Ctek charger

[pistolpete]

So I was surprised yesterday when I tried to use my car and I got a flat battery, I always have a slow charger on it, haven't used the car in 6 weeks and it was flat. The battery was actually pretty warm which also seemed odd and wrong, I guess batteries will always let go but this one is only 8 years old and always had a trickle charger on it.
What experiences have you had with chargers?
SO the next question has anyone bought a lithium battery I noticed a thread on here for more expensive lead acid batteries.

Cheers


Pete

[Lotus-e-Clan]

No experience with Lithium.

What make of battery? I found the quality vairies.

Best normal battery I've had on the Lotus has been the VARTA (only on tricke when the CTECH fly-lead LED indicator turns orange). But then I always switch off the 'discarnet' when not using the Lotus and that helps a lot to preserve batteries.

Had a VARTA on the Clan too that lasted 12+ years with no trickle charging and was still serviceable when I swapped for a lighter Optimax M/C gel battery. But, unlike the Excel, there is zero phantom battery discharge on the Clan.

The worst batteries I've had, have been Halfords Calcium on the Lotus. I replaced mine several times under warranty then I gave up and took it to the tip, because it was just soooo unreliable.

As long as you don't care about losing the station presets on the radio, I recommend fitting a 'Discarnet' rotary knob to the negative battery terminal, switch off the battery EVERY time you leave the car unused for more than a day or two, and ONLY trickle charge the battery sporadically, as and when. By accounts on here and from my own experience, the Excel has several possible phantom drains, which range from dodgy old-school immobilisers, THE CLOCK!!, and shorts in circuits (like relays) due to dampness/corrosion.

[pistolpete]

It was a Bosch battery. Ok great advise I will buy a Discarnect,. and be prepared to getting back out the car and turning it on again for the next few years ve not come across them before seems a pretty good anti theft device too

[Johnwindwood]

We have a discarnect- the type with the fuse to keep the clock and radio settings. Because we kept forgetting and blowing the fuse, we replaced it with a resettable fuse. Much easier!

Charger wise, we give both of our classics a regular conditioning with Lidl trickle chargers-they work in exactly the same way as a C-Tek but they are a fraction of the price.

[Oldtimer_Basis]

Eight Years ?!? Twelve Years ?!?!? The average Battery lasts roundabout 5-6 Years `till it´s ready for Recycling
These Gel-Batteries don´t last much longer normally, either. As you have experienced already, you can get lucky and your Battery lasts very long, but that is not bound to a special Quality-Brand... it´s just Luck. Therefore my recommendation: Buy the cheap one

[ianhateswork]

My battery gave out a couple of months ago and I decided to go for lithium and a charger.
I read that the alternator can overheat because of the way lithium takes its charge and then i found an article that recommended some form of resistor or a long cable run
to the battery.
Have felt the alternator temp more than a dozen times and its never been to hot for my hand. it starts the car hot or cold without issue on one of those modern starters, but i have not churned it over till the battery gives up, so i dont know how much cranking you get , it has plenty of starting power and the onboard reading is 13.4v.
An isolator seemed a good idea and i had to use the round terminals off the old battery, not cheap!

came from https://jackwebbmotorsport.co.uk/JWM-PS ... p164835009





those tyre sealant things, actually work, used them on my other car, lpg no spare.

Did i mention that its 14kg lighter, lose the spare wheel, jack, handle, boot floor, batt cover and your car is 40kg lighter.
ian.

[Lotus-e-Clan]

......

Did i mention that its 14kg lighter, lose the spare wheel, jack, handle, boot floor, batt cover and your car is 40kg lighter.
ian.

40kg is a significant loss on the rear end. When I ran with a smaller Optimax gel battery and removed my spare wheel (18Kg) and rear spoiler I lost the rear end on every mildy moist roundabout. So it all went back. But then more weight on the rear suits ny driving style. I do tend to keep my foot-in / get on the power early (a bad habit learned from years of driving rear engined cars ).
I suppose you can easily restore the lost rear grip by keeping the tank above half full mind.

Eight Years ?!? Twelve Years ?!?!? The average Battery lasts roundabout 5-6 Years `till it´s ready for Recycling
These Gel-Batteries don´t last much longer normally, either. As you have experienced already, you can get lucky and your Battery lasts very long, but that is not bound to a special Quality-Brand... it´s just Luck. Therefore my recommendation: Buy the cheap one

Don't think it's luck, more to do with operating conditions, + or - parasitic drains, and use. Halfords calcium batteries's weren't cheap and VARTA aren't expensive, but some brands do have a better reputation for quality of construction than others.

[pistolpete]

Ian, that looks seriously smart, really nice job. I have spare wheel ,jack and those tyre fillers, mine was from having an LPG car in the past. never liked the idea of changing a tyre by the side of a road, glad they actually work. Does it cause hassle when you get the tyre minded ?

[tonypoll]

I've used a CTEK charger on my Excel for maybe 15 years. Its worked extremely well, and the battery never gave me a minute's worry.
My Excel is nowhere near being a 'daily driver' so it is left for long period on the CTEK charger.
Highly recommended.
Tony

[ianhateswork]

Tyre filler is a mix of latex and lpg, took the tyre home when off the rim and gave it a good scrub, then back to be repaired.