Frenor0302

Hi!

Just got my 2.9 Boxster -2009 with about 30.000 km on it.

Here come another one of those annoying "is this normal?"-questions:


Warm engine on idle. Is this intermittent rattle,knocking normal? Does your cars with the 2.9 sound the same? My dealer just shrugs and calls it normal but I just wanted to get the Rennlist seal of approval before I rest my case.

Another question is about the smoke on startup. When I read here people seems to either say "Yes, it´s quite normal, the flat six design.." or "Change the AOS".

It´s not like birds falls from the trees when I start it, but still, I had a 964 before and that oldie with over 100k on it never smoked much, warm or cold. A puff of bluish smoke from time to time is what i get though.

Thanks for your time.

/Fredrik

extanker

that was a weird sound. my 09 2.9 smokes on start up once in awhile.......sometimes bad. i understand they do this but most people who eat with a fork would not call it normal. i bought mine new in 09 ,it has 18k on it now and my engine is a quiet as a mouse at idle. above idle porsche engines sound like an old GM city bus fromthe 1960,s. just my 02

Gooddog

Sounds like the IMS bearing but that blemished design was suppose to have been eliminated in MY-2009. I suggest that you learn if this car is an "early production 2009 that may have the earlier version motor in it. If so, you may have an IMS bearing failure in the works.

sbpsu354

My new 2013 Boxster makes the same sound when cold, at times, or after sitting for a couple of days. I sent a good sound clip to my dealer and they said it's normal. After the engine is warm, the knocking is gone. It sounds like a stuck lifter. The dealer had a new Cayman come in and it made the same sound for 15 minutes when they first started it. It seems odd to me, but I don't normally keep cars past their warranty.

Marine Blue

How hard do you guys drive your cars? Do you frequently get into the higher RPM range and utilize the engines entire RPM range?

My impression is that these cars are designed to be driven hard and when they're not they have problems. Just an observation I've made with the Porsche's I've owned.

Macster

Well, the engine sounds ok to me. However, I'm not at the car (obviously) so my advice is to take the car to a qualified shop and have an expert give a listen.

He'll put the car in the air and give a close listen with a stethoscope to various areas and then he can advise you as to what the noise means, if anything. If he thinks the noise is abnormal he might want to remove the oil filter housing and inspect the oil and filter for signs of any significant debris.

Keep in mind old oil, that is oil with miles on it, makes for a noisier engine as the oil accumulates unburned gasoline and water. This thins the oil and well, thinner oil results in a noisier engine.

I note you live and must drive the car in Sweden. Has the car been used during the winter?

Oh, I reread your post and see you just got the car. So do you know when the oil was last changed? Do you know what oil was used? Brand, type, viscosity? Some owners can have a mistaken belief as to what is the *right* oil to use in these engines.

Even though I live in a warmer area and change the oil/filter every 5K miles the difference between the engine sounds before the oil change vs. after are noticeable.

If you tell me the oil is 'old' I'm thinking an oil/filter service might be called for.

But let the tech give a listen first. At the car, he's in the best position to make the right call.

Frenor0302

Ah, Since I didnt get any emails telling me I had responses here I thought no one had written anything yet.

Well, the car was delivered from a Porsche Center where it just got the "big" service (plugs, break fluid and the works). So the oil should be fine. The brand of oil PC's use here in Sweden is the brand Porsche recommends, Mobil1. Viscosity? I haven't got a clue sadly enough.

It is a early car, made in Stuttgart and during the spring in 2009 so I don't think the old engine is used with the six speed gearbox, right?

Tomorrow I'm going to the Center to get some other bits done, and I'm going to ask about this sound. The Tech at the Center here in Gothenburg listend and said something like "It's the DFI". and I responed
"There isn't any DFI in the 2.9".
"The watercooled engines are so quiet compaired to your old car (a 964 from 1989) that you hear all the stuff going on much more, stop worrying and get driving!"

Perhaps he's right, but I'll sure as h*ll going to get a second opinion about this sound.

Oh, and it has never been driven in the wintertime.

Frenor0302

Here's another short film inside the garage this time.


Now the "knocking" is all the time. I'm leaning towards this being the injectors or something...

extanker

from those sound clips i can not give an opine. get a pros ear on it

TimD

If it is a 6 speed and the noise at idle only happens with the clutch ingauged in neutral it is gear rattle in the transmission and normal. Does the sound go away when you push the clutch in?

Macster

Still doesn't sound bad to me. But get an expert's opinion.

Frenor0302

I had written a long post and then Rennlist DB decided to crash.

So here's a short version.

The rattle does not vanish when I depress the clutch.

It's going in this friday to a Porsche Center for a check up.

Will be back after that with more info, hopefully!

Frenor0302

Right, new update.

Had the car to the dealer and they had it over the day. Got it up in the air and listened to it, and deemed it normal.

Collected it and went for a drive and then this sound started:


New contact with dealer to get to the bottom of this. It's vacation time here in Sweden now, so the darn car will be sitting at the dealer my whole vacation.

terbiumactivated

The first two clips sounded like valve noise to me but the last one sounds completely different. Just for the hell of it, since you're on holiday, get under it and tighten the spark plugs to specification (there may be an access panel on the inner fender liner too to aid in plug access). Boxster engines can emit some truly strange noises when a plug loosens and loose plugs are common in these engines. Might save yourself some cash and get the car back for holiday too and it's an easy DIY.

Frenor0302

I turned it over to the dealer today to let them do what they do.

Since it's within extened warrenty I'm going to sleep well tonight, hoping for a "new" engine or that they find the fault and it's really easy to fix.

More info when I get it myself..