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Does anyone have a "hack" on how to avoid battery discharge when the car is not being regularly?
I'm reasonably new to the 996 and spent all last summer driving my '99 cab regularly; so I never had an issue. Now, this winter I noticed that the battery would discharge pretty fast (maybe a week). Even on my '01 coupe, the car will crank slowly if left for several days. I have installed master cut off switches, but these are a bit of a pain (radio codes/pre-sets, etc.) Both cars came with trickle chargers, however I don't have power to my storage shop. Both of the car's have new group 48 batteries. The charging system indicates 14 volts after starting. I haven't yet tried to measure the amount of load bleeding from the batteries when the car is turned off.
I was wondering just what the main culprit usually is? Is it that the car's computer stays on to work the windows? The radio? The security system? Does the key's RF signal have to be a certain distance before the car's computer will completely shut down?
Yes, locking it does help. How old is your battery? Not that much you can do for cars that aren't driven much and like you said, no power to the garage. Solar panel charger?
A new battery that has a born-on manufacture date this is 3 months old or newer might be just enough to get you over the edge and have the car sit for a week or more without much trouble. I've let me 996 sit for over a week and it's fine. I have a new battery.
The battery is shot within a week? You should find the excessive draw by troubleshooting. My 996's with several year old batteries go for a month or so at a time and will start up with no issues. But I've taken the time to address current draw issues.
The battery is shot within a week? You should find the excessive draw by troubleshooting. My 996's with several year old batteries go for a month or so at a time and will start up with no issues. But I've taken the time to address current draw issues.
^This. Your battery with car locked should last at least one if not two months.
My observations: German cars like a nice, beefy, fully-charged battery or all manner of weirdness happens. They all discharge their batteries in stasis. They don't like to sit around.
So...drive your car more often, put it on a battery tender or disconnect it if you're not using it. Replace the battery proactively every couple years.
Oh, and 911s crank slow compared to just about everything else that doesn't have a propeller. If it starts consistently, it might be normal 911 slow cranking.
Locking really only helps with "Short Term" discharge. Locked or unlocked the car will go to "Nap Mode" within a few hours, or completely in "Sleep Mode" in 5 days requiring manual unlocking. You really need some type of maintainer.
1) Make sure you have good/clean grounds and your charging system works properly
2) Start with a fully “deep charged” battery
3) lock the car every time you park it
4) If you’re going to leave it for more than a week, put it on a battery tender.
Find your emergency frunk or engine cover release cable (better yet both) and route it/them to an accessible place before you are locked out by a dead battery.
1) Make sure you have good/clean grounds and your charging system works properly
2) Start with a fully “deep charged” battery
3) lock the car every time you park it
4) If you’re going to leave it for more than a week, put it on a battery tender.
Should you still lock the 996 (put it to sleep) AND put it on the battery tender if leaving for more than a week?
I would say yes, mainly because if the car is locked and the battery completely dies, you will have one helluva time getting back into the car. Even locked there is still a draw on the battery. If the battery is fresh and fully charged, one week probably not a problem. However, why not play it out on the safe side and connect a battery tender so all you have to do is unlock and drive. And relocate that emergency release cable on the frunk into the tow hook plug so it is easily accessible. Just do it.
Should you still lock the 996 (put it to sleep) AND put it on the battery tender if leaving for more than a week?
Its what I do, and I haven’t had a battery problem in 3.5 years - this is on a battery that was technically “dead” when I got it (interstate - took it to one of their centers - before they would replace it under warantee they had to attemp to “deep charge it”. They did, and it’s been good ever since). I don’t necessarily put it on the battery tender every time it’s going to sit for more than a week. In fact it was at my house all last summer, and I never put it on the tender - sometimes I didn’t drive it for more than 10 days... no sweat, open with key and start right up...
Not sure if the type of battery makes a difference but I installed an AGM last summer, parked the car early Dec come late Feb the gauge was showing 12+v and it started right up.
My 04 C2 can sit for a month with no noticeable change in starting the car. With that said, I always use a trickle charger when expected to be parked longer than a week (this will extend the life of the battery). I would perform a parasitic draw test "google it" to see what may be drawing the battery down. Make sure the battery is fully charged and you wait a week before performing the test since some electrical components will continue to draw until they are put to sleep. In addition, as was mentioned above, re-locate both the frunk and engine hatch emergency release cables for easy access.
04-06-2018, 03:51 PM
how to stem battery discharge
