New Battery what battery maintainer to buy

rcdancer said:

36+ hours and the battery is still not fully charged. I went by the dealer and spoke to the service manager. He said the CTEK can take a really long time (several days) to charge depending on how low the battery is. If by Monday, it's still not fully charged, bring it in and he will fast charge it.

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If you bought a Porsche charger, its probably the 3300. Did you read the manual? What did it say? Go download from the ctek 3300 manual from their website. It can take more than 48 hours for the 4.3 if the battery is drained. The 3.3 amp will take longer. The 7000 less time.

Really bad idea to leave anything plugged in these days. The cars eat energy.

grim said:

If you bought a Porsche charger, its probably the 3300. Did you read the manual? What did it say? Go download from the ctek 3300 manual from their website. It can take more than 48 hours for the 4.3 if the battery is drained. The 3.3 amp will take longer. The 7000 less time.

Really bad idea to leave anything plugged in these days. The cars eat energy.

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Manual doesn't say how long it can take to charge. Also I read online that it takes longer to reach a full charge through the cigarette lighter outlet, as compared to connecting directly to the battery terminals.


I also shortened the time the lights stay on after the ignition is off to 10 secs (shortest allowed).

The charts don't seem to make much sense. Car was finally fully charged when I came home - so somewhere between 38 and 48 hours to switch to maintenance mode. (And I had read online that is could take more than 48 hours.)

rcdancer said:

It's happily charging.

Another question - a couple of times when starting the car, I had been hearing a warning that the battery was low. Is that something to worry about? (I think it had to do with the fact that I was leaving the radar detector plugged in and the car keeps power to the outlet for 30 mins after shutoff.)

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Hardwire your Radar Detector. There are a few threads here on MF with details.
You want a fuse that is OFF as soon as you turn off the ignition.

rcdancer said:

The charts don't seem to make much sense.

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They do to me!! Which bit is unclear?

Guy88 said:

They do to me!! Which bit is unclear?

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In the sense of giving a time estimate to full charge.

rcdancer said:

In the sense of giving a time estimate to full charge.

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Hmmm. 8 + 20 + 8 + (3mins) = 36 hours 3 minutes! (plus another 2-6 hours if you selected a reconditioning option).


Of course those figures are estimated maximums for a serviceable battery, but of course no charger can guess the state of charge of your battery when charging commences, hence should be viewed as an approximate guide.

Guy88 said:

Hmmm. 8 + 20 + 8 + (3mins) = 36 hours 3 minutes! (plus another 2-6 hours if you selected a reconditioning option).


Of course those figures are estimated maximums for a serviceable battery, but of course no charger can guess the state of charge of your battery when charging commences, hence should be viewed as an approximate guide.

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Thanks

For years I have had a Battery Tender brand 4 place unit attached to my garage wall with extention wires run up to and across the ceiling and then let them drop down to the appropriate location so that I can drive in and plug it in to the pigtails I have installed on each car, truck tractor and ATV. It really increases battery life and prevents batteries slowly going down when not in use. My tractor battery lasted 12 years.

I found this chart helpful in deciding which CTEK charger to purchase instead of the Porsche charger (made by CTEK)


Although I'm the US, when I searched for CTEK products it seems I was more often than not directed to the European site. Could not find the same chart on that site. Maybe their product line is a little different. This chart does not seem to have the exact Porsche version which includes a Lithium battery option. Maybe its a EU product. All except for two chargers on the chart work with AGM batteries.

I went with the MSX 5.0, works on all size and type batteries, adjusts for ambient temperature, reconditions batteries and has progress indicator lights which helps confirm that if you are charging through a 12v plug outlet that the outlet being used is hot through out the process. It is $72 on Amazon. The 12v plug adaptor is $12.99. Big difference vs the $200 Porsche product.

I already got the CTEK MUS 7002 for my Civic (Summer Tires) when its hardly used in the winter. I haven't used it with the Macan yet, since its basically our main daily vehicle. I'm guessing it will work though.

The MSX 5.0 looks like it will be fine. I have the MUS 7002 as @Reanard does. Works fine for my several cars & battery types. It has a Normal mode, a "Snowflake-symbol" mode, and a couple of others for reconditioning or whatever. The Normal mode is for regular 12v batteries. For the Porsche with AGM (absorbent gas mat) batteries it is recommended to use the Snowflake mode.

mountainman said:

For years I have had a Battery Tender brand 4 place unit attached to my garage wall with extention wires run up to and across the ceiling and then let them drop down to the appropriate location so that I can drive in and plug it in to the pigtails I have installed on each car, truck tractor and ATV. It really increases battery life and prevents batteries slowly going down when not in use. My tractor battery lasted 12 years.

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My setup is not as slick as yours, I just have several individual Battery Tender Plus(es), but similar experience, they really do work and no issues. It is really great to drive a car for the first time in six+ months over a long winter and it fires right up like you drove it yesterday.

2015turbo said:

My setup is not as slick as yours, I just have several individual Battery Tender Plus(es), but similar experience, they really do work and no issues. It is really great to drive a car for the first time in six+ months over a long winter and it fires right up like you drove it yesterday.

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Might be moving off topic a little. Another storage issue that may relate more to items like generators, snow blowers, lawn tractors, etc. that may see longer periods of no usage is the use of fuel stabilizers. An alternative to fuel stabilizers is using marine gas like Valvtect if it is available in your area. Its ethanol / alcohol free and already include stabilizers. It's also a good idea to run stores equipment occasionally just to exercise them a little. I try to run everything at least four times a year around the solstice/equinox dates, roughly 3/20, 6/20, 9/20 and 12/20.

JoeInBucks said:

Might be moving off topic a little. Another storage issue that may relate more to items like generators, snow blowers, lawn tractors, etc. that may see longer periods of no usage is the use of fuel stabilizers.

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That is a real problem as ethanol is a killer for small engines. Its also a reason why electric small engines is becoming more and more viable and is real. No need to have a gas/oil trimmer, blower, chain saw, etc anymore nor a gas snow blower or lawn mower for small jobs. They are not come into their own for larger engines yet but they will. No need to even touch gas, store it, go get it, just plug in the battery.

While much of what CA does I think is strange, in this case I agree with them


The freedom of not having to store gasoline feels good. Its just a matter of time before for small engines, they will all be gone.

Great advice. Just what I needed. Any thoughts on which unit to purchase?

Any of the 5 Amp and higher should do it. But, the 7002 has a mode for supplying power with the battery out, if that is something you need. It should also be charge quicker. I have both an older 4.3 and the 7002 but only use the 7002 now. If you want to do the battery analyzer thing, I would avoid something like the test and charge and get a real battery analyzer. Many people get the MXS 5.0. But if it get cold, than the Polar unit might be best for you.