The Battery on Our Air-Cooled Porsche 911…

We currently have six cars at home, but since our driveway can only fit two, we park them in several places like near our neighborhood or my husband’s workplace.

Then the other day, my husband said, “I’ll be coming home today in the air-cooled Porsche (964) parked near the office” and left for work. Since it had only been parked there for about a week, I didn’t think there was anything to worry about. But then I got an email from him in the evening.

The air-cooled Porsche’s battery died. I’ve called the insurance roadside service and am waiting now.

…What?! (ﾟдﾟ)!!

It hadn’t even been parked for that long, so could the battery really die that easily…?

About 40 minutes later, he messaged, “The engine started fine, so I’m heading home now,” and soon after, he arrived. I asked him about it right away, and he said:

When I tried to take the air-cooled Porsche out of its usual parking spot, the engine wouldn’t start, and none of the lights came on—it was completely dead. We’ve had it for almost two years without any major troubles, but finally, the battery issue showed up. I called the insurance roadside service right away, and they connected a booster, which got the engine running. Since it had only been parked for about a week, I thought the battery would be fine, but if you own an air-cooled Porsche, you really have to be prepared for the battery to die. After all, it even has an ON/OFF battery switch.

Maintaining an old car really is quite a challenge.

Voltage check after jump-starting with booster

Purchased a Charger and Mobile Booster

A few days later, a package arrived at home. When I opened it, it was a battery charger and a portable jump starter. When I said, “You ordered this?!,” he explained:

With these, if the battery dies, I won’t have to call roadside assistance, so it’s reassuring. Also, since I want to keep the battery charged when not driving, I bought a charger. People who own supercars usually don’t drive them often, so a charger is essential, and sometimes they even include one when you buy the car.

Jump starter and charger

The jump starter is a device that supplies power to the car in an emergency when the battery is dead, helping to start the engine.

The one my husband bought can also be used as a regular mobile battery to charge smartphones and such.

He also bought a well-known CTEK charger. Since it was cheaper, he got the overseas version instead of the Japanese one, but the manual includes Japanese pages, so it’s not a problem. (If you care about warranty, the official imported version is recommended.)

He immediately connected the charger to the 964 and started charging in “reconditioning mode.” This mode is designed to revive batteries that have been discharged like this time.

After about 4 to 5 hours, I checked on it, but it was still in the second stage.

The next day, there were no errors and the battery was fully charged, so the battery itself was fine. My husband immediately went out for a test drive (laughs).

I used to know nothing about cars, so I had no idea what it takes to maintain one, but lately I’ve been learning a bit about car care and have come to realize, “Maintaining a car (especially a sports car) is quite an undertaking.”