Taycan 12v battery

[Dansk99]

I took delivery of my Taycan in May, it is amazing but! The 12v battery dies if the car is not used, so does any car however in August I left the car at home on the 21st, I received a call because the tracker lost power on the 31st, 10 days, the AA helped.


I left the car on the 17th October, today, the 30th I received a call to say the tracker was reporting a dead battery, 13 days. Apparently Porsche recommend a trickle charge should be fitted if you leave the car for more than 3 weeks. (I was not told that when I bought or when I collected the Taycan) regardless I haven’t even reached 2weeks. The car is parked in an underground croft, there is no 13 amp plug near the car. I am away most months for 2 weeks, which means I will come home to a dead 12v battery every time, it also makes it very difficult to leave the car at the airport. Porsche have checked the car and all works as it is meant to. On Monday the 31st Oct I will come home to a dead car, AA again I guess, as said the car is great but I have had more irritating issues in 5 months than I have ever had with my 911s. This is a massive dark cloud over a great car. any and all suggestions welcome.

Amber

 

[tscaptain]

Moved to Taycan forum.

 

[cparsons]

That's really disappointing, I agree. I've left mine for a month and come back and it's been fine, so that definitely sounds like there is something wrong with the 12V battery not holding charge.

They might well "recommend" a trickle charger, but I think any reasonable person would expect a brand new car battery to last longer than 2 weeks with no charge in it. As you say, that makes it a liability to leave at an airport, never mind anywhere else. I think I'd be tempted to send it back to the OPC and explain that you regard it as faulty and they need to rectify it under the Consumer Rights Act (I'd be pushing for a replacement 12V battery, but beware that these are in very short supply at the moment).

Could you leave it on charge (the 800V system), as that might then top up the 12V system?

C.

 

[Dansk99]

Thank you Craig. My local Porsche Centre has checked the car and say that nothing is drawing excessive current, this is the first time I have left the car since that check, as the battery was completely dead, clearly something is wrong. However on the positive side the AA has just left and I am up and running again, though possibly temporarily ??.

One question, do you have the Porsche tracking system activated? There is a suggestion that the tracker is a power thief.

I will certainly follow your advice regarding the battery, despite the words of warning regarding supply!

 

[cparsons]

Yep - I have the Porsche tracker activated, and dont have the 12V issue.

Something definitely not right there. I’d push for a replacement battery in the first instance.

 

[kitchens]

Not a Taycan owner but have had a lot of Porsches and only once was locked out the car non starter due to the fact I had my charger on the wrong setting and could not revive it so bought a new battery was 10 yr old to be fair .I always keep the cars on a trickle charge but as you do not have a 13amp socket that is not an option ..have you considered a solar charger panel .Do not take this the wrong way Amber maybe they think they can fob of a lady with its ok ....as said push for a new battery or get an independent check on the battery by an auto electrician ,the tracker does sound like an issue .

 

[Dansk99]

Thanks for your reply, which is most definitely taken the right way [], unfortunately it wouldn't be the first time that long hair and lipstick is thought to be equal to no technical knowledge by a workshop, but they won't fob off this lady! The car is parked in an underground croft, but our space is the only one with a south facing grill, to which I attached a solar charger the time we went away, that possibly got me from 10 days to 13 days. I have already gone back to the Porsche Centre (who had previously checked for anything that could be abnormally draining the battery) I have suggested that the only component left is the 12v battery itself and therefore is most to be faulty and a replacement should be provided. My plan c is to have a separate battery in the front baggage area which would piggy-back the main battery every time the car is left for a longer period, which is quite often. Not a great solution but preferable to waiting for the AA every time!

 

[Gordon Attar]

Please just quote consumer goods act at them and ask for a new battery as it's not fit for purpose. Just incase your battery is not faulty(unlikely)also ask for a copy of the battery drainage report showing draw downs and the current state of battery.
Also start keeping a note of your main traction battery state of charge before you go away and after there is an occasional problem across a lot of EV's where the main battery loses power and causes problems with drawdowns from the 12v battery.

 

[Dansk99]

Hi Gordon, appreciate the advice. There is virtually no loss from the 800v batteries when the car is left. It is difficult to get a straight answer but my understanding from Porsche is that there is no charge to the 12v battery when the vehicle is locked and switched off, so they say that the soc of the main barrettes is not relevant. I have left the car at 80%+ for the 800v batteries to see if that helped - it didn't. It has gone quiet at Porsche GB so will be following up again today. The car is currently at an airport long stay, only 6 days this time so I am not expecting a flat battery on return, however the next bit of travel is 19 days, which at current performance is a guarantee of a call to the AA :-(

 

[simonmiles]

Had exactly the same problem - received a call from Vodafone Automotive whilst on holiday when the operator said the battery was flat, that it was a common problem and I almost certainly wouldn't be able to get into the car on my return. She was right and Porsche Assistance (i.e. the AA) arrived within a couple of hours of arriving home and clearly had come across the problem before. Never knew you could jump start an EV but it got me up and running again quickly enough but the sting in the tail was he said I would need to drive around for at least 45 minutes to recharge the 12 volt battery. Just what I needed after a long haul flight !

