georgiadis

No, this is (unfortunately) not at a Porsche dealer although he does have experience with Porsche's.
I don't even want to think how much Porsche Beverly Hills would charge to repair by searching around...

99firehawk

what year is your car and is it a c2 or c4?

georgiadis

It is an '02 996 Targa
I asked him if he checked the ECU and he says that he did but that did not help.

georgiadis

Also is there any way to fuel the car (even little by little) to be able to move myself around?

99firehawk

All right, im having a mind fart im not sure of thats the new or old sytle,
First thing replace the fuse and acuate to door in the fuel neck with your finger. Do you here the valve opening. If it is not opening you could have a bad magnetic switch that isnt opening the valve.
The valve should be under the battery tray (remove the battery and the tray) towards the drivers side of the car about 2 inches from the fuel pump ring. It is wrapped in thick styro foam. You should be able to remove the hoses from this valve, you will have to cut the clamps . At this point the vechile should take fuel. If it does you have found your problem.

georgiadis

If I cut out this valve, will it be safe to move around the car until I get it replaced?
What if the car still doesn't take fuel?

Do you think that the replacing the whole fuel tank is not necessary?

Also, can anyone suggest a good, reliable and reasonably (cheap) priced mechanic in West Los Angeles for the task?

Thank you again!!

georgiadis

By the way, that is one of the post-facelift cars.

georgiadis

Oh... and one more note.
As soon as I replace the fuse, it get blown right away (with a spark right at the fusebox).

99firehawk

I would not recomend changing a fuel tank unless it has physcal damage to it. If you need to add fuel to the car, pull the fuel pump top off and pour it to the tank from there. then you can reinstalll the pump top and drive the car. you dont want to move the car around with the fuel tank open or the hoses off the valve. I would put money on the valve on top of the tank there.

georgiadis

Thank you very much!
I will check with my mechanic on Monday morning and if he cannot rectify it, I will take to the car to the Porsche dealership to at least make sure that the car is checked with the proper Porsche tester.

Do you know if the Porsche Tester would be able to pinpoint the problem to a specific valve?
No CEL is lit.

99firehawk

no the tester is no help in diagnosis this, but you do need a througouh understanding of the system, that you may not find with someone who has not been through this before

georgiadis

Thank you 99firehawk!!
Do you by any chance have any pictures of what I should be looking for?
Fuel pump top and the valve wrapped in foram that is?
My mechanic told me that the gas tank is sealed and it cannot be opened or accessed, which is not true from what I understand, so I am wondering if he thinks that that foam is a seal and cannot be torn apart.
Thanks again for all your (and others') help!!

Charlie C

Just my 2 cents: It seems this mechanic might not be that knowledgeable about Porsches. I would take it to a good Porsche indy or a Porsche dealer. Best of luck with this.

cdodkin

I'm also questioning the diagnosis - The fact that the circuit is hard shorted to ground (you note that the E6 fuse blows instantly with a spark) would suggest an electrical fault.

I'm not convinced a valve failure would do this, I'd expect it to fail open circuit, not short circuit.

Of course I don't know what your mech did as diagnosis - but I'd certainly be getting it to a dealership for a second opinion, but only after I'd spent a few hours on Sunday tracing that cable loom from the cellphone connector back through the car to the fuse-box - and checking for broken/worn insulation.

Just my 2c

99firehawk

you need to find someone who has worked on a porsche before.