Left my radar detector on for an extended period of time and killed my battery. Bought one of those Duracell battery chargers that you plug into the wall, but if I don't drive my 997S enough, the battery dies. Looks like the charger has a default trickle setting....so I'm curious:

1. Is it dangerous to just leave the thing on and hooked up all the time so the battery won't ever die?
2. Is it expensive (electricity wise) to just leave it on?
3. How important is it for me to replace the battery since the car has no died twice?

Thanks in advance for any and all help.

Kevin

 

Get the Porsche battery maintainer/charger. Leave it plugged into your cig lighter whenever you park the car for longer than a day or so. It keeps your battery fully charged and knows when to shut off to avoid over charging. It draws very little power so you can leave it plugged in for extended periods. Your battery will last longer also.

 

If the Porsche Trickle Charger causes any problems, Porsche will also warranty anything that goes wrong (as long as the car's warranty is still in effect).

 

Agree - Porsche makes at least 2 different ones and my dealer gave me the cheaper one that plugs into the cig. lighter. Keep in mind that if you use it you have to plug it into the cig. lighter first, then the wall - then remove from the wall and cig. lighter last before starting the car.

Or you can get a "Battery Tender" brand charger/maintainer - I have one on my bike and it works well...got it at Wal-Mart.

 

I use this one

http://e-partssales.com/Merchant2/me...electronics997

 

I have the same one that Northvan.. has. I use it anytime the cars goes a day or so without being drivien. Sometimes, it is plugged into the car all weekend.

 

My car is out of warranty, so no need to get the porsche charger....Although I like the idea of charging through the cigarette lighter. I have this one:

http://www.duracellpower.com/battery...y-charger.aspx

Problem is I left it on all last night and the car wouldn't start this morning. I think maybe one of the clamps lost it's solid connection. Unsure. Starting over again.

If I completely recharge the battery, is there any need to replace it at this time?

 

My experience has been that once a battery is allowed to fully drain it will never again hold a charge like it used to. I would get a new battery and a Porsche cigarette outlet battery charger. I seriously doubt that a low amperage battery charger will have much of an effect on your electrical bill.

I would also hard wire the radar detector to switched power.

 

Thanks for the advice. Going to jump the car and take it into the shop this afternoon. See what's going on.

So is the Duracell charger I bought useless? Did I waste $70 there?

 

only "waste" there is the same charger that Porsche sells for $120+ is available for around $60-70 ...just without "Porsche" on it

CTEK MULTI US 3300

$62.48 at Home Depot (.com)
$69.99 at Amazon.com

and many, many more

 

Anyone ever use this one...

http://www.duracellpower.com/battery...aintainer.aspx

 

I can't speak from direct Porsche experience but it makes me nervous to run a charging current through any cigarette lighter. I am concerned about wire sizing.

I use "tenders" (not chargers) and those I connect directly to the battery.

I use a 12"-18" trailer hitch wire, solder two 1/4" eyes to one end, and bolt those eyes directly to the battery.

Then I can easily connect/disconnect the tender.

I know it is safe and directly charges the battery w/o concerns of running the trickle though the vehicle's wiring.

It's just me but this makes me feel much safer for so doing.

 

I've been using these on the bike and will use it on the P-car during the winter too.

http://batterytender.com/selection_g...8d7ec77d00cf72

 

I thought the same - was a bit worried about running the P-charger/maintainer via the cig. lighter. But I figure if Porsche approves it must be ok and if something bad happens they'll back it.

 

I bought the Black and Decker battery maintainer from Amazon.com for ~ $ 25 about
3 years ago .
It has a 1 or 2 Amp setting and connects to either the cigarette lighter outlet or to the battery and it's been working flawlessly since .