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Cayman Driver's Seat Squeaking

24K views 65 replies 21 participants last post by  thingineer 
#1 ·
So here's my story...I ordered a 2017 base Cayman back in February of 2017, picked it up in July of 17. Around October, about 3 months/4200 miles in (daily driver), I noticed a loud squeaking noise coming from the driver's seat on the left (door) side. I took it into a local dealership here, Porsche of Downtown Los Angeles, drove it with a tech, he heard the noise, and they kept the car to see what it was. I picked it up about 4 days later on what would turn out to be the worst day of my life, Game 7 of the World Series (Dodgers fan) and the squeaking was gone. I was in a rush to get the car, but the service record says they had re-secured the seat, and lubricated the motor that moves the backrest part of the seat up and down. I had the car for about a month and a half, before the squeaking came back. Waited a few weeks and then took it in to the Beverly Hills dealership in mid-January, they didn't drive it for a few days, and then of course, weren't able to duplicate the noise. They gave me back the car, and within a few days, the noise had returned.

This noise happens at all times, during normal driving, different weather, indiscriminately. The worst time is coming to a stop and then starting up again, i.e., at stoplights. It's usually less severe on the freeway, but it can happen there too, over bumps, on good roads and regular street commuter driving...constantly. I've moved the seat into different positions, and it's made the noise in all of them, eventually. The only thing I could think of is that it's at the lowest possible setting, but I want it to be there as I'm tall and I like as much room for my legs under the steering wheel as possible. I ordered the GT Sport steering wheel and manual seats for this purpose. For video of the noise, check the youtube link below. This is one of maybe 20 videos I have of the sound, and I could take dozens more every day.

Anyway, I took it BACK into Porsche of Downtown LA a few weeks later in early February. My girlfriend was with me, and one of their techs drove the car around without me, came back and said he heard the noise and thought it was an upholstery issue, that there was too much leather on the seat or that the stitching was bad and they'd have an upholstery guy come and take a look at it. 3-4 days later they said the car's ready. I asked if the upholsterer had been out, and they said the techs had been working out. Turns out they tried to re-secure it again, without really doing anything differently etc. etc. So within 15 minutes of having the car back, the noise returned. I then escalated it to Porsche of North America, who basically said their only function is as customer service, and all repairs have to be authorized through a dealership. They did reach out to Downtown LA, who agreed to come pick the car up from me this time. After a day or two, the service manager called me and said they couldn't duplicate the noise, then said it might be my fault because of the seat back rubbing against the carpet (i don't have the seat all the way back anyway), then said they only heard the noise with me in the car, which wasn't true and is in writing on the dealership service records. Finally I sent her 7 videos of the noise and she said they would order new seat rails to click the seat back into.

This worked for about a wee before the noise came back, as bad or worse than before. I got back in touch with PCNA who said I have no choice but to request more help from the dealer or go to a different dealership.
I emailed the service manager and asked for an entirely new seat, and contacted a lemon law lawyer here in California. Since it's been in 4, soon to be 5 times, to the dealership, it can potentially qualify for the lemon law procedures. The service manager at Downtown LA said her technical rep with Porsche wants me to duplicate the noise with the foreman of the service department. SO I have an appointment to go BACK in on this Saturday. I don't really want to leave the car with them again when nothing has worked, and it seems like it's a lot cheaper for them to just authorize a new seat than potentially having to pay for me to give a car back to them that they can no longer sell. But who knows what they'll tell me, I'm sure they'll want to just re-secure the seat again, which won't work.

When I spoke to PCNA customer service, I told them how incredibly frustrating this has been, after dealing with this for months and having it still not be fixed. I ordered the car, waited 5 months, and of the 7.5 months I've had the car, 5 of them have been spent dealing with this problem. Not to mention that I paid extra for seats that don't work, the 2-way Sport Plus seats are $440 when ordered with the Leather and Sport-Tex package which is an extra $2500.

