Need help with battery problem
12-05-2001, 01:34 AM
#1
AutoX
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Seattle
Posts: 13
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Need help with battery problem
OK, so I have had my TT for about 6 weeks now. I drive it daily except for a week and a half of traveling.
Friday I go to work and get home just fine.
Saturday I get in my car in the morning and the battery is dead. There wasn't even enough power to lock and unlock the doors with the remote.
Called AAA and they jump started it. Drove around for a while to charge up the battery. Didn't go anywhere else that day.
Sunday it sat. I drove my other car that day.
Monday I get in it and the battery is dead again.
I checked all the light switches, glove box, etc., and nothing is left on.
Called my p-car dealer today and he says this is common this time a year (cold)and the battery is just bad. I see some posts up here of others claiming 2 - 3 years battery life. It has its second battery in it - an Interstate that is 3.5 years old.
So I do a search on the forum and find that the Optima Yellow Top is the battery to buy. I went down to the local Firestone shop to get one. The problem is that when they went to put the battery in, they said the cable (hot side) wouldn't reach the post without severely bending it. They were reluctant to bend the cable because they were afraid it would break since it is lead for quite a ways.
They also mentioned that they tested the starter and it was drawing 480 amps instead of the normal 180 amps.
Questions are:
1. Has anyone else put a Yellow Top battery in their 993 and did you have to do anything special?
2. Is the 480 amp draw from the starter normal or is this guy right? (not sure I trust the Firestone mechanics)
Thanks,
Tim
Friday I go to work and get home just fine.
Saturday I get in my car in the morning and the battery is dead. There wasn't even enough power to lock and unlock the doors with the remote.
Called AAA and they jump started it. Drove around for a while to charge up the battery. Didn't go anywhere else that day.
Sunday it sat. I drove my other car that day.
Monday I get in it and the battery is dead again.
I checked all the light switches, glove box, etc., and nothing is left on.
Called my p-car dealer today and he says this is common this time a year (cold)and the battery is just bad. I see some posts up here of others claiming 2 - 3 years battery life. It has its second battery in it - an Interstate that is 3.5 years old.
So I do a search on the forum and find that the Optima Yellow Top is the battery to buy. I went down to the local Firestone shop to get one. The problem is that when they went to put the battery in, they said the cable (hot side) wouldn't reach the post without severely bending it. They were reluctant to bend the cable because they were afraid it would break since it is lead for quite a ways.
They also mentioned that they tested the starter and it was drawing 480 amps instead of the normal 180 amps.
Questions are:
1. Has anyone else put a Yellow Top battery in their 993 and did you have to do anything special?
2. Is the 480 amp draw from the starter normal or is this guy right? (not sure I trust the Firestone mechanics)
Thanks,
Tim
12-05-2001, 12:29 PM
#2
I had an optima orange top installed in mine and had to do a good amount of work to get the battery cable to connect to the post.
The problem is that the post is too inboard and the TT has a built in angle in the cable.
Here are some related posts from the archive:
Optima Orange Top Battery Conversion
993 battery
Those articles should give you some good background. You should look into the Exide Orbital over the Optima. Looks like you should return the Yellow Top, if you still can.
Jeff
The problem is that the post is too inboard and the TT has a built in angle in the cable.
Here are some related posts from the archive:
Optima Orange Top Battery Conversion
993 battery
Those articles should give you some good background. You should look into the Exide Orbital over the Optima. Looks like you should return the Yellow Top, if you still can.
Jeff
12-05-2001, 12:40 PM
#3
Advanced
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: Toronto
Posts: 69
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
In my car I have installed a Optima RED TOP. DOn't install the yellow top as it is a DEEP CYCLE battery. My cable had to be bent in order for the cables to fit. After that it was quite easy to install.
Currently I have a REACTOR battery. It's half the size saving a lot of weight and it lasts for about 100 cycles! It's around 180-200 dollars, but I'm sure it'll last the life of your car. Maybe you would want to look into this battery?
Currently I have a REACTOR battery. It's half the size saving a lot of weight and it lasts for about 100 cycles! It's around 180-200 dollars, but I'm sure it'll last the life of your car. Maybe you would want to look into this battery?
12-05-2001, 12:54 PM
#4
Racer
Tim,
I have the Optima, but I agree with Jeff, if you want to use a battery with the Optima technology, get the Exide, where you won't have to deal with the hook up problem. However, keep in mind that these batteries have a very low internal resistance when discharged, so when you connect your charger to a fully discharged Optima the current is so high that it trips the internal safety switch on the charger.
I have the Optima, but I agree with Jeff, if you want to use a battery with the Optima technology, get the Exide, where you won't have to deal with the hook up problem. However, keep in mind that these batteries have a very low internal resistance when discharged, so when you connect your charger to a fully discharged Optima the current is so high that it trips the internal safety switch on the charger.
12-05-2001, 01:02 PM
#5
AutoX
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Seattle
Posts: 13
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I forgot to mention the current solution Firestone has is to get a battery post extension.
Jeff - Thank you for those post pointers. I either missed them yesterday in my search o didn't read them carefully enough.
When I go to the Optima web sight, I don't see anything called an "Exide". Which color is it? Is the height lower or the post in a different position to avoid this problem?
What is the disadvantage of a Deep Cycle battery? I chose it as it was recommended.
Anyone know how many amps the starter should be drawing?
Thanks,
Tim
Jeff - Thank you for those post pointers. I either missed them yesterday in my search o didn't read them carefully enough.
When I go to the Optima web sight, I don't see anything called an "Exide". Which color is it? Is the height lower or the post in a different position to avoid this problem?
What is the disadvantage of a Deep Cycle battery? I chose it as it was recommended.
Anyone know how many amps the starter should be drawing?
Thanks,
Tim
12-05-2001, 04:49 PM
#7
Addict
Rennlist
Lifetime Member
Rennlist
Lifetime Member
Maybe my 993 is different than a TT, but the Optima Red Top was a bolt-in. I had bought the Red Top for my 525i and it wouldn't work due to the rear seat frame, so I switched it out for the 993 battery and put the Red top in the Porsche.
Of course I left my Valentine-1 on all week and didn't hook up the tender, so it killed the battery. When I put my 4A charger on it, it pegged the needle and the power cord got really hot really fast. I took the battery back to Pep Boys where I had just bought it the week before and they charged it free - took an hour. I wouldn't recommend charging a dead battery by driving around, as it will overload the alternator. (At least it would on cars like my '85 911, so I'm not taking any chances.) I now hard wired the Val-1, thanks to info recently posted here.
Of course I left my Valentine-1 on all week and didn't hook up the tender, so it killed the battery. When I put my 4A charger on it, it pegged the needle and the power cord got really hot really fast. I took the battery back to Pep Boys where I had just bought it the week before and they charged it free - took an hour. I wouldn't recommend charging a dead battery by driving around, as it will overload the alternator. (At least it would on cars like my '85 911, so I'm not taking any chances.) I now hard wired the Val-1, thanks to info recently posted here.