Interior door handle light
 

New 2001 Boxster owner here! Feel privileged to be a part of such knowledgeable community as it helped me ALREADY with lots of good info before I even bought the car.

On to the issue: My car has been sitting in the garage unlocked for about a week of me not using it. I go to start it today... and it won't crank! Battery. Mind you I live in Chicago area and it did get pretty cold here lately but I was really surprised to see a dead battery after only a week of driving.

I've noticed that the small door handle lamps are dimly lit inside of the car, even with the doors locked. I think it's pretty crazy and will always cause startup issues if the car sits for a few days. Have any of you experienced this?

Btw, I did leave the car unlocked for that past week so I'm not sure if those interior lights eventually turn off with locked doors.

Would like to hear your opinion seasoned 986 owners.

Thanks in advance!

Welcome and congrats on the car!
On both of mine, the interior and dash lights go off shortly after locking the car, but stay on a little longer if I just close the doors without locking them. However, if any interior lights are staying on constantly with the key out and the doors closed there is definitely an issue somewhere. (hopefully the more experienced on here can give ideas of what the issue might be)

Also, check the date on the battery. On the Boxster I bought recently, the date code showed the battery to be 4.5 years old. I went ahead and replaced it with a new one before pressing th car into daily service just to be safe.

Are you talking about the tiny light right at inner door handle, or the door light at the lower corner of the door? I think you meant the tiny light, according to my understanding. I'm gonna check to see mine stays on when the car is locked, but even then, I think that light (LED?) is too small to drain your battery in a week.

Thank you for the answers. Yes, precisely it is the tiny LED at the inner door handle.
I think I caused the issue as I left the car parked in the garage with the keys in the ingition (in OFF position of course) and unlocked. I hooked a battery tender to it yesterday and locked it with a remote key. The tiny LED's stayed ON for a while... not sure how long but when I went back to check on it in couple of hours, they were turned off. Interesting and weird at the same time.

Thank you for this tip. The battery in this car is 6 months old so certainly not a battery problem. I think I caused the problem. Take a look at my reply below.

Thanks!!!

The lights do stay on for some time in the Boxster, especially if you don't lock it. But they do go out eventually, no worries.
The Boxster has many little quirks that you will come to know and love....well, at least come to know and tolerate.

Test the alternator. I had a similar issue and realized eventually that the alternator wasn't putting out enough and the battery wasn't charging to capacity. You didn't say how many miles but my car is the same year as yours and I needed mine replaced at 65k miles. Each situation is different of course but with age, the alternator will eventually give since there is wear and tear inside.

Hmm... interesting. My car has 56k miles on it currently. I'm charging it up with the battery tender for now, will let it charge it up all the way and then will be leaving it locked for extended periods. Will find out if that makes a difference.

Thanks for your answer!