Meatball964

Went for a nice 45 min. drive on some back roads then gassed up. Gas cap checked..2 clicks...off i went.
Drive home is about 10 miles away & approx. mile 6 i see a warning light go on that looks like a human profile w/air bag and ABS light.
Then about mile 8 everything lights up like a christmas tree & i start to feel a loss of power(yet no noise of a broken belt) so i try to limp home. I get 100 yards half way up my hill and not enough to power to the top...damn it !
Turn the key and everyting lights up but just a "machine gun" clicking noise. Using a multimeter i get 12v at the battery and replaced the DME twice (i carry 2 spares) to no avail. Belts appear to be intact.
What next ??? (Happens to be the coldest day of the friiggen year)

NP993

Sounds like your battery is toast.

badabing

Machine gun click is always sure sign of a bad battery on my car.

Even with jumper cables and a 30+ minutes of charging with the other car running I get the click when I try the ignition if the battery is in bad shape.

The battery otherwise seems normal when in the ignition is in the acc pos

Maybe the cold snap killed it.

Meatball964

Again, 11.4v at the (one year old) battery and just make sure, hooked up my other car up w/jumper cables....same rapid clicking.
Now what ?

AOW162435

Alternator failed, and then the battery was sucked dry as you continued to drive?


Andreas

badabing

Based on my experience of the exact same scenario, I still think its the battery.

Meatball964

Alternator was my 1st thought....but battery is not "sucked dry" as it's testing ok and jumper cables have no effect. Getting dark soon and hate to leave it parked where it is...crap.

TravisB

Could need a jump from a car with a higher capacity battery. Recently tried to jump a guy's car who left his dome lights on overnight, just happened a guy in a Boxster was in the parking lot so I waved him over. It wouldn't turn over, even after letting it charge for 4-5 minutes (and we verified good contact at the cables). Guy called his wife to bring the SUV over, and it fired up immediately..

IXLR8

People just don't listen...how many times do I have to tell them...install an on-board voltmeter.

The battery didn't have a lot of capacity / reserve capacity from the sounds of it. Its a good idea to test them once a year using readily available equipment.

Garth S

While the battery may still read 12V, it may not have adequate amperage to both engage the starter solenoid - and turn the starter: the clicking noise is almost invariably the starter solenoid trying to engage, but lacking the power ( amps) to do so.

May be a dead battery .... but equally likely to be a failed alternator: if the battery is dead, but not shorted out internally, a jump start will get you going
If the alt is dead, a fully charged battery will fire up the car and get you home the last mile or so before it dies ..

When home, whip out that multimeter after the battery takes a full charge ( 12.3+V if it does - if not, answer is clear ) .... start car, and measure 13.5 - 14V at the battery .... if not, alt must be pulled - likely a brush /reg set ..

The crapper in all this dialogue is that if there is a loose or dirty cable:battery connection .... one has a shameful admission to make .... but a cheap fix!!

Meatball964

Ok, i'm off to try the jumper cables again and give a good 5 to 10 mins of run time.
Wish me well !

IXLR8

Thats a fully discharged battery. Leave the car hooked up longer with the engine running at fast idle. The dud battery may be pulling the system down.

IXLR8

Garth, at that voltage, the battery isn't even half-charged. I'd want to see 12.6V or more connected to the system.


Fully charged, 12.65 to 12.90V depending on the battery type and that is after it has rested at least a few hours after being disconnected from the charger. 14V to 14.4V during vehicle operation; mine runs at 14.1 to 14.2V...a tad low for my liking.

I never consider that since those should be monitored automatically a couple of times a year and that he would have checked that already.

mike cap

Andreas is right. Alternator failure and the battery gave all it had. You can't check the battery static - it is meaningless. It will have to be pulled, charged and load tested.

An on-board voltmeter is a good idea. 13.75 to 14.25 vdc is acceptable. By the way, an easy and clean 'out' for a voltmeter is the Escort radar detector. My 8500 has a selection that allows you to display the voltage constantly.

badabing

Don't waste time with jumper cables. Go to the auto parts store and get a battery before they close.

I have owned my 993 for 15 years and been through this literally every year for the last 10. Always OEM Porsche battery.

Finally wised up and bought an aftermarket battery and Porsche battery tender.