gonzoe11

My new to me 2016 GTS has a bad flap motor and have the radiator flaps stuck in the closed position. After a 200 mile road trip and ultimately in a Stop and Go city drive I had a fault on the dash saying check engine, low power mode and visit workshop. Not exact but close enough. I noticed the gauges looking like the engine was over heating. After shutting her down, letting it cool off and restarting there were no messages.
On my return road trip I notice the oil temp going to 220f which is higher that I’ve ever seen so when I stopped for gas I manually opened the flaps and drove the remaining 150 miles that way. The temps for water and oil dropped and never went above 110f. With ambient temps around 37 degrees.
Will prolonged driving withe flaps open and the temps lower than normal operating temperature cause any larger issues?

BrendonSF

I don't think prolonged flaps open is going to be an issue. Active vanes are more for aerodynamics.

There is as DIY around here to replace the louvre motor. I had mine done at an indie shop for around $700-800 if memory serves right. It hadn't failed, but was getting a bit noisy.

gonzoe11

I've learned the active flaps are also controlling cooling besides aero. Yesterday I was in Boston running around the city with my college kids in lots of stop and go before I left to head home in NY. The Oil and Water temps were hovering around 220 degrees which is higher than I've seen.. I manually opened the flaps when I stopped for gas and the temps went down fairly quickly. This morning, I left for work in NYC with air temps around 27F, I forgot the flaps were still open and the car never warmed up and Oil and water temps hovered around 100F. Way lower than normal. I pulled over to manually shut the flaps and the oil and water temps went to 200F and stayed there all the way to my parking garage.. Also, the heat finally kicked in after closing the flaps and getting the temps up to normal. Bottom line, The Cayenne is scheduled to get the Flap Actuator Motor replaced next week.