Help - Battery Issues!!! - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

I have a thread in the performance and technical section but really need some input fast. Here is the thread... http://986forum.com/forums/performance-technical-chat/61933-headlight-questions.html I have a PCA event tomorrow at 11AM. I am taking my current battery into O'Reilly Auto Parts for a load test. I found a battery on their website that I believe is compatible (assuming mine fails the load test). Super Start Platinum 94RPLT - Battery | O'Reilly Auto Parts I assume this is a drop in replacement? Really hoping to get to the track tomorrow!!! Thanks in advance. John

Quotes source post: 499223

Yes, drop in but sometimes the stock radio needs a code after.

My replacement batt was from Autozone a couple years ago. It was a direct fit but the vent hose I had to make my own connectors on one of them.

Battery, alternator and starter all checked out. Now I need to figure out what the real problem is.

If your battery is over two years old I would look closer there. I just went through the same thing with our BMW. The battery checked fine but would go flat every now and then. I bit the bullet and bought a new one and that was it. Good luck.

Hello JPC763, A few weeks ago I had an electric power loss that drove me nuts trying to solve, all started with the engine dying and no electric power (no dash lights, could not remove the key, etc.) but after disconnecting the battery cables you would get the power restored until you tried to start the engine and heard a loud click (from the starter) and all power was lost again cycle… http://986forum.com/forums/performance-technical-chat/61372-location-master-connector-dashboard.html I ended replacing the starter relay and assumed that that was the cause because it ran for one month when the same thing happen, and after going to the dealer to buy another relay I stepped into the service bay and explained my failure but the technician told me that based on the symptoms the relay failure was a result of a power failure on the system and suggested to start the troubleshoot procedure first by disconnecting and cleaning the two grounds (battery and engine), then start at the battery following the power flow with a simple light tester, (battery to power distributor, PD to fuse box, etc.) But I didn't went too far because the connection of the positive cable from the battery connects to the power distribution box was the culprit… The Power Distribution Box is located above the passenger foot wheel and has a long rod (about 1/8" diameter) that goes through the firewall and connects to the battery power cable with a weird "friction type connector" that does not use a nut but goes with pressure and has a 'coffin shaped' plastic enclosure to protect it and keeping it from touching the body (ground). I have to pull hard the coffin shaped plastic (with the help of a large screwdriver) to get it unplugged and found out that the metal rod had a bit of corrosion, which I cleaned with an old toothbrush and electric contact cleaner as well as the inside of the cable connector, and assemble it back with a good amount of dielectric grease to help avoid further corrosion. Now the car starts great and I am not sure (probably my imagination) but it seems that the engine runs smother and better than before. This may not be related but worth checking. Good luck!

Thanks. I will look into this. In my case, the only thing that does not work is my HID Projector lights. John PLEASE NOTE. I AM STARTING A NEW THREAD, ANSWER THERE.

omg John I see your thread everywhere. Missed this one sorry. What's worth checking is the regulator. This should read 14.6~8 " under load ". Not idle as-in checking if you have an alternator heartbeat. I am not 100% sure of the Porsche sign-off values on the regulator (lost my illegal copy of the tech doc loll) but I'm pretty sure its way more than 13.8v. More like <15volts. Note that your typical chop-shop dude isn't all geared up to troubleshooting car electrical nor he'd know or 'care' in most cases. So go somewhere you trust! Its always a good idea to rule out the regulator part of the circuit before changing a batt especially on old cars. Your accessories (e.g. radio playing FMrock) might be requesting more current than the perfectly good alternator can push out. If the reg is faulty your super headlights and FMrock are going to eat your battery again in more or less 3 months. Regulator fix cost $40~50 if diy I've read somewhere. (ps/. I say its the dash switch, heard/read it too many times now. All of the cars lighting and other nighty services circuits are all controlled by that switch. I think!)