Changing a battery or suffering a dead battery is something that all of us will experience at one point or another. Our Caymans are very sophisticated. They contain many computerized control modules that may/can/will be effected by loss of battery voltage. This technical article will present the many instructions that Porsche recommends to their mechanics after loss and replacement of battery power. 1 Control Unit Memory Values and faults stored in the control units can be lost if the...
40 Comments

Car batteries have a limited life span and will someday need to be replaced in every Cayman. There are many points to consider when choosing a replacement battery and when considering whether or not you'd like to change it yourself. You may want to search our forums for discussions about batteries before you decide on a battery and/or start your replacement. The battery replacement procedure for a Cayman is not much different than that used in other cars, but different enough that I think...
51 Comments

I was bitten by the track bug at my very first DE experience, and have become something of a track junkie, needing my monthly fix at the track. As I have gotten faster, I have felt the need to add track seats and harnesses in order to hold me in place better. Without getting into the whole debate about the pros/cons of track seats and harnesses, with or without a rollbar, I decided that if I personally was going that route, I wanted some additional rollover protection. At the time of this...
9 Comments

Properly breaking in your new brakes is essential to their continued performance and reliability, yet it's something that few people really understand. I've recently followed a very informative thread where several of our members were trading some pretty good information on this topic. I found the information was so valuable, that I thought it would be a good idea to archive it here as an article. Special thanks to all the members who contributed these really cool links: Bedding...
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It was January 2007. I had my Cayman S for four short months and I was about to break a promise I'd made to myself. A friend had asked me if I'd be willing to install a Borla exhaust system on my Cayman and write up an article on what I thought. At first I declined. I really didn't have the money to spend on something like this, and I had promised myself I wouldn't start down the slippery slope of vehicle modifications with my Cayman S, a road I'd been down before with poor results. I was sort...
30 Comments

This Article provides a guide on how to rebuild the brake calipers of a Cayman S (987.1S). The instructions in this article can apply to other Porsche models that use Brembo alloy monoblock painted brake calipers as well. The only variations will be in the size and number of pistons, seals, and dustboots. Otherwise the instructions presented here should be very similar. This guide should not be used for Ceramic Brakes. Warning Brakes are a critical system on any vehicle. On a performance...
12 Comments

This article briefly describes the installation of a brake caliper stud kit supplied by Tarret Engineering ( no affiliation ) on the rear of my 2007 Cayman. The stud kit prevents stripping of the caliper mounting holes in the wheel bearing carrier. The studs are available in various lengths for different vehicles as shown here: http://www.tarett.com/items/986-987-products/986-987-engine~transmission~brakes~electrical/brake-caliper-stud-kit-bcsk-detail.htm The kit is shown here. The...
1 Comments

Thanks to our wonderful Porsche engineers, gone are the days that the first inkling that you have a problem with your brake lights, is when you get pulled over by a cop to let you know that a light is out, and possibly even write you a fix-it ticket (let's face it, none of us enjoys getting pulled over, even for a minor infraction like that). So, I was pleasantly surprised when my car informed me that I had a problem with right brake light a couple of days ago. I figured that this...
37 Comments

981 Boxster/Cayman uses closed-back front calipers, which must be removed to change front brake pads. It's not a difficult task, but a few tips with pictures will hopefully make it even easier. CAUTION: 1. Do not stress the hard metal brake line when moving the caliper around 2. Properly torque the brake caliper screw is crucial. Over torque it and you risk pulling the thread out of the aluminum wheel carrier. 3. Caliper screws are one-time use. Always replace with new ones. Never...
26 Comments

If you track your car a lot, you may find yourself considering the use of some more aggressive brake pads. There are many good choices available. Some folks use them part time only when on the track, others use them full time for both track and street. Regardless of how you want to use them, you will run into one snag. Many of the available race pads are not compatible with Porsche's brake wear sensors, and for those that are, changing the sensors from pad to pad is a hassle that slows down an...
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Porsche brake rotors can last for many years of normal street use without wearing out. For other owners 'normal' use also includes track duty which can accelerate wear and/or cause other defects like cracking. When normal wear or defects reach a certain threshold it is time for new discs. I will use the terms "rotor" and "disc" interchangeably, "rotor" because it is the part of the brakes which actually turns, and "disc" because of the part's shape. I feel this is an acceptable practice...
111 Comments

I recently removed the Brey-Krause model R-2035 fire extinguisher mounting bracket from the manual sport driver's seat of my 2007 Cayman. From left-to-right, the attached photographs show various stages of disassembly, with the final two photos showing top and bottom views of the assembled pieces. The trickiest part of the installation, aside from removing and installing the HEAVY factory seats, is sliding the flat plate (containing the welded nuts) underneath the seat cushion springs and...
1 Comments

Let's face it, there are times when you just can't prevent the installation of a front license plate, which unfortunately comes with irreversible damage to the nose of your car. For me, it was tourist delivery that made it necessary for my front bumper to be drilled. This wouldn't be so bad if they didn't just blow screws into the plastic, but that's what they do, and the tension from those screws distorts the plastic around the hole into a volcano like head. Lucky for us, there are Bumper...
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Interior Check interior for damage (esp. driver area) ___________________________________________ Check Owners literature and maintenance manual ______________________________________ Check switches for seats, seat-heating etc. for damage __________________________________ Check that clock, Radio and CD work__________________________________________________ Check seat belt operation __________________________________________________________ Exterior Carry out body and paint...
14 Comments