Temperature gauge light flashing (intermittantly)

[mef]

[FONT=arial"]My newly aquired Cayman already has a small problem. There is a red light flashing in the top corner of the temperature gauge. I did see this light flashing when I went on a test drive but it stopped after a couple of minutes. The owner said it was due to slightly low coolant level, it required a top-up so I disregarded it. It never came on again during my test run.

Today when I went for a run it started flashing immediately when it was cold and then went off after a couple of miles. Later after I had been parked up for an hour and re-started the engine, it came on flashing again but this time it continued all the way home. I noticed that when it is flashing the temperature gauge doesn't work, the needle is at the left hand end, indicating cold (even thought the engine is obviosly hot) I also noticed that whenever the light stops flashing the temp gauge needle suddenly goes straight to indicating 80 degrees or normal temp.

I am also getting a message on the computer that says "failure indicator" and a small symbol next to it that could either be a temperature gauge or a coolant level gauge. [FONT=arial"]I'm also getting a red explanation mark on the centre instrument when the fault is happening.
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When it cooled down I checked the coolant level and it was perfect. I suspect it's telling me that there is a temeprature gauge sensor failure or maybe a coolant level sensor failure?

Any ideas? So far I cant even find out how to remove the engine cover to have a look!

Many thanks,

Martin

 

[Dylan1]

did the check come up with any faults??if not then maybe you could claim off them if they didnt spot something. my advice take to nearest specialist asap or opc if still under opc warranty.

 

[juliany27]

I agree. If this is a new car - off to the OPC/supplier asap. If this was a private purchase - again off to an OPC or good independent. I would not advise doing anything yourself - the effect on your/any warranty could be serious!

 

[mef]

The Cayman is a 2006 56 plated 2.7 so is 2.5 years old. As far as I am aware it will be out of warranty by now (although I dont actually know what warranty period these vehicles had from new). Being a private purchase there is no warranty from the seller. Being and experienced electronics engineer and an experienced motorsport car builder and competitor I'm not frightened of having a look to see if there's something simple wrong such as a poor connector or open circuit sensor etc....but how on earth does this engine cover come off, does anybody know? I wont be approaching any Porsche dealer or independant agent until I am totally satisfied that I can't fix it myself, after all it's only an engine, it cant be that difficult Thanks, Martin

 

[Dylan1]

are you saying that you know the seller didnt extend the standard 2 yr warranty??and that you know its out of warranty??because that is the point julian is making-if it is still under warranty then you neednt go to the bother of getting the lid off as opc will sort it for you(and not invalidate any warranty) if it really is out of warranty and you were brave(??)enough to purchase it without an inspection then hopefully your huge experience will come to your rescue.personally i would be more than a little anxious.but then again i am not an engineer[](well -only if you count the human body!) hope all turns out fine.and someone knows how the engine cover comes off!!

 

[mef]

OK thanks Dyllan, well the guy I bought it off bought the car a year ago when it was only 1.5 years old so it would have been in warranty at that time. As far as I am aware he didn't extend the warranty, I certainly never saw any paperwork that stated such. He bought the car from a Maserrati dealer where it had been part-exchanged. Originally it came from the Porsche Centre Leeds who carried out a service at 19800 miles in March 2008. The last owner bought the car in June 2008 and only did 3000 miles in the car before selling it to me yesterday. I don't think he had any work done or checks carried out during his ownership, I think I need to catch up with such, I'll check it out with the Leeds Porsche centre and check out the situation regarding the flashing warning light which I now think is a faulty coolant temperature sensor, not level sensor. Martin

 

[Black80XSA]

If its anything like the gauge on the 986/996 cars then the rate of flashing of the gauge gives some diagnostic information - detailed here for 9*6 cars... [link=http://www.porscheclubgbforum.com/tm.asp?m=330170]http://www.porscheclubgbforum.com/tm.asp?m=330170[/link] Coolant caps were problematic years ago but a 2005/6 car should easily have the latest cap design. I doubt the engine compartment fan has failed this early in its life (this is the one your hear and feel from the side vent on the drivers side). If the gauge is working intermittently its probably an electrical glitch, either with the cluster or the temperature sensor.

 

[mef]

The fault has gone away today, it was perfect all day! Just spent the driving time to and from work appreciating it's capabilites! Martin

 

[Black80XSA]

If the coolant has been changed for any reason there could be air locks in the coolant system - the long run of pipework from the rear of the car to the front rads makes refilling difficult, especially if the correct procedure isn't followed. Keep a close eye on the levels for the time being.

 

[mef]

OK, it's perfect again this morning, maybe it just needed using a bit, I don't think the previous owner has used it much at all. As you say, there could have been an air lock in the system and it's bled itself now. I'll keep my ey on it and see how it goes. Cheers, Martin

 

[Dylan1]

glad its all settled so you can enjoy[]

 

[mef]

OK, well the fault disappeared for several months, looks like it was gone for good, then last weekend it came on again for no obvious reason! Again it was faulty yesterday until it got up to normal running temperature when it suddenly cleared. It became obvious over the last 6 months that it wasn't a problem with the engine temperature or the amount of antifreeze in the system, nothing to do with air locks either. It completely cleared for all this time which included a 1250 mile trip to the Netherlands last October and it was perfect all the time, the light never once came on. Now it's back to it's old tricks. I spoke to an independant Porsche specialist in the North West who said it was almost certainly the water temperature sender, it's a known fault, they go intermittant, fortunately they dont cost much to replace, just a bit awkward to get at. They have to be replaced when the engine is cold so as you dont get burned by hot antifreeze, apparently its held in the engine by a circlip. At least I now know what it is, I'll replace it when I get a chance. Martin

 

[Hoopster]

I have a 2007 model Boxster & experienced exactly the same thing: intermittent temp gauge flashing, but coolant level is constant and correct. Has just been into OPC and they replaced the water temperature sender (under warranty). Too early to tell if it's fixed it, but so far so good ! So I think you're on the right track.