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I am posting this in case someone else is as boneheaded as I am someday...
I drove home from work this evening with no problems whatsoever. When I pulled into my garage I turned off the car and the headlights. I immediately got a message on the dash saying "Parking Lights On". I turned on and off the lights again but the message was still there so I got out and went to the back of the car and sure enough my passenger side parking lights were on in the front and the back. Not wanting to drain the battery down, I popped the trunk and disconnected the negative terminal on the battery and came inside to boot up my PC so I could check this forum and find out what might be causing the issue. As the PC was booting up I went back into the garage and for reasons I still don't understand, I CLOSED THE TRUNK completely.
I went back into the house (still blissfully unaware of my error) and looked up the message and found a post that stated this message is caused by the turn signal still being engaged. So I went out to the garage, opened the car door and sure enough, my turn signal was still engaged to the right. I moved it to center and only then did I realize what I had done. I was on the phone with my fiancé at the time and I just started saying "I'm so stupid, I'm so stupid, I'm so stupid... Thankfully she didn't immediately agree and instead asked “What’s the matter?” I told her that I had closed the trunk lid with the negative terminal disconnected and that the trunk release on the car is electric, not mechanical so I have no way of opening the trunk.
After a few panicked moments I remembered that you can "jump" the trunk from the fuse box. So I went to YouTube and watched a few videos to see exactly how it's done and got some cables and gave it a shot - no go. Initially I was confused, but then I realized the problem. I had broken the circuit by disconnecting the negative terminal. Now I thought I was really screwed and again went back to saying "I'm so stupid…" to myself and started pacing in the garage and imaging how much this blunder was going to cost me.
Eventually, I started scoping out the trunk to see if I could somehow jimmy it. The front of the car was not promising. Getting desperate, I started looking into the trunk through the gap between the hood and the wiper assembly on the drivers’ side. That is when I saw it; I could see the negative battery terminal… Thankfully I hadn't put the battery cover back over the battery. My first thought was to try to hook the negative battery cable and touch it to the terminal to complete the circuit. After repeated attempts, I decided I couldn't really do that because I just couldn't find the cable to snag it. After a bit of thought, I realized that I might be able to touch a piece of wire to the negative terminal and connect that wire to the negative on the jumper cable. So I connected one end of the negative jumper cable on the latch on the driver side door. I stripped a piece of decent gauge wire on both ends and proceeded to fish the wire under the hood to touch the negative post. Once that was done, I connected it to the negative jumper cable and all of a sudden the interior lights came on and I was able to reach the trunk release and with a "click" my ordeal was over.
Initially, I thought about keeping this string of bad decisions to myself but I thought "someday someone might just do this same idiotic thing" so here it is, hopefully this helps someone and if not hopefully it amuses everyone else.
I winterize and store some of my cars. Every Fall, I disconnect the battery cable from the negative terminal on all winterized equipment, including a 997.2. And I latch the frunk. In the Spring I release the frunk latch using the jumper in the fuse panel. I've done it for 4 years on this car and 3 on the prior 911.
Many modern battery chargers won't work as a power source to jumper the frunk release; they require a battery be in the circuit before they'll output power. I use a portable jump pack.
Wonderful humility in sharing this very entertaining and well-written story! I'm presuming that you might have knocked your right-side blinker on which (at least in the era of my 993) would set that sides parking lights - a nice touch in some parking situations (though it's usually the left-side lights that are useful)?
I did it one day after owning the car. Fortunately for me my salesman was awesome. Answered a panic text from me at 930 on a sat eve, he said it is a european safety feature, then sent me the link. Nonetheless, no dead battery at outback steakhouse......
It happened to me once not long after owning the car. Disconnected negative terminal to work on the car, closed the trunk and went back into the house to pick up something. Came back out and realised what a horrible mistake I had done. To make it even worse, I had left the key INSIDE the trunk!!! But luckily I did manage to get it opened by taking the 12V battery out from my other car and jumping it between the fuse box and a metal point at the door.
Ever since then, I would think for at least 5 seconds before I close the trunk, EVERY TIME!
once having had my car (not the Porsche) lock with the keys in it when I stepped out to refuel, I have ever since pulled the key when I get out of the car and close the door, even if just for a moment. Or leave the window open. I never trust electric locks to work perfectly. My son had the same experience once, he too never ever closes the door with the key in the ignition.
When i am away for more than a few days from our GT3, i put on a maintainer, but leave the window down. I keep reading about these sorts of trunk and door lock adventures, like in this post. One of these days i need to print out the way to open the trunk if the battery is dead, and just memorize the operation.
Heck, on our prior Superformance Cobra replica, the car didn't even have outside door locks, nor roll up windows. There was nothing electric on the car but the engine and the lights. On ours, we didn't even need an ignition key to crank the motor.
One of these days, your car won't start unless it reads the driver's retina.
On another note, learning from others, many years ago, when I was rebuilding my VW Type III's engine at the automotive craft shop at Ft. Bragg, a soldier pulled into one of the service bays, i think to just check his dip stick, and in a few minutes, watched him back out to the parking lot, but holding the driver's door open, and sure enough, he caught the door on the concrete around the door, and ripped the door all forwards, the left fender crumpling, and then the grill fell out!. All this crunched British metal in just a moment's time.
So to this day, I never back a garaged car even a few inches without closing the door completely. The image of that stunned trooper looking at his wrecked MGB will never leave my memory.
Wonderful humility in sharing this very entertaining and well-written story! I'm presuming that you might have knocked your right-side blinker on which (at least in the era of my 993) would set that sides parking lights - a nice touch in some parking situations (though it's usually the left-side lights that are useful)?
Doesn't matter left or right - parking lights will remain on on either side if turn signal lever is engaged when the car is shut down.
I have this connected to the terminals. Means I can always connect power even if frunk is closed. It's for the trickle charger and normally just tucked under the edge of the hood.
Yes, but if only I had all other tools with me at the time to remove the wheel!!! I've actually been thinking about modding / extending that cable to be more accessible.
Originally Posted by Bruce In Philly
Isn't there a cable in the wheel well behind the plastic liner?
Yes, but if only I had all other tools with me at the time to remove the wheel!!! I've actually been thinking about modding / extending that cable to be more accessible.
Isn't the frunk release cable in front of passenger door? Access to it is in the door jam near right front fender.
01-27-2016, 11:34 PM
I'm so stupid...