It's incredibly frustrating to drive, every single time I get in the car. I honestly don't know if I even want a new seat at this point, or an entirely new car. Who knows.

 
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#2 ·
Hello @ianmSC!! I have virtually the same squeaky seat noise as you. I have had my 2017 base Boxster for a nearly a year and have 5200 miles on the clock. The seat noise started last fall. I haven't driven the car much since November so I have waited to have the dealer look at the problem. I have an appointment on the 27th for an oil change and state inspection. I am also having them look/listen to the seat noise. I will keep you posted as to what I find out.
 
#5 ·
Yeah definitely, let me know. It's infuriating because, at least in my car, it's audible over music, podcasts, phone calls...engine noise. People can hear it from the passenger seat. Good to know it's not just me, I guess.

Also, which seat configuration do you have?
 
#3 ·
The only time my seat squeaks is when the comfort entry is active--and it's a quiet squeak as the seat moves. Yours sounds like a "stiction" issue or possibly some wiring rubbing/moving.

Can you make it squeak by moving in the seat, or is it only when the car is in motion?

If the seat touches the door then try slipping a sheet of paper into the contact area and see if that does anything.

If it is a squeak from rubbing and you can find the rubbing bits then a VERY thin smear of Krytox on the surfaces will almost certainly provide silence. I had a window on a previous car that used to squeak at my favourite opening level that no-one could fix. The Krytox worked a treat and the noise stayed away for 5 years--then I sold the car.

I HATE SQUEAKS!
 
#4 ·
That's very odd...I don't have comfort entry, so it can't be that. I can make it squeak by moving the seat, but it's not as consistent as when it's in motion. It really just depends, some days it's worse than others. The seat doesn't touch the door, it's pretty far away. I've looked and looked for where the squeak is coming from but I can't seem to find it. I'll keep that in mind for if do find it.
 
#6 ·
C'mon, let's be honest here. You and Chilli get together and eat a couple bags of Doritos every night before bed? You think maybe the seat is bursting at the seams, trying to hold up the 440lbs you forgot to mention in your original post??? I'm kidding of course... My buddy has a 718C, and he's been complaining of noises, squeaks, and rattles from the interior. I've read this before, not necessarily from the seat, but from other parts of the cabin. It seems to plague some cars, and others seem to be quite as they should be. I'm not sure, but I hope I don't have the same problem because that would cause me anxiety. It's always a bad feeling when you keep having to go back in for a repair, yet their solution doesn't seem to fix the actual problem. At this point, they should just be offering to get you a new seat, along with all new rails and attachments.
 
#7 ·
I have a 2018 718C which I daily drive. I have the 14 way power seats with the standard leather. I am not tall (5'9"), and I do use the comfort entry/exit. I, too, have the seat squeak. It just started about a week ago. For me, it is lateral movements, and I can easily replicate it by shimmying side-to-side while seated. I haven't had time to address it yet. I assumed that a well-placed shot of WD40 would take care of it, but now I am not so sure.

I bought my car at Porsche of DTLA. They were wonderful in the sales department. The one time I used their service, I was unimpressed. While shopping for my car I visited The Auto Gallery in Woodland Hills, which is walking distance from where I live. Their sales people were obnoxious. However, when I have used their service department, they have been excellent. Try taking your car there and see if they can help.

Also, please continue to post about this, especially if you find a solution.

Oh, while I am not a lemon law lawyer (trademarks and copyrights, instead), I do have some experience as I was forced to lemon a car a number of years back. Fit and finish issues do not qualify (at least they didn't as recently as 15 years ago, when I last had occasion to look at the law). Rather, the problem has to render the car unreliable or unsafe to drive. I was able to lemon my G37 Coupe after the third transmission in 5 months. I had contemplated lemoning my Audi A4 5 years prior to that for its atrocious fit and finish (if it could buzz, rattle, squeak or fall off, it did), but I was denied, so I just unloaded it.
 
