Boxster 981s trickle charger and how to charge the battery….

[Green Genie]

Meant to say I run the cable from the interior socket under the car door.

[iborguk]

14 minutes ago, Green Genie said:

It would appear that some 981’s shut down the interior sockets after half an hour. 

The socket will stay live on charge providing the charger is connected to the socket before the timeout. 

[Tigerstew]

Surely the ctek has a indicator on it which tells u if it maintaining the battery if you are using the interior sockets

[iborguk]

2 minutes ago, Tigerstew said:

Surely the ctek has a indicator on it which tells u if it maintaining the battery if you are using the interior sockets

If it has an indicator to say it is maintaining the battery. Refer to the manual link I published further up the thread.

 

[Topbox]

One other factor about the socket shutdown. I wonder if it is affected by locking the car. I never do in the Garage at home. Never had a socket "off" regardless of time parked up. April 2015 car.

[iborguk]

5 minutes ago, Topbox said:

One other factor about the socket shutdown. I wonder if it is affected by locking the car. I never do in the Garage at home. Never had a socket "off" regardless of time parked up. April 2015 car.

Yes locking the car will be a factor , although again as long as the charger is active in the socket before the timeout/sleep mode it will keep the socket live.

[Carmand]

I think it’s been established that not all 981s behave in the same way with respect to the 12v sockets - mines early 2016 and they don’t stay live for example.  I hardwire in an extension cable and feed this through the plastic cover.

[iborguk]

1 hour ago, Carmand said:

I think it’s been established that not all 981s behave in the same way with respect to the 12v sockets - mines early 2016 and they don’t stay live for example.  I hardwire in an extension cable and feed this through the plastic cover.

Happy to be schooled here. Is that the case with the ignition live when connecting a maintainer to the 12v accessory socket ?

[Carmand]

56 minutes ago, iborguk said:

Happy to be schooled here. Is that the case with the ignition live when connecting a maintainer to the 12v accessory socket ?

Yes it is.  There seems to be some difference in the software/ components, particularly - but not exclusively - in later cars.  This point appears in multiple posts on multiple forums whenever battery conditioners are discussed!

[Tigerstew]

So in 2012 981s will the socket work??

[BrianJ]

11 minutes ago, Carmand said:

Yes it is.  There seems to be some difference in the software/ components, particularly - but not exclusively - in later cars.  This point appears in multiple posts on multiple forums whenever battery conditioners are discussed!

Correct. My 2013 981 kept the sockets live if I switched on the CTEK before locking. My replacement 2016 981 doesn’t, and won’t, whatever sequence or socket I try. So I use the CTEK connector between a bolt into the body and a battery terminal which works fine.

[BrianJ]

3 minutes ago, Tigerstew said:

So in 2012 981s will the socket work??

Good chance. Simple to test.

[Paul P]

14 hours ago, Topbox said:

One other factor about the socket shutdown. I wonder if it is affected by locking the car. I never do in the Garage at home. Never had a socket "off" regardless of time parked up. April 2015 car.

Based on some reading for 987 for measuring parasitic drain for another thread on here it’s the action of turning off the the ignition and closing the doors (and boot/ bonnet) that triggers “shutdown”. The instructions specially tell you not to lock the car.  

[Tigerstew]

Apart from the trickle charger, is there anything else I would need to do with the 981s say I wasn’t to drive for a few months?

 

thanks guys as always 

[Paul P]

26 minutes ago, Tigerstew said:

Apart from the trickle charger, is there anything else I would need to do with the 981s say I wasn’t to drive for a few months?

 

thanks guys as always 

“Laying up” is always a bit contentious.  I don’t do it but if I was going to based on what I have read. 
 

1) fill the tank with the lowest ethanol petrol you can get.  High ethanol fuel doesn’t keep well. 
 

2) over inflate the tyres a bit.  10 psi or so.  Depending on the tyre brand might help stop flat spots (they tend to fix themselves once you drive it again)

3) battery conditioner left connected all the time. 
 

4) wipe down the interior surfaces with an anti bacterial wipe - helps stop mould.  
 

5) a few silica gel dehumidifier bags in the footwells helps keep ambient condensation at bay 

6) of you can leave the handbrake off. Chock the wheels rather than leave it in gear.  
 

7) give the locks and latches and (carefully) switches (window, ignition, roof etc ) a spray of wd40.  
 

8  don’t be tempted to “fire it up and let it warm up every few weeks”.  Best to leave it until you want to drive it again.  When you do check the tyre pressures and then fire it up and take it for a gentle drive Neil it’s properly warmed through.  
 

others will have different valid opinions.   This is just what I would do if I needed to lay up the car for a few months.  In my case I typically drive it every few weeks over winter.  And if it a nasty month of snow and salt then parking it up for a month on the conditioner is all I need to do.  

[BrianJ]

Get the engine and gearbox oil nice and warm on a good run before putting it away, and do some hard braking to clean up and dry the discs. Don't leave the handbrake on - like all handbrakes the braking surfaces will corrode together. Put it in gear or P. I always pump up the tyres to about 50PSI and change the position of the car slightly occasionally without starting the engine (or use axle stands to get the wheels off the ground). If it's on your own property pull the wiper arms off the screen to prevent the blades setting in the parked position and then not wiping properly. Ideally fill the fuel tank to limit water condensation. Put a strong solution of winter screenwash in the bottle and activate the washer pump so it is also in the pipework and jets.  Usual stuff for any car really.

