sailorlite

I've been told my rear spoiler seems to extend and retract as I pass through 60 mph - which is what the Manual says is normal and automatic. What I'm wondering is whether there's a way for me to know its position as I'm driving. I can't see it, and I don't see any dash indicator showing its position. Is it automatically extending/retracting or not? What position is it in now?

Also, I'd like to be able to override or cancel the automatic feature. When I'm on the freeway driving between 55 and 65, the spoiler is probably cycling between up and down. Is there a way to fix it in the down position rather than in the up position?

ogun228

Short answer is that spoiler extension is both temperature and speed dependent.
I forget the temp specifics but extension typically takes place above 75mph and remains
until I think 45mph or some figure like it.
Yes you can manually extend the spoiler via console button ( kind of DUH! if you ask me)
When I owned a 996 C4S I could see the extended spoiler out of my rear view mirror under
certain conditions. My current 997.2 S cab does not allow me to see anything, top up or down.
Some people have attached a little doodad to the spoiler so that they can verify its functions. So rest
easy: at 60 or even 70 mph, nothing happens.

ADias

In normal temps the spoiler rises at 75MPH and lowers at 37MPH. On the freeway with normal traffic, if the spoiler is raised it will likely stay raised.

Petza914

There's also an option in the coding menus that has the spoiler deploy under full throttle conditions. If people are telling you your spoiler is going up and down a lot and you frequently have the hammer down at lower speeds for the rush of acceleration, a PO may have enabled this option. I find that one kind of silly as full throttle shift weight rearward onto an already rear biased car and it really doesn't do much until the speed at which the factory settings deploy it, and higher. The only argument I can think of for the heavy acceleration deployment is so that on a track, it's already up as you go screaming through the 75 mph threshold on your way to a much higher speed and don't want the deployment to upset the airflow and change the dynamics of the car, but on a track you could just hit the button and leave it up all the time.

Tj40

And the button is there so if you get pulled you can always tell the cop you manually raised the spoiler :-)

sailorlite

The owner's manual for my early '05 C2S says simply that the spoiler extends at about 60mph (not 75mph) and retracts below that - no mention of temps or modes (automatic v. manual). So I'm still unsure as to the position of the spoiler in the "automatic" mode due to there being no position indicator, and now evidently the manuals are offering conflicting information also. Or, there have been changes to the operating algorithms in newer models.
I guess I'll have to dream up some kind of physical indicator visible from the driver's seat. I'd like to know what that thing is doing.

ADias

To see it, tape an L-shaped cardboard bracket to the top edge of your spoiler...

Tcc1999

Presto

ADias

I do remember. I was simply trying to help in the spirit of the Season!

ElectricChair

For testing purpose, cut a 20" x 2" piece of cardboard and tape it (painters blue tape) in the center of the spoiler like a antenna. This way you can see the cardboard going up and down while driving.