997 snapped gear cable replacement procedure
Discussion
puting this up as its own post so hopefully it will be searchable for other folk.. enjoy..not!
Fellas, barring the debate raging on over whether this is an acceptable failure at 20k miles (it isn’t)
The job is done and i am doing a brief synopsis while i am still in the mood.
in summary this is an easy job made nigh on F@cking impossible by the large grommet through which both cables and a large electrical cable run through where they pass out of the cabin to the underside of the vehicle. I’m not American but do reserve the right not to be sued if you use this and F@ck up your car.
Procedure:
Remove the handbrake/gear lever console:
remove the gear lever boot: this prises off (carefully and the plastic tabs pop out)
the lever should pull off.
remove the leather sides of the centre console. you need a decent set of TORX drivers the first big screw is hidden in the carpeted bit at the back on both sides:
then remove the two screws that hold the leather bit on both sides
the side pieces should now be loose enough for you to gently prise off the silver bit under the gear shift and then the black bit below if comes off with some smaller TORX screws
there is an awkward one below the cubby hole I removed the cubby hole and the switches above came apart.
if you can get a right angled driver to get it off. don't remove the cubby hole
Now work back wards finding all the little torx screws.. prise off the covers and lift out the ashtray pull up the rubber mat inside the rear glove box.
there is an electrical chock block beneath the centre console disconnect this
all will be revealed and don't force it eventually you will be able to lift out the centre console
remove the handbrake:
again awkward because of the 4 13mm bolts 2 are easy 2 are awkward because the lever gets in the way. a 13mm socket set with the smallest drive (not sure what this is but its not 1/4 or 1/2 inch)is a winner
once the bolts are out lift up the unit the cables can easily be removed and the electrical connector disconnected. remove the unit form the car
now 4 the cables:
one is red one is grey...they attach to the lever by a sprung sheaf is the best way i can describe it. pull back the sheath and twist it so it stays back. I marked the position of the cable in the grooved carrier with a dab of tippex and lift the cable out of the carrier you need to wiggle it a bit both bits are grooved and it looks like a thread (mine just lifted out)
do both cables. unclip the cable from back of the gear lever unit
gear box end
jackup car high as you can on passenger side at back; use an axel stand and be safe here!!!!!!!
crawl under neath and remove the first two under trays. I am not going into detail here you need torx and 10mm socket
unclip the cables form the metal bracket on the gearbox making note of which one is grey and which is red. I discovered the ball joints pop off. I used open needle nosed pliers either side and carefully prised both off.
The grommet:
here is where the 'kin swearing begins..........
why the F@ck they decided the grommet should come out and be installed from underneath I have no idea in fact if I ever meet the designer i will shoot the F@cker myself...
from inside the cabin..
wrestle the rubber tab back into the hole.. I used a large 1/2 inch socket extension bar and hammer to push the grommet backwards out. this was not simple be careful not to damage the electrical loom.
assuming you get this out you should be able to get the cables out.
installing new cables:
its tight.. thread them up from below grease the void aqnd the grommet and the loom cable and both cables well I used vaseline. I could not have used more if I had gone to Porsche and asked them to do it.. it still hurt.. alomst as much as the £400 rodding i would have had at the OPC.
the problem is ther is no room to get your hand up.. missus..
the bracket which holds the gear box and the (what i assume are the coolant pipes) get right in the effin way.
I decide to brave the pain and shove both hands up either side and wrestled with the grommet. I have meduim sized hands and forearms. If you have big hands and arms forget it.. my forearms now look like the bloke in kung fu who lifts the red hot cauldron up with his forearms. there must be a better way..
once the grommet was roughly in place i could not apply enough force to shove it all the way home, hours later and much cursing i used a combination of socket extension and bars to shove if in by levering off the gear box bracket. as previously mentioned if it was installed from about it would have been back on in minutes.. crap design...
basically all you need to do now is position the cables in the bracket on the box and snap the ball joints back on.
inside I snapped the cables back into the retainers on the shift unit and placed the cables back into the carriers as per my tipex marks and released the sprug sheaths
I went out for test drive and luckily could get all gears no problem. I had not used the Porsche alignment tool, I have no doubt that this tipex trick was the only bit of luck I had and you might have to mess with the cables in the carriers if things are not 100% first time.
That is as far as I got before darkness descended but in true Haynes style re-assembly (i am hoping) is the reverse of disassembly.
The cables can only be bough in a pair and cost £150 from an OPC... IF YOU ARE A MECHANIC AND KNOW HOW TO DO THIS BETTER a) I wish you had piped up sooner
b) PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CORRECT/EMBELISH MY PROCEDURE..
Thanks and good night!
Fellas, barring the debate raging on over whether this is an acceptable failure at 20k miles (it isn’t)
The job is done and i am doing a brief synopsis while i am still in the mood.
in summary this is an easy job made nigh on F@cking impossible by the large grommet through which both cables and a large electrical cable run through where they pass out of the cabin to the underside of the vehicle. I’m not American but do reserve the right not to be sued if you use this and F@ck up your car.
