Go Back   986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners > Porsche Boxster & Cayman Forums > Performance and Technical Chat

Post Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 02-04-2007, 11:28 AM   #1
Registered User
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: New England
Posts: 79
986S won't start. Any suggestions?

2003 S, just under 50k miles. Outside temp was probably about 25F-30F.

Went to start it up this afternoon and it won't turn over.

Everything electrical in the cabin flickers making me think it's an electrical short (additionally, the power driver's seat and the interior ambient dome LED have been flaky in the last few months). Everything in the cabin still has power, keyless entry works, trunk release, radio, etc. Turning the key to start position is when everything starts flickering. The normal key insertion tests seem to happen without any problem (oil, dash lights, etc). I hear a loud clicking but I believe it's the speakers popping on and off and not the starter. This is the first time I've had trouble starting the car. It was driven probably 15 hours prior with no signs of any problems.

I haven't tried jumping it, was hoping maybe someone had some insight into this.

Sain0rs is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-04-2007, 11:45 AM   #2
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: vallejo, ca
Posts: 58
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sain0rs
2003 S, just under 50k miles. Outside temp was probably about 25F-30F.

Went to start it up this afternoon and it won't turn over.

Everything electrical in the cabin flickers making me think it's an electrical short (additionally, the power driver's seat and the interior ambient dome LED have been flaky in the last few months). Everything in the cabin still has power, keyless entry works, trunk release, radio, etc. Turning the key to start position is when everything starts flickering. The normal key insertion tests seem to happen without any problem (oil, dash lights, etc). I hear a loud clicking but I believe it's the speakers popping on and off and not the starter. This is the first time I've had trouble starting the car. It was driven probably 15 hours prior with no signs of any problems.

I haven't tried jumping it, was hoping maybe someone had some insight into this.
Start with the basic, if it just flickers and it does not crank, it sounds like a dead battery not having enough juice to turn it over. Check you battery terminals if they are loose then it will not have good contact and not crank. Be carefull when jumping it, make sure when you attach the cables that the polarity is correct and let it charge for a few minutes before you crank it. This way if it is a dead if gets a little charge and also not have such a big power surge.

Maybe your dead battery was caused by the short you mentioned causing a drain on the battery when the car is not on? good luck
__________________
986s sport design pkg, aerokit 1, litronics,deviating seat stitching, guards red seat belts, cf ebrake/shift knob,ssk, sport seats, hard top, full alpine system with 8" sub, mb quart speakers, Champion rg5, Eibach springs, sport exhaust, rear stess bars, custom ecu program, desnorkle intake, euro bumper, rear diffuser
ray986s is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-04-2007, 01:30 PM   #3
Registered User
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Toronto
Posts: 277
Quote:
Originally Posted by ray986s

Maybe your dead battery was caused by the short you mentioned causing a drain on the battery when the car is not on?
I'd second that. Mine was behaving very much the same before I replaced my battery.
Now all's well- in that department, anyway.
wanna986 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-04-2007, 05:54 PM   #4
Registered User
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: New England
Posts: 79
A jump did start the car rather quickly. I'm going to have to go get a new battery tomorrow. The slow leak method from something else shorting out seems to be a likely cause.

Thanks for the help.
Sain0rs is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-04-2007, 08:53 PM   #5
Registered User
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Toronto
Posts: 277
Thumbs up

Hope that's the cure!

wanna986 is offline   Reply With Quote
Post Reply


Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On




All times are GMT -8. The time now is 02:10 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Content Relevant URLs by vBSEO 3.6.0
Copyright 2024 Pelican Parts, LLC - Posts may be archived for display on the Pelican Parts Website -    DMCA Registered Agent Contact Page