can anyone identify these center console connectors?

[svandamme]

1988 944S
no sun roof
have 3 buttons/switches on the central console, in front of the shifter
outside mirror adjust select
rear wiper
central lock

i'm in the process of pulling my car apart for a winter makeover
and as i removed the shift booth to recondition the leather

i noticed that i have 3 more connectors that aren't hooked up
1 6 prong special plug, like the 3 aforementioned buttons have
1 red plug
1 white plug



my radio is hooked up in the back with existing wiring, so these 3 are surplus

Can anybody tell me what these are supposed to be for?
i can only see one other option in the user manual, for sun roof, but i don't have one...



kinda wish that Porsche would have had the door window control's put in that location instead of on the door, just think it would have been a better location. it's just awkward on the left doro panel, need to either take over wheel in right hand and then twist left hand to get to them, or go over to the left with the right hand...

i suppose i could fix a button in the center, but i'de have to hack to much into the wiring loom, which i want to avoid on this car, since it's pretty much all original, as it came from the factory, and i would like to keep it this way

[mattdavis11]

I'm just going to guess that one of them could be for the headlight washers, and another might be for mirror defrosters. I'm probably wrong, just guessing. One should be for a switch that pops the rear hatch. Where's the fader for the stereo? I have an early car, so I really have no idea.

[svandamme]

headlight washers i have , but they are on same handle as the windows washers, pull for window washing, push for headlight washing

mirror defrosters, dunno, i've always heard that the late cars had mirror heating, but always figured it was on permanently, but it's a possibility, i'll see if i can find more on that

the rear hatch button is in the foot well area, next to the hood release

fader for stereo, doubt it, i know they were on the early 944's, but haven't see one on the late 944's, the wiring for my stock radio had all the speaker leads plugged in there directly

and i think those wires are pretty heavy for speaker, even for normal signal buttons
especially the red plug looks like it's built for some serious current

[mattdavis11]

I guess I'm not good at guessing, lol. How about one being for the sunroof that you don't have?

[svandamme]

that's an option, but i'm not sure if Porsche installs wiring for options that aren't there

for instance, the passenger seat is not electric
and found no wiring under the seat, despite that some 944's came with electric passenger seats

and it would still leave 2 connectors with no purpose
and i don't know which is for what

it's trivial stuff really, but i got 3 blanked out button panels on the center console
and while i have everything out, i might as well check if there isn't some kind of functionality i could easily add

i mean, more buttons is just better , right ?

[svandamme]

Pet does list a fader (22), although it doesn't match my wiring, since it shows a connector, with another connector attached to it, presumably from the speakers out from the radio

i suspect it works with 24, which says part number unknown
that one goes to the back, i guess to the rear speakers

dutch forum told me that sunroof wiring is always present, even on non sunroof cars

so one of those connectors is sunroof, just don't know which one
i suspect the thick wires might be sunroof, as that's a pretty decent motor


dutch forum also suggested height adjustment for headlights
haven't seen that before, but i do have 2 small connectors at the rear of the headlights, unused...

but can't find any reference of a headlight height adjusting assembly in PET
just the regular headlight assembly , with manual adjusting screws

[Dark Skies]

My wife has a 1988 model and it has the following buttons on the consol from left to right:

Blank, Mirrors, Rear Wipe,r Sunroof, Fader.

The red plug looks like it hooks up to the fader - if it has two black wires with a reddish brown tracer.

I'm guessing here but the black plug at the rear is probably the standard sunroof connector - it being the same rocker switch plug as the others.

The white plug is probably for whatever fits in the blank that US and UK cars don't have. Looking at her owners manual isn't much help - that's blank in the picture.

She has a control to lower / raise the beam of the headlights (according to the loading of the car - it's smilar to the dimmer switch (which she also has). Both are in the main dash array.

It makes sense for the bulk of the wiring to be standardised - so that customers could specify their options prior to taking delivery. It wouldn't have been practical to have had a range of different wiring looms - especially as we're only talking a handful of unused plugs at the most on a basic factory offering.

[svandamme]

Originally Posted by Dark Skies

She has a control to lower / raise the beam of the headlights (according to the loading of the car - it's smilar to the dimmer switch (which she also has). Both are in the main dash array.

excellent stuff

i've been looking in PET and even in the workshop manual, but could not find any reference for a headlight beam control

no assembly part numbers or anything like that ( PET only shows the sealed beam lens/light), it's not on Pelicanparts either


did find something that resembles an adjustable headlight assembly, but only in the 89 section for 944/2
and if i click the parts, i get partnumber unknown




so it's pretty ondocumented stuff from the looks of it

i so want that option , handy for driving at night here in the country side, so i can raise the beam, and then lower it again when driving on more busy roads, and not blind anybody


would you be able, if you got the time, to take a peek at that mechanism, maybe see if there is a part number or something?

[Dark Skies]

Originally Posted by svandamme

would you be able, if you got the time, to take a peek at that mechanism, maybe see if there is a part number or something?

I'm fitting a new radio this coming weekend - I'll see how hard it is to get a part number off it - assuming it has one molded into it.

[Wipeout]

Wait...a button to adjust the headlights? That's pretty cool. Guess having an early US car is a bummer.

[aribop]

The black plug is definitely for the sunroof. The three-wire white plug is for the headlight height adjust. I have no idea what the orange plug is for, it almost looks like speaker wires that would go to the fader which ini your case would not be used since the headlight adjuster fits in that slot.

[aribop]

Originally Posted by Wipeout

Wait...a button to adjust the headlights? That's pretty cool. Guess having an early US car is a bummer.

No US cars came with the headlight adjuster. It is a ROW thing. It has three positions, normal and two others that actually lower the angle of the headlights depending on how much cargo one is carrying in the back. The heavier the cargo, the lower the rear of the car, and the higher the nose of the car. The adjuster lets one lower the headlights so they will shine on the road instead of in the sky.

[Wipeout]

Originally Posted by aribop

No US cars came with the headlight adjuster. It is a ROW thing. It has three positions, normal and two others that actually lower the angle of the headlights depending on how much cargo one is carrying in the back. The heavier the cargo, the lower the rear of the car, and the higher the nose of the car. The adjuster lets one lower the headlights so they will shine on the road instead of in the sky.

The concept makes sense, it's silly that the US cars didn't have that. Some pickup drivers could benefit from that technology.

[aribop]

Originally Posted by Wipeout

The concept makes sense, it's silly that the US cars didn't have that. Some pickup drivers could benefit from that technology.

True that. We just have to be different than everyone else.

[onZedge]

Headlight adjuster. Cool.

Anyway, without looking again, I'm pretty sure the red connector is for the amplifier that comes with the premium sound system.

[hpservertech]

I can tell you that the red plug is not the speaker fader. At least in US cars that's not it. The speaker fader is 4 or 6 wires in a straight row. ROW cars could be different though. Wire gauge is too thick for speaker wires too. Could be rear wiper switch.

[svandamme]

it's not the rear wiper switch, i have that one connected on the left
sound system with amp (and equalizer) was 968 only as far as i know, maybe s2, but definately not S

i've given up on the headlight adjuster idea, since it only adjusts downward, and it's highest point would not be any higher then a regular headlight would be set at...