Procedure:
Remove the handbrake/gear lever console:
remove the gear lever boot: this prises off (carefully and the plastic tabs pop out)
the lever should pull off.
remove the leather sides of the centre console. you need a decent set of TORX drivers the first big screw is hidden in the carpeted bit at the back on both sides:
then remove the two screws that hold the leather bit on both sides
the side pieces should now be loose enough for you to gently prise off the silver bit under the gear shift and then the black bit below if comes off with some smaller TORX screws
there is an awkward one below the cubby hole I removed the cubby hole and the switches above came apart.
if you can get a right angled driver to get it off. don't remove the cubby hole
Now work back wards finding all the little torx screws.. prise off the covers and lift out the ashtray pull up the rubber mat inside the rear glove box.
there is an electrical chock block beneath the centre console disconnect this
all will be revealed and don't force it eventually you will be able to lift out the centre console
remove the handbrake:
again awkward because of the 4 13mm bolts 2 are easy 2 are awkward because the lever gets in the way. a 13mm socket set with the smallest drive (not sure what this is but its not 1/4 or 1/2 inch)is a winner
once the bolts are out lift up the unit the cables can easily be removed and the electrical connector disconnected. remove the unit form the car
now 4 the cables:
one is red one is grey...they attach to the lever by a sprung sheaf is the best way i can describe it. pull back the sheath and twist it so it stays back. I marked the position of the cable in the grooved carrier with a dab of tippex and lift the cable out of the carrier you need to wiggle it a bit both bits are grooved and it looks like a thread (mine just lifted out)
do both cables. unclip the cable from back of the gear lever unit
gear box end
jackup car high as you can on passenger side at back; use an axel stand and be safe here!!!!!!!
crawl under neath and remove the first two under trays. I am not going into detail here you need torx and 10mm socket
unclip the cables form the metal bracket on the gearbox making note of which one is grey and which is red. I discovered the ball joints pop off. I used open needle nosed pliers either side and carefully prised both off.
The grommet:
here is where the 'kin swearing begins..........
why the F@ck they decided the grommet should come out and be installed from underneath I have no idea in fact if I ever meet the designer i will shoot the F@cker myself...
from inside the cabin..
wrestle the rubber tab back into the hole.. I used a large 1/2 inch socket extension bar and hammer to push the grommet backwards out. this was not simple be careful not to damage the electrical loom.
assuming you get this out you should be able to get the cables out.
installing new cables:
its tight.. thread them up from below grease the void aqnd the grommet and the loom cable and both cables well I used vaseline. I could not have used more if I had gone to Porsche and asked them to do it.. it still hurt.. alomst as much as the £400 rodding i would have had at the OPC.
the problem is ther is no room to get your hand up.. missus..
the bracket which holds the gear box and the (what i assume are the coolant pipes) get right in the effin way.
I decide to brave the pain and shove both hands up either side and wrestled with the grommet. I have meduim sized hands and forearms. If you have big hands and arms forget it.. my forearms now look like the bloke in kung fu who lifts the red hot cauldron up with his forearms. there must be a better way..
once the grommet was roughly in place i could not apply enough force to shove it all the way home, hours later and much cursing i used a combination of socket extension and bars to shove if in by levering off the gear box bracket. as previously mentioned if it was installed from about it would have been back on in minutes.. crap design...
basically all you need to do now is position the cables in the bracket on the box and snap the ball joints back on.
inside I snapped the cables back into the retainers on the shift unit and placed the cables back into the carriers as per my tipex marks and released the sprug sheaths
I went out for test drive and luckily could get all gears no problem. I had not used the Porsche alignment tool, I have no doubt that this tipex trick was the only bit of luck I had and you might have to mess with the cables in the carriers if things are not 100% first time.
That is as far as I got before darkness descended but in true Haynes style re-assembly (i am hoping) is the reverse of disassembly.
The cables can only be bough in a pair and cost £150 from an OPC... IF YOU ARE A MECHANIC AND KNOW HOW TO DO THIS BETTER a) I wish you had piped up sooner
b) PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CORRECT/EMBELISH MY PROCEDURE..
Thanks and good night!
well yes i hope so but as some bright spark pointed out it probably would be worth paying the oPC £250 to do this for you if you have the cash.. if not the procedure is now here for the world to enjoy!
it was worth my while because agin by luck someone was selling brand new cables in Bag from porsche on on ebay and I got them for £36 instead of £150
next I will investiogate a warranty that covers the gear cables and stuff life is too short!
it was worth my while because agin by luck someone was selling brand new cables in Bag from porsche on on ebay and I got them for £36 instead of £150
next I will investiogate a warranty that covers the gear cables and stuff life is too short!
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