Optima BatteryIt was foggy on Saturday morning when we drove with the lights on at the Eagle Ridge Golf Course in Gilroy to play golf with the Amdahl Golf Association. I've been playing golf with these guys for nearly 10 years. Amdahl used to be a plug compatible computer company. Not sure what they do any more under the Fujitsu name and most of the AGA members have moved on to other companies as we have.Golf was fun again. I think this is only the third or fourth time we have managed to get out this year. But it is the end of the season and this Eagle Ridge was chosen as the first round of the 'Tournament of Champions' for the club. The tournament was a dual affair as a stand alone tournament and the TOC. The group was divided into 3 flights and in spite of not playing for so long I came in 2nd in my flight, winning a $25 gift certificate. With the addition of $12 I was able to get a logo golf shirt that will work well for work attire. While waiting for the last groups to come in from the course we sat on the veranda overlooking the course and nearby hills sipping a rather expensive beer. Time to go home after a great day. Unfortunately, I forgot to turn off the lights when arriving at the course seven hours earlier... Sigh.  We tried jumping the car, but the battery was so flat and the engine so far from the battery that there was not enough voltage available do much more than turn over the engine a couple of times. You can see the after market ground connection on the left. Original Porsche straps are available, but I didn't know that when I got the car and replaced the corroded one. The BMW Z3 has the battery in the trunk, but there is a positive terminal available in the engine compartment that can be used for jump starting. A good idea but not available in the 912. One of my buddies drove me home with the old battery. Then I could not find my 20 year old battery charger in the garage, evidently I had loaned it to my brother. But the nearby auto parts store had a $56 10 ampere battery charger and a $120 Optima battery. I chose the latter and had my little car home in a couple of hours. Optima batteries are a nice step up from the Sears Die Hard. Here are some features:
The bad news is they are not recommended for 900 series Porsche by the factory selector on the WEB site. I ignored this as many 912 owners have recommended the battery in testimonials found in the 912 Registry. |
