smackboy1

My car is at the dealer for some maintenance (not battery related) and the tech noticed that the car had trouble starting. He thinks the battery is on the way out. I just installed a brand new Optima 34R a couple of months ago so it seems a little strange if the battery is not holding a charge. Anyone have a similar experience? Is it an Optima thing, or Porsche thing or something else?

Tippy

He or she can load test the battery to determine the condition.

spiderv6

Hmmm.....they got me with the "you need a new battery" thing earlier this year. Only afterwards did I discover that the old battery was less than a year old and therefore still under warranty.

gordo993

I'm on my third optima red top in 18 months. I don't think Porsches like optimas much. When my current optima buys the farm, I'm going with an Interstate.

smackboy1

So did you get them all replaced under the 36 month warranty? Trying to find a local brick and mortar that carries a 34R is impossible. At your rate you will never run out of warranty! I wonder if there is something in the 996 which drains the battery while the car is off? Radiator fan?

spiderv6

i've heard my fan kicking in once in 12 months after locking the car......

gordo993

My car - a lowly 993 - has had it's electrical system checked out and no faults/unusual loads found. It only gets about 2,500 miles per year and has a battery charger/maintainer keeping a watchful eye, but that last optima lasted about four months.

smackboy1

Battery was just at 12 V without load and with a load it fell to 11 V. When I got the car back from the dealer the clock was reset so at some point the battery was completely flat.

EDIT: Turns out the problem was NOT due to the battery. The interior lights were staying on for several hours which led to the discharge. Once I shut the lights off, the Optima has performed without problem.

wross996tt

I think one of the keys to making the battery last is a maintainer. Porsche will not warranty a new battery if you have less than 7000 miles/year on the car. I went with interstate 850CCA and their maintainer (plug in under the hood). Works like a charm and a little lighter than stock.

TMAC

I have had a bad run with the red top before. Not on my C4 but on a previous car. They are a great product but just like anyone else, they can have a few bad eggs from time to time. I went through 3 in a row before we got a good one. I looked at everything in my car to make sure it wasn't me. I had a motor from Japan imported so God only knows what it might of been if it wasn't the battery.

Good luck though, this sounds more like a maintainer issue thna a bad battery.