 

[Dansk99]

I have now received advice from Porsche. They claim there is nothing wrong with the battery and they will not replace it. I have been advised to disable the tracker, I cannot believe that they have given advice which would most probably invalidate my insurance.

I intend to escalate the issue within Porsche GB. The Taycan is an amazing car that unfortunately may leave you stranded if you go away on holiday or business.

 

[cparsons]

Wow - that's terrible.

I wouldn't hold out much hope with Porsche GB - they've been singularly useless in my experience, unless you're in need of contempt.

 

[Dansk99]

Hi Craig,

The start of your message gave me no hope, the last sentence did make me laugh (it will likely be a short term smile though).

For obvious reasons I really want to keep a good relationship with my local dealer (Mid Sussex), who have been extremely polite and friendly but rather useless trying to solve the problem. The more I think about it the more exasperating the "turn off the tracker" solution is. Whilst I am away from the car and cannot visually check if it is there or not I have been advised to turn off the security system, absolutely crazy and actually irresponsible.
Amber

 

[cparsons]

Yes - sorry! I had a terrible experience when I got in touch with Porsche Cars GB about my first Taycan (and Enterprise); so I don’t hold out much hope.


In my experience the centre is normally best placed to sort it out, but some are owned by Porsche GB (not sure about Mid Sussex).


The advice to turn off the tracking is terrible… and if it did work then presumably that’s an admission the tracking is faulty as you sell it as a feature on the car. If that feature breaks the car (and it doesn’t on others!) then it’s faulty and the consumer rights act kicks in.

Personally I’d ring the dealer principal (name will be on their website) and tell him/her that you’re considering rejecting the car because it’s patently not reasonable that the battery doesn't last.

 

[dpoynton]

This has me wondering whether I should put the 12v battery on a ctek charger from time to time?
Or is it supposed to charge when using a home charger for the main batteries?

David

 

[Dansk99]

Hi David,

I have received a further reply from the dealership. The Tracker apparently tries continuously to contact the gsm network, if the vehicle is parked in a secure underground car park, reaching a signal can be difficult. The 800v battery tries to keep sufficient charge in the 12v battery however it tries 7 or 8 times (I have been told both 7 and 8) to recharge and then gives up and shuts down the 12v battery. You can see the state of charge of the 12v when you drive the car, if you set up the right hand info screen to show battery charge, it should be 13.4 or higher. If you leave the car for more than a week, I would definitely connect a trickle charger, whilst I am influenced by my own experience, there are similar stories to mine on several forums, so probably a "just in case" action would be sensible.

Apparently Porsche GB and Porsche AG are now involved in my 12v problem, the dealership is "very confident" a solution will be found, I sincerely hope that they are right but I am not holding my breath. I left the car on the 14th November, so I am expecting a Vodafone call anytime soon! Last time it was at 2am, I am hoping for a more social hour this time round! It will be the third time the battery has lost charge, it is also the third time I have left the car. This suggests that the Porsche Tracker is not a good solution for those who leave their car for periods longer than one week, as it kills the 12v battery, more importantly it means that the car may be more vulnerable when the 12v battery shuts down, very disconcerting.

 

[cparsons]

At least you're getting some proper detail now!

Am I reading that right in that if the car was outside and able to get GSM signal it would be less of a problem?

I'm still surprised that the GSM module in the car is so energy inefficient it can kill the 12V battery so quickly.

 

[simonmiles]

My car was outside when the 12v battery drained after about 10 days. GSM signal is good where I live too. The tracker is a condition of my insurance (like most I imagine) so switching it off is not an option

 

[Dansk99]

Hi Craig,

That is how I interpreted the information from Porsche , which is frankly unacceptable but the further post from Simon contradicts the info from Porsche, which would suggest that their response to me was conveniently helped by the fact my car is in an underground croft. The security advice so far is not great, either turn off the tracker or park outside! The insurance company will not be particularly impressed by such advice!

My fight goes on…

 

[Dansk99]

Hi Simon,
That is really interesting, if I could quote this to Porsche it would be a great help. Have you previously notified them about the appallingly short 12v battery life?