[david dolan]

Because I hate a thread without an ending I'm glad to finally report the car has finally started again!

Turned out to be the Crankshaft Position Sensor which I had previously checked with a multi-meter at the DME terminals. If you've read my thread in Rennlist I had a reading that was a little bit under the recommended range, however another forum member suggested this was close enough to be considered OK. Even so, what had happened was that the plastic the CPS is made of had become so old that it started to crumble. When this happened it became loose in it's bracket eventually causing the gap between it and the bump on the flywheel to disappear. What happened next of course was there was an impact to the sensor by the flywheel.

Just goes to show an electrical signal can be OK, or nearly OK and if you don't do a physical inspection you might be sorry. This solution took many months to find because of not looking at the parts more closely.

Positives to take away from this experience, a bit better understanding of the electrical system, a Steve Wong Chip, elimination of a secondary alarm, elimination of the drive block immobilizer and an independent garage that solved a problem rather quickly.

Negatives, the Porsche dealer service centre didn't find what in the opinion of the second garage was one of the first things they should've checked. I didn't find it either on my initial investigations, nor did the Automotive Electrician that visited my home 3 times.