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991 Battery Drain Issues
Thread Starter
Rennlist Member
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 154
Likes: 54
991 Battery Drain Issues
I've read thru some of the battery drain issues, but most seem to point to the 997. Haven't heard of any with the 991 - that is, until mine started.
Since I took delivery of my '13 991 in August of 2013, I've had ongoing battery drain issues. The car is stored in a heated garage. Since the winter months, I was driving the car sparingly, once every week or so (or at least trying with this horrific Northeast winter we had). But every now and again, and for no specific reason, the battery would just be completely flat. Example - one week, I'd drive the car Monday, then wait a week, and drive the car the following Tuesday. The car would have no issues. The next time, I might drive the car on a Wednedsay, and by Saturday, the battery was completely flat. This would happen at random.
Come early March, I got fed up with this routine, and brought it to the dealer (towed actually, since I was so disgusted Ididn't want to jump it again). They replaced the battery and told me it was definetly faulty.
So here we are again, I've been driving it 2 - 3 times a week. Last Thursday night, went to the Auto show in NYC, came home, went out next morning, battery was completely flat.
So now my question is - has anyone had any similar battery drain issues and what was the root cause? My dealer didn't seem to have a clue other than the battery was shot, but I can't imagine my new one is defective is as well. They claimed they tested the charging system and everything was fine.
One thing I do notice - each time I start it, I get a message in the display "Battery Protection Active during parking" or something like that. Is it possible that the system is sensing a small drain in the battery, and then shutting the electrical system down until it's jump started to protect itself? Because after I jump it, it seems to be fine - I don't have to wait to let it charge.
TIA for any insight,
Since I took delivery of my '13 991 in August of 2013, I've had ongoing battery drain issues. The car is stored in a heated garage. Since the winter months, I was driving the car sparingly, once every week or so (or at least trying with this horrific Northeast winter we had). But every now and again, and for no specific reason, the battery would just be completely flat. Example - one week, I'd drive the car Monday, then wait a week, and drive the car the following Tuesday. The car would have no issues. The next time, I might drive the car on a Wednedsay, and by Saturday, the battery was completely flat. This would happen at random.
Come early March, I got fed up with this routine, and brought it to the dealer (towed actually, since I was so disgusted Ididn't want to jump it again). They replaced the battery and told me it was definetly faulty.
So here we are again, I've been driving it 2 - 3 times a week. Last Thursday night, went to the Auto show in NYC, came home, went out next morning, battery was completely flat.
So now my question is - has anyone had any similar battery drain issues and what was the root cause? My dealer didn't seem to have a clue other than the battery was shot, but I can't imagine my new one is defective is as well. They claimed they tested the charging system and everything was fine.
One thing I do notice - each time I start it, I get a message in the display "Battery Protection Active during parking" or something like that. Is it possible that the system is sensing a small drain in the battery, and then shutting the electrical system down until it's jump started to protect itself? Because after I jump it, it seems to be fine - I don't have to wait to let it charge.
TIA for any insight,
Three Wheelin'
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 1,343
Likes: 546
From: Pennsylvania
there was a recent report on another forum about a bad alternator leading to a dead battery. perhaps you should ask them to check it along with the possibility of an open circuit somewhere.
3rd Gear
Joined: Sep 2018
Posts: 3
Likes: 0
From: Lancaster, PA
Hello....I’m a new owner of a 2013 Porsche 911 (991C2S). I had the car for 2 months and driven mostly on weekends. I was on a business trip for 4 days and came back to a totally flat battery.
when I saw your post I was wondering if I’m going to go through this same scenario. Can you share what you did to keep this from happening? Of course I’m assuming battery is good and charging system in car checks out. Did you discover any areas causing a slow drain in the system for example?
Any suggestions will be most welcome by anyone.
Thanks
when I saw your post I was wondering if I’m going to go through this same scenario. Can you share what you did to keep this from happening? Of course I’m assuming battery is good and charging system in car checks out. Did you discover any areas causing a slow drain in the system for example?
Any suggestions will be most welcome by anyone.
