Porsche 911 (996) - Battery dead / door won't open with key

[conch123]

Hi,

I have a 2003 Porsche 911 (996) Carrera 4S Cab, and It has been off the road for approximately 3 months. As the battery drained and the alarm kept going off, I left it purposefully unlocked. I have been able to open the door no probs up to about 2 weeks ago.

I am now ready to jump the battery and start the car, but now when I try and open the door, it seems to have locked itself and it won't open with the key!!

In the manual, it says that it automatically locks itself, but that you should be able to open the door with the key in the lock. When I turn the key, you can hear the mechanism inside (as if it is unlocking), but when you try the handle, nothing happens (drivers door and passenger door).

Has anyone had this happen before? Does anyone know if the locks automatically shut down after a certain time? Or does the key need to be re-programmed?

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks

[red_slr]

2 options.....

1) try and DIS the battery and try again on just manual operation.

2) Last resort... *GENTLY* prise the window back (VERY GENTLY!) and use a small stick with hook to pull the door handle. A thin bamboo cane with a bit of coat hanger on the end is ideal as you will only have to move the window a tiny bit to get a gap. Probably easier to go for the opposite door due to angles etc so you will need quite a long stick. If you call the AA/RAC this is prob how they will do it..

[RDM]

Is there not a cable you can access behind the wheel-well liner next to
the headlight...or is that only pre-99 cars?

[conch123]

Thanks for your suggestions - There is no cable behind the wheel well - I think this must just be on pre 99 models, as the releases for the font lid and rear engine lid are both electric on my version.

I have spoken to a Porsche specialist who has advised (as in the previous post - thanks for the suggestion) that I need to get a stick with a hook on it to try and open it from the inside. They said that it is more than likely that something that has come off inside the door handle mechanism, which is why the door unlocks, but the handle won't open it. They said that if this is the case, it will take about an hour to take the door panel off and fix it (hopefully).

I let you know how it goes.

Thanks.

[RDM]

http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic...

Looks like there is a cable release on the post 99 cars.

[cd1957]

Hi if the key will not unlock the car then some unqualified person has missed the slot in the door lock that the lock blade fits into,Your car must have had the lock or handle removed in the past.
All 996 have the cable behind the headlight.

There is also a way of resetting the remote operation.

E-mail me and i will tell you,pity you are not near Cardiff
[e-mail] or [e-mail]

[conch123]

Hi,

Just to update you all,

I have had a Porsche specialist round to my house who has managed to fix the problem.

It turns out that there is a pin which connects the door handle to the catch that opens the door. He took the handle off and the pin had rusted through so badly that it had snapped.

This explains why the door would appear to be unlocked with the key but still wouldn't open with the handle.

We have now replaced the pin and all is well.

Thanks,

AC