[Tigerstew]

4 minutes ago, Paul P said:

“Laying up” is always a bit contentious.  I don’t do it but if I was going to based on what I have read. 
 

1) fill the tank with the lowest ethanol petrol you can get.  High ethanol fuel doesn’t keep well. 
 

2) over inflate the tyres a bit.  10 psi or so.  Depending on the tyre brand might help stop flat spots (they tend to fix themselves once you drive it again)

3) battery conditioner left connected all the time. 
 

4) wipe down the interior surfaces with an anti bacterial wipe - helps stop mould.  
 

5) a few silica gel dehumidifier bags in the footwells helps keep ambient condensation at bay 

6) of you can leave the handbrake off. Chock the wheels rather than leave it in gear.  
 

7) give the locks and latches and (carefully) switches (window, ignition, roof etc ) a spray of wd40.  
 

8  don’t be tempted to “fire it up and let it warm up every few weeks”.  Best to leave it until you want to drive it again.  When you do check the tyre pressures and then fire it up and take it for a gentle drive Neil it’s properly warmed through.  
 

others will have different valid opinions.   This is just what I would do if I needed to lay up the car for a few months.  In my case I typically drive it every few weeks over winter.  And if it a nasty month of snow and salt then parking it up for a month on the conditioner is all I need to do.  

brilliant thanks so much

[spook]

11 hours ago, Paul P said:

8  don’t be tempted to “fire it up and let it warm up every few weeks”.  Best to leave it until you want to drive it again.  

Why? Genuine question...

[GTSMarky]

I have an Optimate lead on all my battery bikes in the garage, so have the same Optimate flying lead on the BGTS and just hang the cable out through the front of the frunk and into the garage..  Has worked a treat for > 6 years now..

[Paul P]

10 hours ago, spook said:

Why? Genuine question...

Theory is it does more harm than good, starting and idling - oil pressure is basically at its lowest when you need it to be getting oil around the engine where its drained down - most car handbooks advise against warming up - rather start/drive/allow to come up to temp before "enoying"...

Also - the thing you want "up to temp" is oil, oil takes much longer to come up to temp ( especially at idle) than water, so unless you run the thing for "ages" - then all you are doing is lightly warming the oil - which promotes condensation inside the engine - and doesn't get a chance for some of corrosive by products to get vented. Corrosive exhaust by products also tend to sit around in the exhaust if that isn't really warmed up ( might not be such an issue these days with cats, but back in the day you didn't want condensation from exhaust gases sitting in the pipes) 

You are kicking the battery when it's cold ( but if on a conditioner, not that much of an issue ) - but does mean the "conditioning cycle" is reset.

Like all these things, there will be folks who have done this every winter for the last 75 years and there's never been an issue and "your car your rules" as always, but as far as I can see it - if the smart thing to do it put the car away after a good hot run, and general advice to not leave to idle to warm up - they starting occasionally over winter and not driving seems to undermine that.

As ever - just opinions....

[spook]

1 hour ago, Paul P said:

Theory is it does more harm than good, starting and idling - oil pressure is basically at its lowest when you need it to be getting oil around the engine where its drained down - most car handbooks advise against warming up - rather start/drive/allow to come up to temp before "enoying"...

Also - the thing you want "up to temp" is oil, oil takes much longer to come up to temp ( especially at idle) than water, so unless you run the thing for "ages" - then all you are doing is lightly warming the oil - which promotes condensation inside the engine - and doesn't get a chance for some of corrosive by products to get vented. Corrosive exhaust by products also tend to sit around in the exhaust if that isn't really warmed up ( might not be such an issue these days with cats, but back in the day you didn't want condensation from exhaust gases sitting in the pipes) 

You are kicking the battery when it's cold ( but if on a conditioner, not that much of an issue ) - but does mean the "conditioning cycle" is reset.

Like all these things, there will be folks who have done this every winter for the last 75 years and there's never been an issue and "your car your rules" as always, but as far as I can see it - if the smart thing to do it put the car away after a good hot run, and general advice to not leave to idle to warm up - they starting occasionally over winter and not driving seems to undermine that.

As ever - just opinions....

Thanks for that. I've been doing monthly winter start-ups in the garage for a number of years, but I always let it run for about 20-30 minutes to make sure the oil temperature gets up to around 100 degrees. Be interesting to see what Porsche themselves advise on the issue. Anybody know?

[Paul P]

51 minutes ago, spook said:

Thanks for that. I've been doing monthly winter start-ups in the garage for a number of years, but I always let it run for about 20-30 minutes to make sure the oil temperature gets up to around 100 degrees. Be interesting to see what Porsche themselves advise on the issue. Anybody know?

Most of that info came from the service manager of my local OPC when asked about "lay up" during buttercup.

As I say - personal choice - I figure - worst time for the engine is starting after its been stood for "a while" - and starting it every month for 3 months is three times worse than starting once after 3 months but I doubt there is a black and white answer.

[GTSMarky]

More chance of flat spotting the tyres if you don't move the car for ages!