Is there anyway around this?

[darmahman]

Last week I bought an 06 Boxster with 34,000 miles on it. I bought from the Porsche dealer in N. Scottsdale. Came w/ a Porsche 2 year warrenty. Go out to start the car for a trip this AM and got the dreaded click, click, click. Battery is @ 6.5 volts.

Porsche won't warrenty since I left the car unlocked. Says I have to lock the car when not using... in my garage???? Ridiculous! Why doesn't key removal shut off electrics. German thinking to the rescue. Any tricks I can do so I don't have to lock the car in my garage. Do I have to put the top up? The reason I don't know is the dealership sent me the wrong owners manual.

[JFP in PA]

Easy fix:



These cars (as do many other brands) have a low, but constant battery drain that can only be stopped by disconnecting the battery, which is rather cumbersome. One of these maintainers, plugged into your cigarette lighter socket, will keep the battery in optimum condition indefinitely, top up or down.................

[j.fro]

Yeah, locking up in the garage is a bad idea. If thieves are surrounded by the security of your garage and the car is locked, they are going to do some serious damage in order to get into it.

[extanker]

my 09 sat out side unlocked for 2 weeks cover in snow...it started...you need a battery

[Kirk]

Um... sounds to me like someone is blowing smoke up your rear. I have a garage and leave my car unlocked a lot of times. I've never had a battery problem related to this. If the dealer is denying you service based on these grounds, then ask for the regional representative to review your claim.

Kirk

[Lil bastard]

An '06 w/ only 34k on the clock is likely to have it's original battery. That makes it 4-5 yrs. old. You need a new battery.

But then, use a maintainer and your troubles will be over.

Cheers!

[eightsandaces]

Originally Posted by Lil bastard

An '06 w/ only 34k on the clock is likely to have it's original battery. That makes it 4-5 yrs. old. You need a new battery.

But then, use a maintainer and your troubles will be over.

Cheers!

For a while, unless you drive your Porsche during winter, then you might get a return of the click click click somewhere freezing cold...

[lahalte]

I have a 2000 and leave it all the time in the garage unlocked and quite often top down and never had a problem starting it....,Check the battery.

[Aron in Toronto]

Sounds like your car's original OEM battery is finished or you have an electrical issue. Either way I'm surprised your dealer is not standing behind the warranty. If it's a CPO warranty they should have checked the electrical system including the battery to make sure it's within working specs.

It's true that leaving your car unlocked will leave some of the electronics "on" initially but they should turn off after a short delay period. This will not drain a battery that is in good condition.

I have a 7 year old Sears/DieHard that works flawlessly in my unlocked (don't tell anyone) '97 Boxster. I do use a Ctek 3300 multi maintainer if I'm planing on prolonged period on no use, but not for day to day use.

Many have had bad luck with the OEM batteries, and Porsche has been known to void the battery portion of the new car warranty on low mileage cars that aren't kept on maintainers, but as you said this is ridiculous for your dealer to deny coverage on a two week old purchase.

Hope they come to their senses.

Aron

[schnellman]

My Box sits in the garage unlocked with the top down all summer when not in use. If it's raining sometimes it's three or four days between runs. Never a dead battery. In the winter she might sit for two or three weeks, and that's when I use the cigarette lighter battery tender. (Interstate battery)
Looks like you may have a bad battery and/or charging system.

[mikefocke]

I leave my Boxster unlocked, top down, for 2-3 weeks at a time and it starts right up. I have a battery in excellent condition and when I drive the car it is for relatively long distances so the "juice" used in the starting is more than replaced. If I plan to leave it 3 weeks, I do use a battery maintainer plugged into the lighter socket.

Only downside of leaving it with the top down is dust in the cabin. And you have to be careful of the temperature if you have a '97-'02 986 but that doesn't apply to you.

You don't have to buy a Porsche branded battery, just one with the correct group size, cold cranking amps and vent hose (unless you want a truely sealed battery like an Optima).

[clickman]

Originally Posted by mikefocke

you have to be careful of the temperature if you have a '97-'02

Pls explain?

[Mark_T]

The 97 to 02 models have a plastic rear window that may crack if you raise or lower the roof in colder temperatures. It may also crack just due to being folded in half in the down postion if it gets really cold.

That said, I frequently will not use the car for a week at a time and have never had starting issues. I use a tender over the winter only. Your battery was already toast when you bought the car.

M~

[JFP in PA]

Originally Posted by clickman

Pls explain?

They have plastic back windows that can crack if put up or down at temps bleow 50F; plus the plastic windows really do not like being stored folded for long periods...........