I tried the procedure with my old credit card and it worked perfect. So you will not scratch the case nor the metal tray too much (as with the knife).
How to Disassemble a Lacie Porsche External Hard Drive ThingThese things look pretty well sealed but are actually easy to get apart. The metal bottom ‘tray’ is only about 5mm deep and it is this which comes out. The hard drive and gubbins are held inside the plastic encolsure by a thin metal tray which is just clipped in place. For this exercise you’ll need 2 table knives, a smallish cross head screwdriver, a lacie porsche drive and a spare hard disc (preferrably larger than the one in the lacie!). Okay, hit me… 1 On each side there are 5 ‘lugs’ that keep the metal tray in place. Just stick a couple of table knives down one side of the tray, each about an inch from the end and gently prise the tray out. As you lever it out the plastic will bend away from the tray – it only needs about 1-2mm clearance. This is the hard bit, and it’s pretty easy really. 2 Once the bottom tray is out undo the four screws that hold the drive in place. 3 The shiny metal tabs that the screw go through then bend (yes bend!) out of the way – I guess you won’t want to do this too often!** Don’t lose the clear plastic bits as they go between the metal tabs and the drive to protect it. 4 Pull the front light out and move out the way. 5 Remove the drive and insert the new one. It can be configured as master or cable select (CS). 6 Reassemble and you’re done.
Comments...
Will says... [toggle display]
Guys, Glad to hear I can take this hard drive apart. But tell me can you install the lacie hard drive internally once it is removed from the case?
Richard says... [toggle display]
Didier: thanks for the tip. Will: sure, it’s just a regular hard drive. You can use it however you like.
Matt says... [toggle display]
Hi Thanks for the tip. Thanks
Richard says... [toggle display]
The one’s I’ve pulled apart had Seagates in them but I’ve no idea which model. I woudl guess the manufacturer would change depending on which drives are good/well priced at the time.
Nicolas says... [toggle display]
i’m really afraid to break the plastic enclosure, i tried with knifes and credit card, did you insert the knifes in the air holes or between the metal tray and the plastic enclosure ?
J. Nunn says... [toggle display]
Lacie uses a lot of Seagate WD1600’s for their 160GB models. I’ve replaced them with WD2000’s (200 GB) with no problems. Don’t be afraid, it’s hard to break the enclosure, use a credit card on one side and get it up first, then work on the other.
matt says... [toggle display]
can any hard drive be install after the removal of the broken drive?
Richard says... [toggle display]
Sure, as long as it’s the same type (most are 3.5” ATA drives) just buy another from any computer hardware shop. You should be okay with any capacity, bigger or smaller(!) than the original.
Adi says... [toggle display]
My 2.5” LaCie (it had a 40GB Samsung HDD in it) died spontaneously after 18 of service. It was so bad that I could not have it recognised by any system even when directly internally connected.
Richard says... [toggle display]
Just to add to the final note that says it can be removed ‘in theory’ without bending any metal tabs: This can indeed be done, with just a few credit cards and a lot of patience. http://www.flickr.com/photos/89445595@N00/sets/72157600243558549/ Thanks for this article – it gave me the courage I needed to dismantle my lacie to fix the power button on the back.
Michael says... [toggle display]
Fix the power button? hmmm…I have a 250 gb Lacie external HD. About two weeks ago, the tiny recessed LED light on the front of the “brick” started blinking but I could no longer access the harddrive via the usb connection. I also noticed that the LED light on the power adaptor was also blinking. When I unplug the power from the back of the HD, the adaptor’s LED stops blinking. Any thoughts as to what has died? I haven’t been successful in finding info on the net about my problem. Thanks in advance…
Anders Sjögren says... [toggle display]
Thanks for the comment. I did not have to remove the LED in step 5, just remove the cables first and slip out the backside first. My 250 GB died as well after perhaps 1.5-2 years. It appears to try to startup but then spins down. It might be a power related problem. I´ll do a SMART-check on the drive attached via IDE now that it is out.
