Trickle charger

[bombur]

I've got my Z3 hooked up to a Ctek MXS 5.0 charger and am going to start her up today and bring her out for a clean. Question: is it worth sticking my Z4 E89 on the trickle charge for a day or so? The battery is about 2 years old. Or just stick it back on the Z3

 

[AntStark]

You shouldn’t need it for a day and that’s not old for a battery.

 

[bombur]

You shouldn’t need it for a day and that’s not old for a battery.

Cheers, I thought so also, but then as its also a maintenance charger I wondered if it was a good thing to do

 

[Nodzed]

I've got my Z3 hooked up to a Ctek MXS 5.0 charger and am going to start her up today and bring her out for a clean. Question: is it worth sticking my Z4 E89 on the trickle charge for a day or so? The battery is about 2 years old. Or just stick it back on the Z3

If you charge the e89 don't connect the charger direct to the battery, always use the under bonnet terminals.

 

[bombur]

Thanks @Nodzed

 

[Nodzed]

@bombur
Just thought I'd pass this on, as my e89 can sit for weeks especially in the winter I added a permanent CteK charger connection to the terminals in the engine bay, very handy.

 

[bombur]

@bombur
Just thought I'd pass this on, as my e89 can sit for weeks especially in the winter I added a permanent CteK charger connection to the terminals in the engine bay, very handy.
View attachment 310809

Ah that looks good, I was wondering about using the 12v cigarette adapter as I do with the Z3, however windows close all the way so unsure about the lead to the wall socket

 

[Nodzed]

Ah that looks good, I was wondering about using the 12v cigarette adapter as I do with the Z3, however windows close all the way so unsure about the lead to the wall socket

This way you can close the bonnet and it wont affect the lead

 

[B21]

Ah that looks good, I was wondering about using the 12v cigarette adapter as I do with the Z3, however windows close all the way so unsure about the lead to the wall socket

The E89 cigar socket is not permanently live..therefore for that and other reasons you can’t / shouldn’t use that for charging the battery…as said either disconnect the battery from the car and charge it ..which in itself is not a good idea unless you have too…or use the charging post in the engine bay

 

[Nodzed]

Ah that looks good, I was wondering about using the 12v cigarette adapter as I do with the Z3, however windows close all the way so unsure about the lead to the wall socket

On the e89s don't use the cigarette lighter either. Charging must be done via the intelligent battery sensor (IBS). The system knows the past voltage, leaked voltage and start voltage (usage voltage) of the car battery and adjusts charging from the alternator accordingly, if you bypass the IBS by charging by another route the IBS could send too much voltage to the battery on start up and knacker it, the under bonnet terminals will go through the IBS and it will record the charge. See the note on charging below.

 

[bombur]

Thank you @B21 @Nodzed

 

[bombur]

@bombur
Just thought I'd pass this on, as my e89 can sit for weeks especially in the winter I added a permanent CteK charger connection to the terminals in the engine bay, very handy.
View attachment 310809

Hi @Nodzed , What is your negative attached to in this picture please? UPDATE: Have resolved now

 

[elevensies]

just for interest, im not a huge fan of trickle chargers, many dont allow the battery to cycle the load, but about 18 months ago, i got a new battery for my other car, its garaged and kept garage wam. A month ago car wouldnt start, battery dead.... luckily 5 year warranty on said battery.
was asked if i used a trickle charger...yes a ctec one. turns out that is what killed it.
i have motorbikes, and the ones that are stored up, or in long term hibernation get their batteries removed and put in the downstairs toilet at home. rarely do i have an issue upon re connection.

 

[bombur]

just for interest, im not a huge fan of trickle chargers, many dont allow the battery to cycle the load, but about 18 months ago, i got a new battery for my other car, its garaged and kept garage wam. A month ago car wouldnt start, battery dead.... luckily 5 year warranty on said battery.
was asked if i used a trickle charger...yes a ctec one. turns out that is what killed it.
i have motorbikes, and the ones that are stored up, or in long term hibernation get their batteries removed and put in the downstairs toilet at home. rarely do i have an issue upon re connection.

Interesting debate

 

[Ianmc]

Agree with above; best is to use the car regularly as intended!

 

[Pond]

was asked if i used a trickle charger...yes a ctec one. turns out that is what killed it.

I would be interested in how someone thinks a decent maintenance charger would 'kill' a battery.
Ctek chargers (and the like) are very clever; they never over-charge (as long as they are working correctly of course) a battery as they monitor voltage and can alter their own voltage to suit.

 

[Synclare]

Sounds like someone wanting to duck out of providing a replacement under guarantee. If you said '"No I don't use a trickle charger" they would probably say "Ah well you let it discharge and that's what killed it", you can't win,

just for interest, im not a huge fan of trickle chargers, many dont allow the battery to cycle the load, but about 18 months ago, i got a new battery for my other car, its garaged and kept garage wam. A month ago car wouldnt start, battery dead.... luckily 5 year warranty on said battery.
was asked if i used a trickle charger...yes a ctec one. turns out that is what killed it

 

[elevensies]

I would be interested in how someone thinks a decent maintenance charger would 'kill' a battery.
Ctek chargers (and the like) are very clever; they never over-charge (as long as they are working correctly of course) a battery as they monitor voltage and can alter their own voltage to suit.

i did a small amount of research, and found its the OHMS that cause the issues, the battery it self will typically hold and charge to around 12v, and it will be fluctuating on the 12 to 13.8v cycle, however, the OHMS Internal resistance gives us critical information about our car battery. A high reading of resistance should be a cause for alarm to notify you that your car battery is nearing its death. And as far as im aware OHMS isnt part of any trickle chargers abilities or measurements.
So, quite likely the batteries crank hours or crank ability (ohms) is nearing end, yet we dont measure this only how mant volts its holding within its lead acid

 

[B21]

i did a small amount of research, and found its the OHMS that cause the issues, the battery it self will typically hold and charge to around 12v, and it will be fluctuating on the 12 to 13.8v cycle, however, the OHMS Internal resistance gives us critical information about our car battery. A high reading of resistance should be a cause for alarm to notify you that your car battery is nearing its death. And as far as im aware OHMS isnt part of any trickle chargers abilities or measurements.
So, quite likely the batteries crank hours or crank ability (ohms) is nearing end, yet we dont measure this only how mant volts its holding within its lead acid

Well....

a couple of pertinent points..

CTEK supplies these chargers to BMW (and others) as branded OE products..can't see BMW marketing a product under its own name that would be so bad for batteries..

On the E89 if the battery that can't hold at least 60% SOC then its useless for the car and most likely will cause all sorts of issues..so running a battery to near end of life is not feasable..

 

[Pond]

Resistivity (measure in ohms) is directly linked to current and voltage, hence ohm's law V=IR. A smart charger (such as the ctek) can alter the current flow into the battery, as well as the voltage.

I can see that a damaged battery will be MORE damaged by a charger, but can't see a healthy one being 'killed' by a smart charger.