#8 ·
Well that's good to know, I kinda assumed it was happening because I had manual seats...I've had two 718C loaners that haven't had any problems, but both were the 14 way power standard seats. I'm roughly 6'3 and about 215, and I thought maybe it was something I'm doing, but I've driven 5-6 different Caymans (test drives, Porsche Experience Center, loaners) and never heard this noise. Also driven Panameras, Macans, and a couple Cayenne's and never heard it. To be fair, I've never heard this noise in any car, full stop. One part of this I forgot to add is that we contacted the SA at the dealership I bought the car from, Hoehn Porsche in Carlsbad, and she said lemon law could apply if we said we were concerned about the seat slipping out of place, that could be a potential safety issue.

I haven't been to The Auto Gallery, my biggest issue is that I work in Westwood and live in Toluca Lake, and my job basically requires me to be at the office from roughly 9-6:30/7 so I went to DTLA because they had Saturday service appointments. PCNA did say I could go to another dealership, so if they don't authorize a new seat I'll have to find a way to get to Woodland Hills.

Will keep everyone posted.
 
#10 ·
I, too, work in Westwood, but I live in Woodland Hills. That's why I find the Auto Gallery to be so convenient. And yes, they do have Saturday appointments.
 
#11 ·
Ok, so I went back in to DTLA service on Saturday morning...drove the car with the foreman, he heard the noise, we moved the seat around and it went away temporarily. I didn't want to leave the car there but he said he'd try something in the hour-hour 15 I had to spare. Said he worked on the plastic panel underneath the seat for a bit, and I didn't really hear the noise the rest of the day. Drove the car again yesterday and it came back in full force. There was no mention of trying to get a new seat, and I haven't had any contact from them since then. Emailed the foreman as well. At this point, I'm waiting to hear back from a lemon law lawyer to see how good my case is. This was technically the 5th dealer visit, with no improvement, and they don't really have an idea of what could be causing the noise. Guess we'll have to see what happens.
 
#12 ·
Have you tried to communicate with the general manager of your Porsche dealership? The preferred route would be to go through the Porsche management flow chart (chain of command) starting with your SA, service advisor, service manager then it is completely appropriate to involve the general manager. Let us know how this eventually gets resolved.........may need a new seat.
 
#13 ·
Update on my issue. I took my car to The Auto Gallery this past Saturday afternoon, and the service manager spent about 15 minutes sitting in the seat and moving around to produce the noise. He said that he was trying to localize where it was coming from; he thought it could be inside the seat. After pushing, pulling, poking and prodding, the noise went away. I drove off the lot and the rest of the day the seat was silent. The next day, it was squeaking the same as before. It may well be tied to the comfort entry/exit, but I like that so much that I don't want to give it up.

I have had car seats that squeaked and/or rocked when you accelerated/braked/turned, and that annoyed me to no end, especially the rocking. This doesn't bother me nearly as much. And my past experience is that a noise that appears suddenly frequently disappears just as suddenly. Plus, if the noise is coming from inside the seat, I don't want to start pulling things apart as that tends to cause additional noises. I will let it go for now. If anything changes, I will post about it.
 
#16 ·
Let me know if you need a referral to a lemon law attorney in the LA area.
 
#22 ·
I replied to the thread on Planet9 on this topic but I'll add my theory here as well:

My suspicion that the squeaking noise is coming from the seat release mechanism was strengthened last night: I, for the first time, utilized the coat hook on the back of the seat, and there seemed to be just enough support from my coat being squeezed between the seat back and the bulkhead to keep the seat from making a peep over a ~1 hr drive. On this morning's drive to work with the coat no longer on the hook behind the seat the squeak was back in full effect. I may try a tiny bit of lube on the edges of the lever that could potentially come into contact with the surround, or better yet just jam a microfiber rag in there to see if the squeak is the lever rubbing on the surround or if it is something in the mechanism inside of the seat. Worst case, I can stick a pillow behind the seat :derp:
 
#23 ·
As I said in an earlier post, if I shimmy while seated I can easily recreate the squeak. However, if I try that while sitting forward in the seat (with my back not touching the seat back), there is no squeak. So at least I have localized the problem to being in the seat back. I have an appointment at Porsche on Monday morning, so I will see what they say and report back.
 
