One of the reasons for power loss is because the engine doesn't have the right volts to such items as fuel injectors and computers. If they don't have the right power, the fuel injectors will not open far enough and therefore cylinders won't get proper fuel. Same is true for computers and O2 sensors..etc. The no start issue now just reaffirms that you are losing power to not only the engine but now the starter. I would keep checking grounds and power connections such as the battery and starter. Just my .02. Good luck.

Well Tom, I'm starting to think you might be right. To eliminate variables, I charged up the jumpstarter while I went out to get a jerry can of gas. I put probably close to a quarter tank in, and had had the jumpstarter charging for about an hour - it was indicating completely full. I hooked it up and gave it a go. It started right up, idled for maybe one full second then died. THe jumpstarter was still indicating almost full charge, so I tried a couple times and each successive time I got less response. First try was maybe 2 "chugs", second try one, third try nothing, just the single click of the starter.

Have you put an amp meter on the battery to see if something is draining the battery really quick? Take a volt reading on the battery and then after you only get a click on the starter, then take another volt reading on the battery. If the battery is below 12 V the second time, you have a weak battery...if the battery is still at 12 V. then start looking toward the starter solenoid connection and see if you have 12 V there. The fact that you can charge it for a long time and it runs for a second indicates to me there isn't enough power there for some reason...either a positive cable connection or a ground. Clean them all and put dielectic grease on them to prevent corrosion.

I just tried it again - same thing. One chug, then just clicking. 11.45 before I started, 11.15 after just getting the clicking.

Is there a way to access the starter from the top of the engine well enough to check the connections, rather than from underneath, removing the skid plate? (sorry, I'm a newbie with 944s!)

the starter is actually right under your car below the clutch slave cylinder and in front of your cat.

remember, voltage isn't always everything... check current too.

Checked the starter and I'm getting 12V at there. I checked and cleaned the posts and cables on the battery, and also the ground wire chassis connection. Also checked the alternator, and I'm getting about 8.5V there - is that 3.5V difference significant?

Thanks.

You should have 12V there as well if the battery shows 12V. Do you have a third battery you could stick in there on a temporay basis or can you have the auto parts places check them for you? It seems like the battery went down very fast for just a solenoid click. It shouldn't have dropped the voltage at all.

I'm not entirely clear what you mean by that - to clarify, I wasn't checking the alternator voltage with the car running. I can't keep it running long enough to get out and check.

When my wife gets home from work I'll try jumping it with jumper cables from the Explorer, see if that gets it started.

By the way, I did have my wife watch the alternator while it started very briefly last night, to make sure the belt wasn't slipping - it's not.

I don't think it's the alternator but if you can get your wife to keep it running and put the amp meter on it, you will know for sure but I'm thinking it's okay. I think it's a bad connection somewhere or a weak battery. Any way to take the battery from the explorer and put it in the car? I had no luck jumping mine when the battery was bad. The part that makes me think it's a battery is that with just a click of the starter, the volts went down...it shouldn't do that....of course the battery should also have closer to 13 or 14 volts not 11. You may consider taking the battery to the auto parts store and have them check it. The part that makes it appear to not be the battery and a bad connection is the number of volts on the battery does not match the voltage at the alternator. Somewhere between the two, it is losing voltage and that shouldn't happen. I don't believe it was a belt either as the battery charger should be able to charge the battery and the car should start and run for quite some time. When I broke an alternator belt on mine one time, I drove on just the battery for over an hour...that would be what I would expect from a battery. Maybe not that long if the headlights or other high amp accessory were on. Have the battery tested and let's go from there.

do you think it'd be wise for him to try to hotwire the alternator with the jumper cables directly from the battery?

I just got in from more testing (hadn't read either of the new posts yet). I tried jump starting from the Explorer (while it was running) and absolutely no change. One chug, then just clicks.

One (perhaps dumb) thing I just thought of is that the airbox is currently removed, so I could examine the alternator. There's no way at all that the missing airbox could be affecting this, is there?

