Q. Arcing electrical noise???

[oxford_hippo]

Parked this evening, with engine still running and about to close the roof [8D] - BUT .......[:-]I heard what sounded like a loud single clock tick noise, ( not regular, once every couple of seconds or so ) but listening from outside the car it was more like arcing of an electrical short!!!![:-][][:-][][][&o]

Sounds like it is comming from the rear of the car, more like near offside rear wheel - but always difficult to track down the source noises I know.

Anyone come accross this problem / alarming symptom before??

Possible related other thing[8|]...the spoiler had not lowered[]
Could this be someting to do with the spoiler system, a sensor arcing out??

Other possible related thing - car often takes afew turns before the engine fires up[>:]
could this be altenator on the way out?
generally few dabs on the throttle and then it starts, runs idles, etc. all quite happily[]

Typically car decided not to do this last Saturday morning at the thames Valley meet at Reading OPC, when there was the full magnitude of a Porsche dealership on hand![8|]

Thanks
Tim[&:]

 

[sidned]

It sounds like it could be as simple as the cable coming out of the spoiler motor. Have you tried lowering the spoiler using the button? If you get the same noise and the spoiler stays up, you have found your culprit. There is an excellent DIY on pcar.com that explains how to change the bearing when it gets noisy, and it shows you how to disconnect and reconnect the cable.
http://p-car.com/diy/spoilerdrive/

 

[Guest]

I'm not sure what year you car is, but if it's an early one, check that it's had the engine bay wiring harness replaced. This was a warranty fix by Porsche but some may have been missed. Essentially, it can lead to the big fat high power leads coming out of your alternator losing their insulation...result: electrical shorts, and even a risk of fire, so check this is not the cause.

My specialist (Tony Greatorex, really good chap!) changed my alternator recently, and to his horror & surprise, found exactly this behind it. I'm not sure, but possibly even later harnesses can dry out & become brittle after a few years as they travel over the hot engine casing. I was told that it was only a matter of time before a fire could have happened on my 1994 car. I have also heard that this problem can lead to all sorts of strange electrical gremlins popping up. I know of some people who have had the harness looked at several times for this problem.

It may not be this, but I would start with a "worst case scenario" and work backwards from this - at least it's the safe option.[] Get it checked asap is my advice.

Off to the Cairngorms on holiday with my car + new engine bay harness tomorrow. Durametric in the trunk in case anything unexpected happens!

 

[oxford_hippo]

The spoiler manual button works - so I presume that rules out the soiler source[].

Will wait til this evening and then have a look in the dark to see if the arcing shows iteslf.

It is a very, loud arcing noise - but could almost be a huge drip of oil landing on a hot exhaust pipe - but pretty sure that's just wishful thinking on my part!

Tim[&:][&o][&o]


1st task - Curently have a punctured tyre to deal with - thanks to chunk of debris on the motorway[][:'(][][:'(][][:'(]