Mbenzi says... [toggle display]
Hi,
Beechnut says... [toggle display]
Great tip. I found when opening my 350GB Porche that it was easiest worked best with 4 credit cards. Insert one end-on about 1cm out from one corner and then a second next to it (ie so that they are double thickness). Do the same at the other end on the same side and then you can insert a knife in between and lever the tray out. You then have to do the same on the other side, making sure that the first side doesn’t click back into position. I would suggest using old credit cards for this in case you damage the magnetic strip. Now I know how to do it I’m off to buy a bigger hard drive and this one can go in my PC
shermanator says... [toggle display]
Thanks for the tips. Was able to take mine apart in a couple of seconds. Definitely recommend care and ease when popping the bottom tray out. I just jammed my Leatherman in there and started prying. It’s not in there as deep as you think and definitely not neccessary to “F” up one corner of the bottom case llike I just did! For me, this is going to make a very nice tool for imaging, salvaging and replacing laptop hard drives that have died. Thanks again.
Mat says... [toggle display]
After a bit of google-ing i found this page – thankfully!! My 500 Porsche is new really noisy after only 6 months use. It comes and goes – so i guess there is a fan in there somewhere?? is it easy to get to and replace/re-oil?
chuck says... [toggle display]
Thank you for information; This is the second 160G LaCie
reekon says... [toggle display]
Thank you very very much for this page. =) The power supply of my LaCie also died and I was afraid that I’d have to cut-out the case just to get the actual drive out. With your tips, I got the hdd out easily. I now have my data back and will probably just throw away the case and power supply.
David says... [toggle display]
Awesome. I needed a hard drive in a hurry and this was the cheapest external in the store (no internals) and all I want is the drive inside.
Zino says... [toggle display]
Glad to have found this page. Thank Go…ogle! After much research it seems these Porsche design LaCie drives are not very reliable. I’ve got the 160Gb firewire model and the FW controller is so bad it won’t allow me to boot with OS X 10.4, though it worked fine with 10.3.9. Lots of reports of similar behavior as well as data corruption and loss. I’m about to order an enclosure from Other World (or maybe just a new drive altogether) and lose the LaCie. Not worth the risk, though the design is cool.
Dries says... [toggle display]
Hello, Thx for the good tips. Mine died without any warning after 10 months. It tries to start, but within a second the drive stops spinning and makes a lot of noise. The leds on the drive and power supply still work as normal. Dries
battery says... [toggle display]
[…] 11.9 MB/s read speed, and a slower 6.7 MB/s write speed. This read speed puts it ahead of Seagate’s Pocket Drive, but behind Lexar’s Lightning Drive. It is also considerably faster than […]
Rint says... [toggle display]
Thanks for yout great input, had a 500 GB LaCie that went bad, luckily it’s just the power supply. Copying the disc’s contents via USB-IDE cable as I write. Hopefully I can replace the drive within its enclosure and return the f*cker to the store where I bought it, as it is still under warranty. Thanks a lot again! Rint, Sweden
Jeremy says... [toggle display]
Just as a side note … this drive gets a lot of crit for not having a cooling fan. My 250GB which I just opened up HAS A COOLING FAN!!. Interestingly the drive in the flickr post doesn’t. Maybe they only upt a fan in the biger drives?
Sabrina says... [toggle display]
The 250GB I just opened up definitely does NOT have a cooling fan, so it looks like there really is some variance between models here. BTW, it was a Hitachi Deathstar. I am not so surprised it failed
Atech says... [toggle display]
The above “note” should be observed in order to remove the drive without damage. That is, the drive is indeed screwed to “a metal tray” that is held in the outer plastic case “by four round ‘lugs’” that “engage with holes in the side of the metal tray”. To remove this metal tray containing the drive and electronics, slide plastic strips (such as a cut up hotel room key or credit card) between each plastic “lug” and the corresponding hole it engages. Then wiggle the whole tray out. Finally, by removing the four screws, the drive can be removed from the tray without damaging anything.
WS says... [toggle display]
Nice tips. Took mine apart today. There isn’t actually anything to it… even the heat shield is pretty weak (the metal tray people are talking about)... I recall talking with one of the techs at Future Shop, and him telling me the drive would be DOA should it ever be removed. That him and the other techs tried several times… I scoffed at him then and I do now as I watch the drive boot up in a PC |
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did the drive go belly up or did u just need a bigger drive ?
Just adding a bigger drive. What I’d really like is an old Lacie external case for the spare drive now!