eugkim

Fresh off my victory over the FM modulator https://rennlist.com/forums/showthread.php?t=209015 I was feeling pretty confident. Next on the list... the poor key fob function. I was armed with both fobs, got the unused one out of the drawer with the plastic temp key attached, and ventured out into the garage after my wife fell asleep. The spoiler was a chip shot to take off, and I perused the layout. I couldn't find anything that could be taken for a wire antenna. Nothing seemed to be free; all were wrapped together, and I was in no mood to pull anything apart. I was unhappy with the placement of my new satellite antenna, so I moved it. I tried to reset the key fobs as described on renntech.org, but couldn't get it to work. I thought maybe I needed to depress the lock button for a few seconds, but no good. First the cars locked, then unlocked. I decided to pack it in for the night, placed all the goods on the rear deck, set down the hatch, and went for the spoiler. After putting on the spoiler, I went to open the hatch when I heard a shocking sound...a double beep. Doh!!! In case you don't know, there's a safety feature that, if the car is unlocked but the doors aren't touched, the car automatically locks after a minute or so. Now I'm standing there with "my shorts pants," staring at my 3 sets of keys sitting on the rear deck of my locked car. For the first time, I wondered why my Cayenne couldn't have had the faulty rear hatch.

Any suggestions? I started brainstorning. For the first time, I regret that the Cayennes don't have Onstar. Then, I figured I'd give Porsche road service a call, but don't think they'll be able to help. That option is a last resort. Breaking a window isn't an option. Now I start to get frustrated; after all the education, I wasn't going to let a car get the best of me. I take a step back and look at the spoiler. Then I saw a light at the end of the tunnel - my eyes fixate on 2 nuts on either side, attaching the spoiler to the hinges. I figure it's worth a try taking the nuts off and see what happens. The hinges are spring loaded and pop up, leaving the hatch free up top. Luckily I didn't fully close the hatch lock, so there was some play and I could open the top just a crack. I was almost in the clear. I used the age old coat hanger trick, hooked the key ring and got the fob out. What a relief.

Needless to say, I limped out of the garage after tidying up, a beaten, humiliated amateur with only the satisfaction of having gotten myself out of a stupid mess.

A few words of advice. 1) don't leave any keys in the car, especially all of them. Keep them separated at all times. 2)make sure you open a door everytime you unlock a door with a remote. 3) get another set of hands for help if you ever take the hinges off the hatch. The springs on them are very stiff, and they don't want to go back down without a fight. 4) it may be worth leaving well enough alone sometimes. One consolation - the key fobs seem to be working better.

Moogle

Wow , funny story (if thats your intention).

call roadside assistance, they will use one of those snake things to get the door open. the alarm will probably go off, but since the keys are right there, shouldnt be a problem.

24FPS

i saw that one comin'........................ oh man!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

thx for that tip. & the courage to post. -doh-

mudman2

Sounds like a new sitcom ! lol

skl

I've done some pretty stupid things with cars over the years, but that takes guts putting it out on the 'net for all to see.... ( two weeks ago, trying to get a rear view mirror off my Miata race car to put in a bigger convex mirror, I broke the windshield- the glue was stronger than the mirror mount...)

Any more embarassing stories people care to admit to?????

Blade-MD

Great post! Made my afternoon.