I'm gathering that some type of protection should be in place to avoid arcing? I have my old battery which had a post cover (bright orange) which I'm going to try to retrofit but I'm really curious if it is necessary.

Keep in mind that I am trying to bring the car back to its condition as it was shipped from the factory so finding original or OE parts will be important. Anyone know how it should look from the factory?

 

The GTS comes with no post cover on the battery or seperately - the top battery body protects against contact (as long as the terminals are seated well down on the posts) and the S4 'ski jump' battery holder is very secure if correctly screwed down.

The biggest risk is with batteries bouncing around inside due to loose or inadequate 'aftermarket' retention mechanisms. If you store something heavy other than a wheel in the spare wheel well - its possible it may distort the battery box lid - also a risk.

However you will note that my replacement battery comes with built in flap covers (and I am not unhappy with this ).

I understand the desire to have a genuine Porsche battery. However these are made for Porsche by one of a handfull of battery OEMs. My GTS came with an American made Porsche Branded Douglas battery. I later bought an Exide branded & made replacement - which while black had otherwise the exact same case style... I suspect both were Porsche OEM's and sold batteries to the same design under thier own and other brands. In all likelihood the same battery at a different price point....

After realizing this I stopped thinking a Porsche branded battery might be better... for full originality at a price yes - for a better warranty, lower price & same performance I can get a brand that can be replaced at stores across the nation (and I know I will need to do this every 2 years or so... sad but true)

Alan

 

Alan thank you for the detailed reply.

When I was installing the terminals last night I made it a point to tap them down as far as possible to avoid contact with the lid. Everything looks fine and I didn't note any problems. I'm not sure how to proceed on this one, I want to be safe while retaining the originality. I'll have Dave C. look at it later this month and get his opinion.

I will say that the Porsche battery does fit better and provides an exhaust at the exact location of the opening on the battery box so an elbow isn't need which is a bonus. It also fits better than the Diehard, and Duralast batteries I've had in these cars in the past. The downside is it weighs more than the Duralast I pulled out of the GT.

 

If you get the exact recommended BCI case type it should fit perfectly with the retention mechanism - you need a BCI Group 48 (at least for the S4 & later).

Then also match the other specs for either CCA & RC or (German versions of same: ) DIN Max Current & DIN Ah to the stock battery - these specs got slightly bigger over time. Slightly higher specs are OK lower - not so good.

My current (Checker) Autolite and previous Exide (looked like Dave's photo) were perfect matches...

I think I'd rather see a grommet for the vent port - but I'm guessing you don't want to change anything on the car...

Alan

 

Somebody said silicon tubing is impervious to most oils.. beg to differ - SILICON tubing (soft,slightly opaque, various hues) will die in hours if not minutes in gasoline or mineral oil in my experience. I use it in model planes running on methanol, and its fine, but neoprene is needed for gasoline engines. I once used a can that had thinners in it originally for methanol, but a couple of drops of thinners in a gallon was enough to make the end of the silicon pick up tube turn to a half eaten soft candy.
jp 83 Euro S AT 52k

 

JP not sure who mentioned silicone tubing (I'm guessing you didn't really mean silicon?). I think the main recomendations here were either drip irrigation tubing which I think is PVC OR clear vinyl tubing. It seems both have been used in this application for years with no issues. Of course there isn't really any mineral oil or petroleum here (except as a hand born contaminant !) - just the much more gentle hydrogen and sulphuric acid vapor...

Anyway seems to work fine. I figured it would because my hydrometer has a clear vinyl tip... Even if it disintegrated it still wouldn't be any worse than the probably 75% of 928's that run around venting directly into the battery box... You know who you are....

Alan

 

Viton is the preferred material for sulfuric according to all of the compatibility charts. Silicon and neoprene were not suitable. The drip irrigation is a PVC which is compatible with sulfuric.

I was getting some pretty weird looks going into the auto store asking for viton tubing.