Replacing Battery in '03 Boxster

[986sport]

I had to jump start my Boxster the other day on a real cold morning (25 F)after not driving it about a week. Restarted yesterday morning OK, so battery is probably up to full charge again after driving it.

The question is whether I should just go ahead and replace the battery after 3.5 years and 37K miles. I don't drive much--maybe 5-6K miles a year. Clearly, I can't leave the car unused for a week in the winter without attaching a trickle charger.
It wasn't a problem in the summer.

Porsche offers the same battery for $200 plus install. Not maintenence-free!
Autozone has a maintenance-free replacement for $97. ($85 with the old battery)
It's a Duralast 48DL, 700 CCA.

I'm thinking of getting the Duralast and asking my Porsche dealer to install it--since I don't want to bother resetting all the electronics myself.

Does it make sense to replace the battery at this point? I have a trickle charger,
which might suffice for the winter. I just bought a jump starter so I don't get stuck anywhere.

Is resetting the electronics a hassle? I know you need the radio code (it's somewhere in my papers.) What about the on-board computer and windows, etc?
Seems like a job for the dealer.

This is a Porsche-certified car, bought used 8 months ago and still under 2 year warranty. I doubt I can get them to replace the battery ( the warranty says
batteries not replaceable if not maintained properly--whatever that means.)

[Brucelee]

Your battery is a goner. I would repace it.

Kragen has one for about $65. Costco for $55.

Do it yourself, it is easy.

Good luck.

PS-the original OEM battery is crap and overpriced. Box batteries in general don't due well when sitting, ie in low mileage car.

[Brucelee]

PPS-You will need the battery code to reset radio (PITA). The rest of the electrics will reset themselves.

[986sport]

Originally Posted by Brucelee

PPS-You will need the battery code to reset radio (PITA). The rest of the electrics will reset themselves.

Rich,

Are you sure the windows, door locks and on-board computer reset themselves?
I've heard you have to keep some juice on the system from an external source when changing the battery. The radio code is a trivial item.

I just came back from a trip out, and is starting OK for the 2nd day. Temp in the 40s today. I tend to drive less in the winter, and that has been a problem the last 10 days or so. The consensus seems to be, however, that a new battery is needed.

[der Geist]

The battery on '03 died last winter. In fact it went completely dead a couple of times and I just recharged it it. None of the electronics needed resetting. Even after disconnecting the negative while working on it this year my electronics and radio were fine.

I would suggest that you replace the battery yourself as Rich suggested. Go with one of the cheaper ones as said previosly

[roadracer311]

I just replaced the battery in my 03 last week.

Interstate has a battery that's identical to the OEM battery, but it's close to the price of the OEM battery. I have a motorcycle shop, so we can get Interstate batteries wholesale, however, it was still much more expensive than the batteries you can get at Autozone, Kragen etc. I liked the idea of something that was an exact fit though, so I went with the Interstate battery.

On the 2003 you don't need any codes, just to re-set your window stop points, the clock, oh and the trip meter will re-set itelf to zero.