Anyway, Tom, I think you're right when you say there must be something draining the juice. I don't know if I'll get a chance to take the battery in to have it tested tonight, so for now let's assume the battery's ok. I mean, I've now had the same results with 3 batteries - the 944, 911 and Explorer. The 911 and Explorer both started up fine after using them to test the 944, so I know there's not something crazy going on which is just draining the battery almost instantaneously.

What you described about when your alternator belt broke sounds like what happened Monday night. I was able to drive for about 30-45 minutes before the car died. (I had the heater fan and headlights on.)

A car lasting about that amount of time without a charging system should be about normal. And if it lasted that long without the charging system working, then that might indicate a good battery but a bad connection somewhere.

I never had success jump starting my Porsche the time it had a bad battery. I'm not sure if you are actually putting the other batteries in the car or if you are jumping the two batteries. If you are jumping the two batteries, that is not a good test. If you have a fully charged battery, you can put an amp meter on the battery and check the drain from the car. I'll have to look up what normal is. But if it's out of spec, then the thing to do is pull fuses until the drain stops. I don't think it's anything shorted though, I think you are going to find a bad connection or a bad battery.

You said you drove for thirty to 45 minutes before the car died? Was your gauge showing a drain during that time? Were there any warning lights on? Sitting here I can't remember if there is a warning light or not for the charging system. I'll have to go check.

Eldorado, I have never tried that and I'm not quite certain what that would do. I've always tried to keep sparks and jumpers away from alternators as they are expensive to replace and I've always been told the electrical components in there are easy to damage. Might be a good test, but I am not sure.

I put the 911 battery right in there and hooked the cables up to it - full swap. (no change to the problem and the 911 started up fine several times after I put the battery back in it). I jumped it from the battery in the Explorer - battery still in the Explorer, Explorer running.

I don't remember if the guage showed any drain while I was driving before/when it died - wasn't paying attention. Should've been. :) Certainly there were no warning lights on the dash until it actually died, then the red oil light came on (always comes on when the key is in the farthest right position with the engine not running).

I'm going to explore all the grounds in the car, check them, clean them, look for any loose wires. This will be fun...

Christien, did you ever resolve this problem?

I am dealing with exactly the same thing in my 87S and would like to know how you made out.

Thanks
Bill K

Yes, I did, and should have posted to clarify. I gave up and took it into the shop. Turns out it was a bad voltage regulator. They replaced it and cleaned up a couple more grounds. That would've been shortly after my last post in this thread, so over 2 months ago, and there have been no problems at all since then, including several 45+ min. highway trips. The entire bill was $120 - $80 for the part and $40 for the labour, or vice versa, can't remember :)

thanks for the update Christien.
were is the v regulator? inside the alternator or on one of the elec panels? both my air-cooled have it in different locations.
Bill K

Beats me. The shop swapped it out. I do believe it's attached to the rear of the alternator, but could be wrong. I'll see if I can dig the old one up in the garage later today and take a pic of it, so you know what you're looking for. I looked it up in the Pelican catalogue, and the pic they have there ( http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/smart/imgdsply.cgi?pn=92860314200-M14 ) doesn't look anything like what I have. Then again, the Pelican one lists as a 928 part. The one they pulled off my car (if memory serves) was more cubical in shape, maybe 1 to 1.5 cubic inches or so.

I noticed they also have an alternator trouble-shooting tech article ( http://www.pelicanparts.com/914/914qa/914Q_electrical_alternator.htm ). It's for 914s, but listed in the 944 catalogue, so maybe applies as well.

Hope this helps.

yup, this all sounds familiar. i noticed that the engine did not appear to want to rev cleanly. could not put my finger on it, but then the power windows got very slow/ headlights dimming. all points to alternator.
before starting, i took a reading with digital meter. 11.8 volts. after start up, it went to 14.5, which is fine, but then dropped to 8.5 volts. red warning light on dash, etc.
anyhoo, with all stripped, and access to the alternator, my problem was the heavy output wiring. where the wire was crimped to the connector. it was literally hanging by a couple threads, and no doubt was ready to finally let go. i could just see all the fireworks under the hood, with the live wire touching everywhere.
anyway, good starting place, is before trying to start car, take a battery voltage reading, then take another after its started. it should be between 14.2, and 15 volts.
anyway, eldorado, any more info on summer run to niagara region??
regards, bob.