2018 Porsche 911 Turbo S Battery
Cars
- Sponsor
- OPTIMA Batteries
- Location
- Glendale, WI
OPTIMA Batteries offers direct-fit battery upgrades for many late-model Porsches, including the Porsche 911. However, when consumers search for batteries for the 2018 Porsche 911 Turbo S and any other 911 variants, they'll often see multiple batteries come back in the search results, including the DH6 and DH7 YELLOWTOP batteries. Another option coming later in the summer of 2025 will be OPTIMA's all-new QH6 Lithium automotive battery. The question might then become, "Which battery is the right one for my Porsche 911?"
The simple answer is that you do typically have choices, between H6/Group 48 (OPTIMA refers to that as either a DH6 for AGM or QH6 for Lithium), H7 (DH7 for OPTIMA or 94R for other brands) or H8 (sometimes referred to as a Group 49). All of those batteries will have no issue fitting in the Porsche battery trays or starting any Porsche engine, so the decision really doesn't come down to cranking amps or cold cranking amps. It's more about reserve capacity that modern Porsches like to tap into when the engine is turned off. The larger the battery, the more reserve capacity it will typically offer and one can typically look at the weight of a battery and see that a heavier battery with more material typically offers more reserve capacity.
However, if one looks closely at specifications for the physically largest battery of that group, the H8/49, they might see other battery brands claim 92AH of reserve capacity, but only weigh about 56 pounds. Comparing that with OPTIMA's DH6 YELLOWTOP, you'll essentially see a battery that is two sizes smaller, but still weighs nearly as much at 54 pounds. Likewise, OPTIMA's DH7 YELLOWTOP may be physically smaller than the H8/Group 49 batteries offered by other brands, but typically outweighs them at 60.5 pounds. We conservatively rate out DH7 YELLOWTOP at 80AH, which may seem like a lot less than the 90+AH offered by other brands in their larger H8 or Group 49 sizes, but if one were to re-visit that rating after a few years, they might find the OPTIMA is far closer to or exceeding the battery's stated ratings, while the other brands may experience a sharper drop off in performance.
The bottom line for Porsche 911 owners is that you probably don't need the largest battery you can fit in your battery tray if you drive your Porsche regularly or keep it on a quality battery maintenance device when you are not using it. If you don't maintain your battery or may leave it at airport parking for weeks on end, then a physically larger battery with more reserve capacity would make more sense.
If your Porsche 911 use is more focused on track days or performance driving, you might want to look for the lightest battery possible. That's where the all-new OPTIMA QH6 ORANGETOP lithium battery comes into the picture. At just over 20 pounds the QH6 ORANGETOP is significantly lighter than any AGM or flooded-lead-acid option, while still offering plenty of cranking power to start any Porsche engine. While it is rated at 45AH of reserve capacity, the QH6 has OPTIMA's built-in CPR system, which automatically turns the battery off before it gets completely discharged, holding enough power in reserve to start the engine one more time and get you home safely. The QH6 lithium battery also has Bluetooth functionality, so you'll be able to monitor battery voltage and cycle life from your cell phone.
Whatever choice you make, we'd recommend keeping your battery voltage properly-maintained whenever possible to maximize battery performance and lifespan with a quality battery maintenance device. We're so confident this is the case, we'll extend your OPTIMA battery's free-replacement warranty coverage by a full year (that's four years of coverage for our YELLOWTOPs and six years of coverage for our ORANGETOPs), if you purchase your OPTIMA battery from us with an OPTIMA 1200 series charger.
The simple answer is that you do typically have choices, between H6/Group 48 (OPTIMA refers to that as either a DH6 for AGM or QH6 for Lithium), H7 (DH7 for OPTIMA or 94R for other brands) or H8 (sometimes referred to as a Group 49). All of those batteries will have no issue fitting in the Porsche battery trays or starting any Porsche engine, so the decision really doesn't come down to cranking amps or cold cranking amps. It's more about reserve capacity that modern Porsches like to tap into when the engine is turned off. The larger the battery, the more reserve capacity it will typically offer and one can typically look at the weight of a battery and see that a heavier battery with more material typically offers more reserve capacity.
However, if one looks closely at specifications for the physically largest battery of that group, the H8/49, they might see other battery brands claim 92AH of reserve capacity, but only weigh about 56 pounds. Comparing that with OPTIMA's DH6 YELLOWTOP, you'll essentially see a battery that is two sizes smaller, but still weighs nearly as much at 54 pounds. Likewise, OPTIMA's DH7 YELLOWTOP may be physically smaller than the H8/Group 49 batteries offered by other brands, but typically outweighs them at 60.5 pounds. We conservatively rate out DH7 YELLOWTOP at 80AH, which may seem like a lot less than the 90+AH offered by other brands in their larger H8 or Group 49 sizes, but if one were to re-visit that rating after a few years, they might find the OPTIMA is far closer to or exceeding the battery's stated ratings, while the other brands may experience a sharper drop off in performance.
The bottom line for Porsche 911 owners is that you probably don't need the largest battery you can fit in your battery tray if you drive your Porsche regularly or keep it on a quality battery maintenance device when you are not using it. If you don't maintain your battery or may leave it at airport parking for weeks on end, then a physically larger battery with more reserve capacity would make more sense.
If your Porsche 911 use is more focused on track days or performance driving, you might want to look for the lightest battery possible. That's where the all-new OPTIMA QH6 ORANGETOP lithium battery comes into the picture. At just over 20 pounds the QH6 ORANGETOP is significantly lighter than any AGM or flooded-lead-acid option, while still offering plenty of cranking power to start any Porsche engine. While it is rated at 45AH of reserve capacity, the QH6 has OPTIMA's built-in CPR system, which automatically turns the battery off before it gets completely discharged, holding enough power in reserve to start the engine one more time and get you home safely. The QH6 lithium battery also has Bluetooth functionality, so you'll be able to monitor battery voltage and cycle life from your cell phone.
Whatever choice you make, we'd recommend keeping your battery voltage properly-maintained whenever possible to maximize battery performance and lifespan with a quality battery maintenance device. We're so confident this is the case, we'll extend your OPTIMA battery's free-replacement warranty coverage by a full year (that's four years of coverage for our YELLOWTOPs and six years of coverage for our ORANGETOPs), if you purchase your OPTIMA battery from us with an OPTIMA 1200 series charger.