Coolwnc

Yesterday I had a call from a good friend who owns a 2020 - 911-4S. The story he told me was that he was out of town for 10 days and when he arrived back home his 992 which is kept in the garage covered would not start. Dead battery? He called the porsche dealer and they sent a service company out to get the frunk open but they could get it open even by using the fusebox method. Next he called back to the dealer and they sent another Porsche service person out no luck. Car was towed to the local dealer. He got a phone call back that the battery was bad, he asked if that was under warranty. The person said no because he only had 5,000 mile on the car! The dealer said he needs a min. of 6,000 to be under warranty. Next the dealer stated that they had to order the battery from Germany. Total cost ......$2500. Comments?

brianja

Based on that cost, his 992 clearly used the lithium battery, which means it has rear-wheel steering.

I've only had my car for 1.5 months and now have 600 miles on it. I, too, had a battery issues. The first time required the car to have a visit from roadside assistance (jump start) after the car had sat for only 3 days (a long weekend). Three days later the battery was completely dead and the car needed to be brought in for service on a flatbed for attention. They decided the battery was bad and changed it out for me under warranty (thank goodness). I saw the warranty claim paperwork and I believe that the bill would have been $2850 with labor if it wasn't under warranty. I was lucky that they had one in stock and could have me back on the road in 24 hours after they monitored the car overnight to make sure there was nothing strange causing a drain on the new battery.

I've had the car back with the new battery for two weeks now with no problems.

Coolwnc

Yep his is a Lithium battery. My friend lives in Jacksonville, Fla. and has owned MANY 911's over about 40 years ( he buys a new one every two years) I would have thought based on his relationship with dealer it would have been under warranty. I am glad now that I have a 997.1 in wonderful Condition. To spend that kind of money on a "new" 911 would make me very upset.

Staffie Guy

That is one argument for not getting rear wheel steering.

CodyBigdog

RE: “He got a phone call back that the battery was bad, he asked if that was under warranty. The person said no because he only had 5,000 mile on the car! The dealer said he needs a min. of 6,000 to be under warranty. ”


That doesn’t sound right, at all.

tstafford

Maybe the only one. RWS is pretty awesome.

Maverick787

I’d ask them to show me where in the manual is says minimum milage sounds strange? Its not the dealer saying no as they get paid by Porsche for the service. My Mclaren and Speedster stay on a tender when not driven, these cars always draws minimum power. My 675LT is 2016 and the battery has 97% life and the car has 4000 miles. Sounds like a bad battery, but if they uncharge 100% it’s bad.

P0RKY

I did a double take at that sentence as well… something didn’t quite read correctly to my presbyopic eyes….

WCE

Low mileage is a "concern" when trying to get a battery covered under warranty. Porsche wants to see at least 3000 miles per year to prove adequate use to keep the battery charged.
I've had push-back on batteries that went bad under warranty in the past (more likely due to internal structural failure during track use) when the vehicle was close to this annual mileage.
Can't believe the dealer wouldn't help out a good customer in this situation, however.
Anyone with that pricy Li-ion battery under the hood, better get an appropriate battery maintainer regardless!

CodyBigdog

So according to this account, you have to have at least 6K miles on the car before the warranty kicks in? I call BS.

This Porsche battery coverage does NOT stipulate any caveats or other limits, based on the type of battery being used in the car. That would have to be spelled out to the consumer. I know I never got any disclaimer on my LiPO4 battery. At there very least, it would have to explicitly mentioned on the Porsche configurator…and if it were, I’m sure a significant number of people would NOT have selected the rear wheel steering. But it would need to be disclosed.

It;’s nonsensical to have a battery warranty that isn’t in place until 6K miles are on the car. Nobody would assume such a warranty exists, let alone, enforceable.

https://www.porschefremont.com/porsc...anty-coverage/

CodyBigdog

And even if that was true, where is the disclaimer that says you need to put at least 3K per year (or any minimum amount) on the battery? Keeping it on a trickle charger isn’t sufficient ? I would love to see any such disclaimer, in writing…if one exists, Porsche would lose business.

CodyBigdog

According to the OP, you need to show 6K miles…so a battery maintainer won’t cut it. Lot of folks on here hibernate their Porsche’s for the Winter, or only bring it out on nice days…and Porsche knows that. I’m pretty confident that no such mileage minimum exists, for the battery warranty to kick in. If so, lets see it in writing.

jrnottarts

What about RWS makes the battery so dang expensive?

CodyBigdog

As I understand it - Significantly reduced weight and output (surge) capabilities.

WCE

Plenty of fine print in the manuals these days!
Here's some quotes from the MY2020 US Warranty Manual:

Batteries damaged from storage, lack of normal vehicle use, or nonPorsche approved electrical or accessory installation.
​​​​​​Porsche Guidelines specify reasonable mileage to be at least 15 miles / 24 kilometers per day or 6000 miles / 9600 kilometers per rolling 12 months.
If you drive less than the above-mentioned limits, or in the event of prolonged storage, contact your local authorized Porsche dealer for instructions. (Note: A battery maintainer is available at your local authorized Porsche dealer. It must be used to maintain your vehicle’s battery state of charge if your vehicle will not be used for several days.)
​​​​​​Maintaining the Life of Your Battery • Start and drive your Porsche vehicle on a regular basis.
If you drive less than 6000 miles/9600 kilometers per 12 rolling months, or if the vehicle will experience prolonged periods of stor age, Porsche recommends using a battery maintainer, available from your authorized Porsche dealer.