#24 ·
I took my car in yesterday for the squeaky driver's seat. They applied lubricant to various points, including the seat rails and seat back hinges, and seemed to have tamed the squeak.
 
#26 ·
I already have a little noise coming back, though not nearly as bad as before. I am beginning to think that it is inside the seat. Is there a way to get into the seat without damaging the leather or setting off the airbag?
 
#28 ·
Honestly that's what it sounds like to me as well, it sounds like there's something wrong with the actual seat itself. I've looked at every mechanism, they've looked at every mechanism, lubricated everything, replaced the seat rails, and the noise is just as bad, if not worse, today than it's ever been, 6 months after they tried to fix it the first time.
 
#27 ·
I had a similar sounding squeek. It turned out to be the seatbelt anchor rubbing on the seat. It has slowly gone (broke in?) away. The anchor was apparently doing a stiction thing on the seat leather when I fastened my belt, moved around, bumpy roads, etc.
 
#29 ·
Hey guys, I had the same issue with my 718 cayman. I from Australia by the way. The squeaking was driving me nuts. Took it back to the dealer and they said that as I had the seat right back against the firewall that was causing the squeaking. They suggested I move the seat back off the firewall......problem fixed!! What a load of crap! Anyway I decided to lubricate the leather on the side of the back rest and trying to get leather treating product between the plastic cover over the seat hinge etc....that seemed to help but didn't resolve issue. I then used WD40, don't know if you have that product there, inserted the spray nozzle and sprayed WD40 around the seat hinge, underneath, behind the plastic cover over the mechanism..........................it's now been 12 months.............NO SQUEAK!!!! Love the car but hate rattles and squeaks. By the way, I also located solution to another rattle that seemed to come from dashboard area. Again tried bits of rubber etc everywhere and nothing worked. My wife kept telling me that she thought the rattle came from the back hatch area. I noticed the rear hatch has adjustable rubber "buffers" which screw out. Well I adjusted the buffers on each side by one or two turns..............bloody thing worked. My car is now rattle free and a real pleasure to drive. Good luck guys hope this works for you. Tony
 
#33 ·
Exactly. It would be disconcerting in a new Honda Accord. My girlfriend has a 7 year old used BMW 328 she bought from a Honda dealership and the seats in that car make no noise at all. To spend $65-75k on a car and have the seat squeaking within a few months is very disappointing.
 
#32 ·
This is concerning to me. I don't think Porsche's response of acting like their "hands are tied", and it is up to the dealer is a fair assessment. The dealer could ask for a new seat, and Porsche could authorize that warranty work. I doubt it is even that difficult of an install, especially with an all manual seat. Is this typical of how Porsche supports (or lack thereof) their customers? I wouldn't want to be the one to be on the receiving end of this.
 
#34 ·
Right. My read on these situations is that the dealers must be incentivized to not ask for even moderately significant repairs like this. I'd imagine there's some kind of loss ratio goal that they need to meet from the factory that makes it so they don't want to push for a major new part like this.

By the way, the squeaking is as bad now as its ever been, and there's even a new noise that happens periodically when making left turns.
 
#36 ·
How long has the fix lasted? The fix the dealer did for me (lube on the connecting points from the seat bottom to seat back) lasted about 3 weeks before the squeaking started again.
 
#47 ·
I don't, and yeah I'd assume it's a lot more than that. I'm going to confirm with the lawyer but as long as this settlement doesn't restrict me from continuing to go to dealers about this specific issue, I guess I don't have much choice but to continue to hound dealerships to try to get them to replace it. Because as you say, it's far beyond annoying.
 
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