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Dodgy Battery?

rjs993

rjs993

PCGB Member
Member
When I attempted to start the car having not driven it for 2/3 weeks the battery was flat! Now it may be that the battery has suddenly decided to depart this world but it has never given any previous indication that it may be terminally ill. I have though got a sneaking suspicion that the little light above the ignition key may not be going off when it should and therefore after 3 weeks I suppose (?) it could have flattened the battery.

I have noticed that it does stay on rather a long time - or could that have been because the boot was open? Does anyone know what the behaviour of the little light should be? e.g. it should stay on for "n" minutes after door is opened/closed or similar. If it is caput - any ideas what needs to be done to fix it?

Suggestions please.

Oh ..... and how much is a new battery and where is the best place to buy?

Robert

PS Yes, I know the real answer is don't go 3 weeks without driving.
 
Don't waste your money on a new battery yet. I've just been through all this and the problem was else where.

Any garage can check if your battery is OK (probably for free) If it's OK ask them to check the current draw with the ignition off it should be really low (can't remember how many milli amps, anyone else help)

I had recently had a new stereo fitted and for some reason the original amp (under drivers seat) was not turning off with the ignition, my battery would discharge in 3 days. So I guess a little light and the possibility that the engine lid light is on would account for the discharge. BTW my '95 993 C4 Cab does not have this light above the ignition.

I suggest you disconnect the battery if you are going to leave it for more than a week or consider one of those little conditioners from halfords or the like

The nice people at JZ Machtech recommend the (Varta, Oops) Bosche Silver over a genuine replacement. They say they return 1 in 6 porsche items due to faults. should cost around £80.
 
I have not suffered from a drained battery but I would guess that the alarm and the little light you are referring to would drain it over a long period. I have a battery conditoner/charger called Optimate which costs about £40 and may recover the battery if it is recoverable. There are of course a variety of chargers on the market and although I am not sure whether the Optimate would be the first choice for a car battery (my friend was recommended the Accumate for his TVR), I bought it originally for my Motorcycle battery and so there was little point in buying another. I have to say that it seems to be working well with my Porsche battery. I have noticed that the boot lid courtesy light and the ignition key light do stay on uness the boot lid is fully closed and so I guess the light you are referring to would stay on unless the the boot lid was fully closed. I received some very helpful tips when I recently posted a message regarding my battery charger, one of which was that you can depress the boot lid catch by hand in order to turn off both lights while leaving the boot lid open. I now do this in order to connect the charger to the battery. You must of course remember to pull the boot lid lever to release the catch again so that you shut the lid before driving off. Hope that is of some help.
 
One would assume that the light above the ignition key was triggered by the door(s) opening, and should only stay on long enough to put the key in the ignition. Can't see why anything else should effect it, and it should only be triggered once, so the door(s) could stay open, and it should go off.

I could be wrong, but that is what mine does.
 
John, this is the 993 forum - on here we discuss the delightful foibles of 993s ......
Click to expand...

Ah, but mine was based on what I was told a 993 does. Only, it seems, mine does it better, as it only works on the doors, and only stays on for 20 seconds.
 
I had a genuine Porsche battery fail on me a couple of weeks ago and it was only 18 months old - it cost the prev. owner almost £100 inc VAT. I was worried about relays, fuses, alternator... but of course it's almost always battery. The RAC came over and identified a dead cell.

After reading various forum recommendations I went to Bosch's site to find a dealer and got a Bosch Silver from a motor specialist in Mitcham (M&P, I think). £77 inc VAT and I hope it will last longer... it has plenty of oomph (72 or 74Ah, I can't remember which) and a 3-year guarantee. The very friendly chap on the phone also said another 993 owner had bought one on the same day, saying his forum research led him to a Bosch!

James
 
Don't wish to spoil your day but for anyone else looking to buy a 72 amp Bosch Silver they are available from Euro Car Parts for about £47.50 and from German, French and Swedish for £54.00.
 
I did think of trying to get a replacement and shopping around but with no warranty info, the fact that the OPC that fitted the old battery is a long way away and because I needed to run the car the following day, I just went for the closest option, even if it cost me a few quid more.

Hopefully the posts will save someone else some money...!

James
 
I replaced the battery on my 'now gone' 4S with a 72 AMP Bosch Silver from of all places CostCo. 2 year warranty etc. for £38.00 + VAT.
GPM
 
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