My New Baby 964 Has Tiptronic Troubles ;(

[dleefso]

Hi All - I just bought a '91 964 Cab for cruising in our great florida winter weather (964 also to have good AC in the hot summer weather)!!! So far I love it as it's my first Porsche so I feel like a proud new dad! Unfortunately my baby is a little sick, well hopefully just a little sick and not in need of a major organ repair or transplant!!!

She is tiptronic and just so everyone knows, I love the tiptronic. I haven't fully gotten the hang of it and yes, if you don't know, you can just put it in drive and cruise, OR, you can be much more sporty than you would think. The damn thing is also a lot smarter than me which isn't too tough but probably also smarter than some of the other owners that I met when doing my search (guys selling their cars who drove like Ms Daisy was in that fake back seat). Anyways, not owner bashing, just praising all that Porsche put into this trans.

Now I'm also laying the groundwork to the issue (finally). I did a lot of research on the functionality of the tip and full info was hard to come by but a few things that I thought were problems were not. An example is that if you're coasting in manual first gear, she will automatically shift you to second. Don't know why, she was just programmed that way.

So on to my issue. When in manual mode, she will not downshift into 1st any longer. It did when I got it a few days ago so I'm not sure what the issue is. It shifts perfectly in all other gears and modes. I have also checked the trans fluid level and at operating temperature it was at the full mark. I state it this way because I did not know the exact temperature so I'm making a big assumption that the temp they indicate to check it is the basic/normal operating temperature. More info is that it was a beautiful 75 degree day and I let it run until the engine oil temp mark was up to it's normal temp. Then I ran it through the gears and back to park and then checked it (level ground...). Anyways, I somewhat doubt that it is a fluid level issue and the shop manual I have indicates only one thing and that's the hydraulic pump in the transmission. My concern is that I know the car has basically sat for the past 6 months without too many miles (she has 82k miles by the way) and maybe this is one of the types of problems that can arise when a car sits.

So of course my main question is if anyone have any ideas and two, how big of an issue is this potentially? I know not to let any mechanical problems go until something actually breaks but if the worst thing that is happening is that I can't downshift into first on deceleration, then I'm not too bad off. Oh yeah, she will go into first on the start, just not downshift on deceleration.

So any input would be greatly appreciated and I'll post some pics of the car as it's a rare color that really grew on me - it's a teal color with tan interior which is a must for the Florida sun!

Oh yeah, one more thing is that it was overfilled with oil. I took about a half to 3/4 of a quart out and she did run a lot better. Another tid bit of info is that the motor is very tight, no puffs of smoke on startup, which the history is that it was owned by a woman her whole life thus far (2 PO, 1 for I around 15 years). While I won't go into woman drivers though, I think it's a huge plus that there was not regular 'sporty' driving. The progression of miles was also good as the miles were well documented and I have every service record on the car as well. No transmission issues and there was a trans fluid change and I am probably going to change it now for good measure.

Thanks all!!!
David

[jimq]

Mine will not downshift into first everytime. It sounds like what you are talking about. It seems to pick its own time to do it. I assume its a built in programing or learned thing.

[stevepaa]

To what level is the tranny fluid filled? It should be no more than 15 mm above 80C MAX line and no less than 3 mm below 80C MAX line..Do not use the existing lines .

[stevepaa]

I believe it should downshift every time you want it to.

[dleefso]

oh that is right, the book did mention the level of fluid had changed so that puts me right in the lower part of the range as it's right on the max line. For good measure I'm going to go ahead and change the fluid next weekend and while I'm sure it won't fix anything, I think it's a good thing to do when first buying a car like this.

Glad to hear that another has a similar experience but now I'm trying to wrack my brain and am second guessing if it was downshifting every time when I tested it prior to buying and then when I did receive it last week - hmmm. I'm pretty sure it did downshift every time because I would have had the same fears then and I was on my toes with the 2 or 3 test drives I did - hmmmm.

I guess I'll just change the fluid and keep an eye on it. I was curious if maybe the computer for some reason is blocking the downshift because it just seems to be working perfectly otherwise.

Oh well, thanks for the info Jim and Steve! Jim - if you're ever in the Tampa area give me a shout and we'll kick the tires!

David

[jimq]

Originally Posted by dleefso

Oh well, thanks for the info Jim and Steve! Jim - if you're ever in the Tampa area give me a shout and we'll kick the tires!

David

Sometimes I dont even feel it when its gone into 1st. I need to put mine on the lift and do a tranny oil change one of these days myself.
Same to ya if you get over to Orlando.

[dleefso]

Lucky you - My lift is a NASA maneuver to get all fours onto ramps and then slide up under her (that sounds bad)! I think I need to expand my friend base to include folks with lifts! The real sad part is that there is no clearer indication that I need to lose a few pounds than when I come out and there are grease spots from rubbing while underneath nowhere else but on my belly!!! Maybe the other sad part will be polishing the wheels and seeing my balding head in the reflection!

I did notice that shifting is a little erratic between that first and second gear range when you are just putsing around in manual. I think it's just because you're not supposed to just be putsing around in manual mode, that's what auto is for. It instantly went back to shifting normally when getting a bit more spirited with the driving.

[msark]

1991 Tip..... Mine will go into 1st but at about 3200rpm it goes to second on its own. Always figured it was normal but maybe not! It also will not shift into 1st as I downshift unless I am at a full stop. Interested in anyones ideas.....

[930gt-40r]

dleefso, when you get around to it, try romping on it (stick the accelerator to the floor) in drive and see if it shifts 1st. From all of the german automatic cars I have ever worked on, every one of them dont like first gear all that much. I think what your experiencing is factory tuning of the trans control unit. They always like to get to second gear as soon as possible for some reason.

[dleefso]

Thanks for the tip and insights! I do need to play with it a little more this weekend - analyze it a little more. At this point I'm not really thinking that there is a mechanical problem because not downshifting into first while decelerating in manual mode is the only resemblence of an issue that I am experiencing. I do have to do exactly what you are saying though because I tried putting it into 3rd and I'm not totally convinced that it is starting in first. In manual mode it will start in first though and I have noticed that sometimes it only really engages once I do give it some gas. Without question too, the car is meant to go and I think the trans does much better with haul'n $#$% instead of haul'n Ms. Daisy! I'm also not convinced that this car doesn't just need some good spirited driving because I think the one owner perhaps babied it too much. When I originally test drove it there was a noticeable difference after I took it out and ran it for 30 minutes although part of that may have been changing the trans into sport mode.

Thanks again though!