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THIS DISCUSSION / SOURCE-DERIVED OVERVIEW
Discussion summary
YOUR RESEARCHTRICKLE CHARGER ON 996
Leading reported evidence
Use battery isolators
Performed · outcome unconfirmed
No successful repair reported for this finding.
0
Reported fixes
0
Unsuccessful attempts
1
Discussions
Read evidence and context
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Discussions that performed work without a confirmed outcome
1
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Performed · outcome unconfirmed
+1 - on my older cars I use battery isolators to disconnect the battery, but this doesn't work with 996 which needs battery connected.
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Suggestion
I would definitely check under the rear shelf behind the seats for a Tracker, seems to be the location of choice, these can take the drain down to around a week.
Leading evidence: 'Use battery isolators' (no explicit attributable resolution; this is a reported action or suggestion). Across 1 matching discussions, the most frequently mentioned possible cause is 'tracker unit' (1 discussions; 0 report identifying it and 1 suggest it). The most frequently discussed action is 'Check under the rear shelf behind the seats' (1 discussions). For that action, 0 discussions report a resolution and 0 report an unsuccessful attempt. No action has an explicit, attributable resolution report under the current rules. These are forum reports and suggestions, not a confirmed diagnosis.
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Performed · outcome unconfirmed
Even with those I use my Ctek's occasionally to keep them in top condition.
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Performed · outcome unconfirmed
When mine are used once every few weeks they are fine.
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Performed · outcome unconfirmed
As others have said, when the car is used regularly in the summer it's not necessary, but in the winter it's certainly required.
These are separate views of the same evidence. Frequency alone does not establish a fix, and these counts must not be added together.
Check under the rear shelf behind the seats
No successful repair reported for this finding.
0
Reported fixes
0
Unsuccessful attempts
1
Discussions
Read evidence and context
Discussions that contain suggestions
1
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Suggestion
I would definitely check under the rear shelf behind the seats for a Tracker, seems to be the location of choice, these can take the drain down to around a week.
0 original-poster resolution reports. Counts can overlap; they are not unique people or a success rate.
0 discussions have direct query context; 0 report a fix in that context. Other evidence may inherit the discussion’s subject.
Suggestion
You can test before the car goes to sleep, just before sleeping it is usually reading 6amps or so, but you can still pull fuses and note any big drops.
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Suggestion
To test for parasitic drain you need to put a multimeter into amp mode and put it in parallel with the cable, positive or negative, but I always use negative, only because if you do accidentally touch the chassis or something it doesn't matter, far safer.
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Suggestion
To test for parasitic drain you need to put a multimeter into amp mode and put it in parallel with the cable, positive or negative, but I always use negative, only because if you do accidentally touch the chassis or something it doesn't matter, far safer.
These are separate views of the same evidence. Frequency alone does not establish a fix, and these counts must not be added together.
tracker unit
No successful repair reported for this finding.
0
Identified cause
1
Suspected cause
0
Reported fixes
Read evidence and context
Discussions that suspect a cause
1
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Suspected cause
"¨"¨If it is higher then simply go through the fuses pulling each one out and seeing how much the amps drop, for me it was my cluster and something else, which turned out to be a Tracker unit that was causing issues.
Counts describe captured discussions, not unique people or a diagnosis. Author identities are not reliably stored. Exact duplicate evidence is counted once across matching discussions; one discussion counts at most once per action/state. Multiple repairs reported together remain a combination. Suggestions and failed attempts do not establish a fix. Matches cover whole discussions and can include related faults, model variants and incomplete threads.
10 eligible posts · 0 unverified posts · 1 discussions match the subject in their title or opening post.
911uk: 1 discussions
0 evidence records excluded for query context · 0 excluded by outcome qualification · 0 adjusted by outcome qualification.
0 acknowledgements have no verified action link; they do not establish a repair result.
Generation: 20261027T005001Z · outcome-qualification-6. Deterministic extraction; no AI model inference. How we use sources
Do i really need to buy a trickle charger for a 996 im getting
cant i just start it a few times a week?
it will be a a weekend car mainly and ill probaly do about 3000 a year tops
if i do need one can anybody please reccomend one please ?
thank you
When mine are used once every few weeks they are fine. In the summer a cheap solar charger does the job. Don't completely trust CTEK, had a few fail but generally OK.
MC
It's actually better not to start them, if you don't plan to go for a drive and get it properly warm. It's unlikely to charge back the power you used starting it unless you drive for 20-30 mins. Most of the engine wear happens in the minutes after a cold start.
If you plan to use it a few times a week then no need for a trickle charger, but that may not be practical in the winter.
I have an Airflow trickle charger which I've had for about 20 yrs... it's been great!
If you can charge the car easily (I guess it's garaged) then why wouldn't you? As others have said, when the car is used regularly in the summer it's not necessary, but in the winter it's certainly required.
FWIW, I've been using CTEK chargers for around 15 years and I've never had any problems.
The Porsche Classic Charger (PCG35661170) looks pretty cute - although I've no idea how it performs
I used an old optimate 2 I've had for years. Car sits all winter and light use on nice days in summer and plugged in all the time. It also gave me a clue my 10 plus year old battery was on its way out when it wouldn't indicate a full charge and go into float mode. I've used these for 20 plus years on cars and bikes and only ever had to replace one battery in that time.
+1 - on my older cars I use battery isolators to disconnect the battery, but this doesn't work with 996 which needs battery connected. Even with those I use my Ctek's occasionally to keep them in top condition.
If nothing is draining the battery, Tracker hidden away for example, then you will get around 4 weeks before it becomes and issue starting the car.
I would definitely check under the rear shelf behind the seats for a Tracker, seems to be the location of choice, these can take the drain down to around a week.
It is worth testing for drain when you get it.
To test for parasitic drain you need to put a multimeter into amp mode and put it in parallel with the cable, positive or negative, but I always use negative, only because if you do accidentally touch the chassis or something it doesn't matter, far safer. "¨"¨The multimeter needs the positive set to the amp socket as seen below..... "¨
Then set it to 10a, it may be 5a or 20a, but set to the highest first and then move down to more sensitive readings if you get nothing, so 20 first, then 200, then 2000 etc. but 99% of time on these 20a or whatever will be fine.
I open all the doors and bonnet, then push the catches shut so the car thinks they are closed. "¨"¨
You can test before the car goes to sleep, just before sleeping it is usually reading 6amps or so, but you can still pull fuses and note any big drops. But you really want to wait till it sleeps.
Can't remember on a Porsche how long before it goes to sleep, but it should drop to 0.02-0.04amps if all is well.
So be patient and wait 25mins before panicking. "¨"¨"¨"¨"¨
To test the alternator for parasitic drain.
Undo the big red cable that runs to the charge point on the bulkhead, then place the multimeter cables between the cable you have removed and the point it was attached to. This should read 0amps. "¨If it doesn't your alternator is faulty and causing drain. "¨"¨
To test the rest of the car undo the negative terminal, battery or bulkhead is fine, and put the the multimeter between them. "¨"¨Let the car go to sleep and see what your drain is.
I would say anything above 0.04 is too high and needs sorting. "¨"¨If it is higher then simply go through the fuses pulling each one out and seeing how much the amps drop, for me it was my cluster and something else, which turned out to be a Tracker unit that was causing issues.
"¨Battery has gone from causing issues after a few days to he point where it can be left for a month with no problem.
I put a monitor on it and after 20 days it was still fine, so maybe even 6 weeks.
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