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BOXSTER SHIFTING MYSTERY
By Steve Grosekemper
After completing a recent service on a '97 Boxster, I decided to take the car out for a test drive. While on that test drive I noticed a notchy feeling in the
shifter. As I came to a tight corner and downshifted, I heard a crunching metallic noise as the lever resisted the shift. This naturally concerned me as the customer did not mention any unusual change in the cars shifting.
Once back in the shop I started the search for the mysterious noise and binding. The easiest access to the shifter mechanism is through the hole where the ashtray lives. I opened the ashtray and found no
ashes, but instead about $5
in change. I removed both ashtray and change only to find another layer of change inside the center console. Now it all made sense (or is that cents)? The noise and binding must be from change caught in the shifter. But the shifter is still a long way from the ashtray, so out came the center console. After the removal of the center console, it was evident that the shifter itself would have to be removed as to get all of the coins out.
After removing enough
change to buy a new Boxster S and with everything back in place,
the cars' shifting was as smooth as silk. The question still remained
as to how all that change could get from the ashtray to the inside
of the console. So I thought to myself, "If I were a
quarter and wanted escape the confines of an ashtray to jam
the shifter, what would I do"? After a few minutes of
pondering with an ashtray in my hand it all became quite clear.
When the ashtray is in the closed position, one side is lower by
about 15mm. This is just the right size for the escape of
renegade quarters thrown around under high speed cornering.
The moral of this story.........
It doesn't make sense to use the ashtray to hold your cents !
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