As some may know, my 911 buddy and I almost didn't make the Parade because his voltage regulator overcharged the battery on his 87 Carrera. We switched out the Optima, put a conventional battery from a FLAPS and limped back to a Porsche specialist. After the Parade trip (awesome!), new alternator installed, what's the best way to treat the front trunk battery area to prevent further damage? There's some blistered paint from acid exposure and I dime sized hole in the carpeting (which he'll probably keep).

This is a primo all-original car. Any thoughts on repainting/refinishing this corner of the car?

Also, does anyone know if a new genuine Bosch alternator is likely to cure this overcharging problem? As best I can tell, it's pretty common for this model.

Thanks,

Paul

Neutralize the acid with baking soda and clear water.

Clean. Repaint if needed.

Fix the voltage regulator.

Zach

You might consider putting in one of the acid neutralizing mats under the new battery. Short of mounting an ammeter and a voltmeter on the dash, I don't think you can be absolutely sure that the alternator is not overcharging a battery, but it's not that common a situation. I did have alternator problems with my 87 Carrera, but that was after 113,000 miles, so I didn't think that was an unreasonable service life.

I read a while back that some people preferred the external voltage regulators because they were a whole lot easier th change out if there was a problem. The internal ones in the alternators are a real pain in the ass to change out. If you got a good alternator, the problem shouldn't reoccur that soon.

Am I confused? I thought people put up with that Optima crap because they "don't leak and cause corrosion problems". Please tell again the reasons for switching .......................

The Cap'n, the Anti-Optima

Cap'n the way I interpret the original post is that the Optima was cooked by the over charging alternator so it was replaced by a conventional battery. I think it was that battery that leaked the acid. Unless a Optima battery is damaged ( cracked case ) I don't think they can leak. I'll be honest I've had a red top Optima in my 911 for years and I'm going with a yellow top in my 914.To each his own.

The Optima leaked where the black bottom case met the top case. The red top was bulging upward, especially in the front corner, and the plastic construction couldn't handle the pressure.

I had a Gates battery in my 914 back in the 80's. One year after putting a conventional battery in my car (which was driven daily), the battery tray began to corrode. Granted, I wasn't meticulously cleaning the tray area but it made me think that someone who is just gonna drive the car will do better with the Optima than with a conventional.

The new battery we put in is long and short and has an overflow tube venting tube!!!

Paul

I agree with Zach (rare) to wash everything really well with Baking soda and water mix...
I do it once or twice per year.
Wear rubber gloves, and goggle.

Remove the standard battery and get another Optima...save yourself some grief.

Rich

The Optima has 2 vents on top.
If you over charge/over heat (one follows the other) the thing, green shittage comes squirting out.
I needed 17.6 volts to do it.....a seperated connection to the D- wire, IIRC.
Fortunately I discovered this within a few hours of its happening.

A non vented dry cell seems the best battery..... IMO.

Seems like an issue that may happen more often as the electrical parts get older and fail.
Is there a new solid state power conditioner type device?
Im not an EE....but I know I can get this for my house to even out the spikes...can some sort of device be installed in our cars to prevent overcharging?
Is this truely what a flux capacitor is for afterall?

Rich

Great idea! I "invented" a voltage limiter when we were in the FLAPS looking around for a solution to our plight. Like, what good is a voltage regulator if it regulates you into bubbling acid??? Guess there's no such device? and we are at the mercy of the current scheme...

Paul

House voltage is ac, alternating current, the spikes are absorbed by capacitors that then release the excess to the line when it drops low, thats how ac works. Dc is direct current as in only one way not alternating. The only way I know of to adjust dc is to use a circuit with a varible resistor to absorb the additional voltage. I am also not a ee. Thats just what little I remember from the classes I took 40 years ago. I'm sure a regulating device is available or can be made but the cost is probably about what jake gets for a motor.

I never thought about it but you might could put two regulators in series and the second one might save the battery.

My son bought a suzuki in Oklahoma and we went to get it. While I was driving it back I thought the lights were awful bright, my son said the lights were pretty bright in his rearview mirror on the way back to Waco and that they would vary with speed. I told him the alt might not be charging enough at lower speeds. Two days later one went out while I was checking it out overall. I put a fluke on it and it said 18.0 volts and got higher as I reved it up. The only thing that must have saved the lights on the trip home was the other stuff I was using to bring the volts down. The battery seemed to be okay and we only needed a alternator to get it back to normal.