Hi

I have a 997.1tt lately I noticed it is stuck or jammed when leaving the house in the mornings, and today leaving work I had a similar issue. Its is getting really cold here (-18ºC/-12ºF last week) and I have a feeling it makes it worse.

When I drive away I hear a kind of loud "chunk" sound and then whatever this is lets go, I am worried this needs to be fixed before something brakes.

First I thought the car was frozen to the ground, but now I been parked on snow so that isnt the problem.

Any one knows if this could be the parking brake or something else?

 

I get a sound like that if I wash the tts or any car and don't drive it until the next day. I believe it's the moisture causing the brakes to stick. Just my guess.

 

Yup, it's your parking brake freezing up. Common practice to use 1st gear instead at freezing temperatures, as most cars have this issue...

 

I have the same issue. I drive my car about once a week, and if I need to move it in the garage, I prefer to push it, rather than smoke the place out. (these motors seem to blow a bit of oil smoke after an few days of sitting). The brakes do lock after a few days and I have no choice but to move it under power. Only car I've ever had that did this. It's never given me any trouble after the first clunk.

 

thanks, I asked my tech at Porsche and he said the engine has some oil and stuff sitting in the cylinders and some smoke at start up is very common.

 

I'll try that, my drive way is at a slight angle so I have been hesitant to do so, but I dont like this noise...

 

Could be the parking brake but maybe not.

What my experience is with using one of these cars in areas where snow/ice is common is the wheel wells develop a nice build up of frozen slush picked up by the tires.

When the car gets parked the heat from the brakes/running gear melts some of this frozen slush and the melt water drips down onto the brakes where it will at some point refreeze.

But before this melt water freezes this water of course gets the brake pads/rotors wet and corrosion sets in.

So when you drive off the pads/rotors can be stuck (rusted) to each other and the clunk you hear is the brake pads/rotors breaking free.

When parking my cars on *flat* ground I'd leave the tranny (manual) in gear and avoid using the parking brake. 'course one can't always, should not always do this since in some parking situations the parking brake is called for, even in an automatic the parking brake should be used for it is not unknown for a parking pawl to pop out of engagement and without the parking brake the car can roll away. One only needs to chase down a car to which this happening once to forever use the parking brake. If you park you car on a grade/slope perhaps you could consider using some wheel blocks/chocks? But you have to remember to use these every time you park the car and then you have to remove them before you drive away.

Whenever possible I'd take my car to the local car wash where heated water was available and rinse the wheel wells and remove (melt) the build up of frozen slush. I'd drive the car around and get the brakes good and hot to be sure they were all dry then park the car up.

Of course the above only works if the roads are free/clear of snow/ice. In some areas obviously the roads are never free of this during the most deepest of winter months so by the time one would arrive home the build up would have started again.

If this is the case where you are and I suspect it is, you'll have to live with the clunk.

 

thanks, yes I live in slush country right now, no chance of heating up the brakes just before parking, my house is in an area built in the 1920-1928 and streets are narrow and snow removal services non existent sometimes. I do think it gets worse with lower temps, but I suspect there is a good bit of rust build up to blame as well. If I leave the car for a few days my rotors turn brown

 

if I wash my car in socal and park it I will get a clunk in the morning. its the rust build up on the rotors.

 

yup, happens to me everyday until about May when the snow/slush/etc is reliably gone. Curiously, there was less clunk on previous car (03 C4S).

Keep driving though, put up with the clunk rather than the pain of just looking at the car waiting in the garage!