Thanks
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Rennlist Member
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 13,912
Likes: 4,040
From: Marineland FL
Slightly off topic but I had a 2008 Boxster S that I bought new and I started experiencing a dead battery, multiple times, after just 2-3 days of sitting. It was flat bedded to the dealer a few times and several new batteries later I had the problem escalated and it turned out to be a faulty radio. Even though it was turned off an internal problem resulted in it not actually turning off so it drained the battery - when the radio was replaced the problem went away. On a separate note, hot weather is worse for a battery than cold weather.
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Rennlist Member
Joined: Jan 2016
Posts: 603
Likes: 276
From: TN
Hello....I’m a new owner of a 2013 Porsche 911 (991C2S). I had the car for 2 months and driven mostly on weekends. I was on a business trip for 4 days and came back to a totally flat battery.
when I saw your post I was wondering if I’m going to go through this same scenario. Can you share what you did to keep this from happening? Of course I’m assuming battery is good and charging system in car checks out. Did you discover any areas causing a slow drain in the system for example?
Any suggestions will be most welcome by anyone.
Thanks
when I saw your post I was wondering if I’m going to go through this same scenario. Can you share what you did to keep this from happening? Of course I’m assuming battery is good and charging system in car checks out. Did you discover any areas causing a slow drain in the system for example?
Any suggestions will be most welcome by anyone.
Thanks
Rennlist Member
Joined: Dec 2017
Posts: 747
Likes: 83
From: SoCal
Very old but worthy thread. Similar to Bob Z, I had a faulty headlight switch in my Macan which drained the battery. All the accessories are powered, and controlled by a data interface. So a light switch isn't just a switch anymore. It was still a suck-it-and-see troubleshoot. even though I said "order a new light switch" when I took it in.
Banned
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 26,140
Likes: 5,466
From: Chicagoland Area
Hello....I’m a new owner of a 2013 Porsche 911 (991C2S). I had the car for 2 months and driven mostly on weekends. I was on a business trip for 4 days and came back to a totally flat battery.
when I saw your post I was wondering if I’m going to go through this same scenario. Can you share what you did to keep this from happening? Of course I’m assuming battery is good and charging system in car checks out. Did you discover any areas causing a slow drain in the system for example?
Any suggestions will be most welcome by anyone.
Thanks
when I saw your post I was wondering if I’m going to go through this same scenario. Can you share what you did to keep this from happening? Of course I’m assuming battery is good and charging system in car checks out. Did you discover any areas causing a slow drain in the system for example?
Any suggestions will be most welcome by anyone.
Thanks
Burning Brakes
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 1,105
Likes: 28
There seems to be a lack of understanding in these forums that lead-acid batteries have a design lifetime, and that lifetime for automotive batteries is around 5-6 years. There is nothing you can do to extend this significantly.
3rd Gear
Joined: Sep 2018
Posts: 3
Likes: 0
From: Lancaster, PA
I totally understand this....I checked the battery and it seems to be the original. I put a charger on the battery and it charged OK., but I'm going to replace it anyway because I don't want to have problems during the winter months. I'm planning to do the job myself.
Next question is...what is the best brand and battery model (Sealed - AGM) to get for 991.1? I don't want to go to Porsche for this due to price. In reading some for the forums, I'm concern about 3 things:
1) Original does not have a vent that I can see. Is having a non-vented battery very important when shopping for a replacement?
2) Some forums discussions talked about having to reprogram the vehicle when changing a battery...is this necessary on the 991.1?
3) The car has a 750 CCA battery right now...If I install an 850 CCA (95 ah) for example, will this cause any problems (electrical) ?
And thanks to everyone that responded.
Next question is...what is the best brand and battery model (Sealed - AGM) to get for 991.1? I don't want to go to Porsche for this due to price. In reading some for the forums, I'm concern about 3 things:
1) Original does not have a vent that I can see. Is having a non-vented battery very important when shopping for a replacement?
2) Some forums discussions talked about having to reprogram the vehicle when changing a battery...is this necessary on the 991.1?
3) The car has a 750 CCA battery right now...If I install an 850 CCA (95 ah) for example, will this cause any problems (electrical) ?
And thanks to everyone that responded.