window regulator cables stretch and you don't get the window drop anymore. Our cars are approaching 20 years old. Stuff is just simply going to wear out and need to be replaced. Only get a OE Porsche window regulator. Do not go cheap on this one.
Yes, I can push the window down to its intended position. It then raises tightly when I close the door. The regulator definitely makes more sense to me - thank you both!
I have also learned the OEM/non-OEM lesson the hard way so I will stick to OEM here...
If you are going to do this yourself, it's a fiddly job but not to hard. One of the most important tips is to mark the position of the bottom bolts of the regulator BEFORE you pull it out. Those positions determine the window pressure against the seal. If you don't mark them, you will spend 2 hours making adjustments to get the window glass to seat correctly against the window seal.
OK, I have not seen this discussed here. I replaced the passenger door lock actuator because the window was not going down when opened (window regulator was fine). The new one functions well in that regard, however, now the doors won't lock. If I disconnect it, The driver door will lock. As soon as I reconnect the harness, nothing happens when I hit the lock button on the dash or the key. I disassembled everything and reinstalled it to the same effect. Thoughts?
07-29-2019, 01:22 PM
