cayenneman

I havent driven my car in 24 hrs. I go outside and the thing is DEAD. It's about 28 degrees outside but I didnt leave a light on or anything and it was so dead that when I put my key in the ignition it wouldnt give it back. I must say this is disappointing considering how much it costs. And then when I went to charge it with the portable instant start thing it drained that and still wouldnt start. This sucks. Whats causing this and is there a fix? I also noticed the other day I turned the truck on and the navigation didnt come on. I turned the truck off and on and it came on. What the hell is going on?

wingless

The Cayenne has current drain, from the battery, when the vehicle is off.

At least you don't have Entry & Drive, that draws even more current.

Some things you can do include: if the vehicle is used infrequently, for only short trips, use a small charger between uses, it may not fully top off the battery in that operation mode; use a "real" automotive battery charger to fully charge the battery, now that it is dead, not the small trickle charger and once the battery has been maintained at a state of fully charged, for some period, have it tested under load, to determine if it should be replaced.

The navigation problem sounds like the systems were starting to become confused, days before, perhaps due to the battery voltage becoming too low.

The low ambient temperature does not help, but a fully charged battery will work properly at those temperatures.

The Cayenne draws more off current than lesser vehicles, so non-daily drivers need to take extra steps.

k2kv

Sounds to me like your battery is defective, one or more bad cells (not entirely uncommon).

Unless you are only making very short trips, 24 hours should not pull your battery down. Others on this board have talked about leaving the car for many days without a problem.

Stop by your dealer tomorrow and have him check your battery and electrical system, please let us know the results.

alin2

Hi all. This is my first post. This is a very informative board. I agree that you ought to have your battery checked. I have left my previous C-S for over a week in the garage and have never had a problem. Good luck.

mudman2

Cayenneman, do you have the spare tire instead of the second battery ?

Tregger

This is an issue with Touaregs mostly after a week of sitting. I was told by dealer to be sure to lock the vehicle because that shuts down more of the electrcal leeches. Tregs have one battery.

kyzyl

I had this problem in March, within the first month of owning my TT. I had left the vehicle unused for three days and it was dead when I tried to start it. It was towed to the dealer. As it turns out, the battery underneath the driver's seat was defective (!). It was replaced, and there have been no problems in the last nine months. I have taken no special precautions to charge the battery or shut down the electrical system, and the vehicle has been left unused for a week or more.

BTW, I have the two battery system. It is possible to emergency-start the vehicle with the second battery; read the owner's manual for instructions.

04 TT
04 Forester Turbo

Torags

Have the dealer tow it to the shop, like I did. There have been a number of occurances of dead batteries, and bad cells.

While there is a current drain when off, who knows what happened on the boat coming over and sitting in customs (also adaptive driving?).

Mine was replaced when the tech checked the acid (bad cell), he didn't the first time. PCNA sent me a check because I had to wait an hour for a tow truck. That was nice since I didn't ask.

dawktah

I have been told I have a bad battery too, currently running on battery #2 in spare tire well. Supposedly source of PCM problems. Waiting for Cayenne service loaner. Just in case its something else.

Toby Pennycuff

My battery was replaced last week after dying over the weekend. I got some hints that things were going south twice before it died - a "Weak Battery - Start Engine" message was displayed AFTER starting the car two mornings in a row. Third morning, which happened to be last Monday, I came out and opened the door to NO lights. I knew I was dead. Fortunately, I was able to start the car off of the second battery after two attempts. The dealer replaced the battery for me and advised that they have had numerous battery failures (>10 customers).

There are items that draw current even though the car is off - notably the CAN drive assembly and the rear control unit (controls alarm and motion sensors among other things). I may resort to buying the battery maintainer just to insure ample voltage and amps.

Toby

Torags

Toby: Porche has one that plugs into lighter (and 110). If your C stays out, get the solar trickle charger (that you put on your dashboard.)

Tregger

The solar ones that VW includes with the BUG are <$10 on Ebay. I use one of those for long term airport parking.

cayenneman

I have the spare in the back and I went to the dealer today. He gives me a line about how temp changes deplete the battery in new cars. I wasnt satisfied and he said to call monday and setup a time to take it in. I'll keep you guys posted. Also when I tried to start it I got a ABS failure warning and heard a repetitive clicking noise under the dash. Anybody know what this is?

Torags

Solenoid trying to engage starter, not enough juice to turn starter motor.

wingless

The Cayenne is built and delivered to the dealer with a battery disconnect switch. The dealership removes this device prior to delivery to the customer.

FYI, prior to testing a battery, it must be fully charged. This is to ensure that a failing test result may be attributed to a bad battery and not a low state of charge.