Porsche 986, 996 Door Latch Replacement with VW part

With Porsche 986 and 996s reaching 20 years old there are some common parts that are wearing out. I recently replaced the driver's side door latch on one of my 1999 Boxsters using a VW part # 3D1837015AB  and saving over $100 over using a nearly identical Porsche part 8N1837015. I paid 29.95  for the VW MK5 Golf, GTI, Jetta part and I have seen the Porsche part listed at over $300. There is a plastic piece of the lock mechanism on the VW part that I had to trim to make the locking work correctly. Otherwise, it fit and worked perfectly. There are also similar Audi/VW door latch part numbers that will work well. I leave it to you to verify correct fitment for your situation, but I found that most 1998 to 2005 Porsche's have the 9 pin electrical connector and can use this substitution.

Here's my video:

A couple pictures that may be helpful if you Do it Yourself:

I need to add an update: Someone reported that in his 986 Boxster, the functions when the key was turned in the lock didn't all work correctly.

"... My passenger door would not unlock, the alarm chirped at any turn of the key in the door lock, and when I tried to put the windows down using the door lock they went up! "

If that's the case, another way to use the cheaper VW door latch is to swap the mechanical portion of the latch with your old one. It's pretty simple. Just two screws to remove and some gentle prying:

Reverse to reassemble with the new part. Generally, all the mechanical parts of the cheap ones can be swapped over to the old ones as needed. On the particular one I have on my desk, the mounting holes for the microswitch are spaced slightly different, but can be 'adjusted' or forced. I'll probably just solder the new switch on.

This thread reminds me how awesome it would be if you had a challenge-friendly Boxster 6MT shifter with cables for sale.

;-)

In reply to AngryCorvair :

I found the shifter a couple weeks ago when I was looking for a headlight. When you are ready for it, just let me know what I'm selling or trading it for.

PM sent!