My baby won't start

[matthewb]

Hi All

My 993 C4S made it to the pub for lunch today but refused to start when I wanted to head home.

Everything was fine, i.e. all the lights came on on the dash, the engine turned over without problem etc. but she refused to fire-up. I thought, "Hmmmm, DME relay". I found the spare (which I've carried around for nearly 15 years for just such an eventuality) and swapped them over. No luck. No smell of petrol from exhaust. No hint of catching. Nothing.

Could my spare DME have expired whilst in storage (i.e. in the spare-tyre cavity under the hood)? Any other thoughts appreciated.

I've left her around the back of the pub overnight, so she's fairly safe. But she'll be lonely. Please include her in your thoughts before you go to bed tonight.

Thanks.

 

[Graham-S]

Hope she is save all alone tonight!
Well as she turns over I wouldn't have said it was the immobiliser and as you had a spare DME Relay it wouldn't be that but it still might be. To prove remove the relay plastic top and with a electrical screw driver or somethings non conductive you can try pushing the relay contact manually and see if she'll start.
Do you you hear the fuel pump prime when you turn the key or relay click?
Has she been used much lately? Stored in a garage?
Graham

 

[davidwahi]

Yes second that. Check the DME manually by connecting the points and if she starts, your spare DME Is faulty. I had the same issue and a new one from Porsche has sorted the problem out. Good luck!

 

[pse_SC]

Has she been used much lately?

The root of the problem... []

 

[matthewb]

Thanks all. Much appreciated. I'll try what you suggest.

She's kept in a garage. On the usage front, she's not been out as much as I'd like. I work largely from home for a company in Qatar, and visit them for one month in four, during which time I connect the battery conditioner.

When I'm in the UK, she does about 40 miles a week on country roads as fast as she will 'safely' go (and stop), including a great hill-climb. Quality not quantity - but I'd prefer both.

Five or six years ago, JZM uprated the suspension and did a lot of other maintenance work. They also did a compression test - four cylinders were at 10%, one at 11%, and one at 12%. They said the engine was almost brand new and the brake discs were completely unpitted. At that time she had done 150k miles.

 

[Graham-S]

An update Matt??