12v battery maintenance, issues, etc.

[Derek.w]

1 hour ago, TonyHSD said:

Here with the red arrow. Open this cover and you will see another small red cover says + on it or near . Lift up to connect the positive cable and the negative onto the shock absorber nut one of 3. Job done 

It may be the fuse box cover on the other wing for the positive blade that pivots upwards.

[Mint Tea]

12 hours ago, TonyHSD said:

Here with the red arrow. Open this cover and you will see another small red cover says + on it or near . Lift up to connect the positive cable and the negative onto the shock absorber nut one of 3. Job done 

 

Like this? Thank you.

[TonyHSD]

3 hours ago, Mint Tea said:

Like this? Thank you.

Yes, that is the one. Here some extra information 

 

[CruxisCore]

Most small boosters won't reach that far either for the black. But almost any bit of bare metal, like a head of a bolt nearby will do. It wont work anyways if the black isnt connected to a proper place.

The entire chassis and everything metal connected to it acts as the returning -/black terminal. But you need bare metal, cos if its painted, it might not conduct it through the paint unless you scratch the paint first, which probably isnt smart. So literally just about any bolt/nut or other metal piece you can find nearby that isnt painted works. And if it doesnt, find another.

[Dezzer21]

I have an old charger that I used for my 4x4 diesel does anyone think it would be fine to use on my Yaris cross, see photo.

 Thanks 

[Tommy X]

1 hour ago, Dezzer21 said:

I have an old charger that I used for my 4x4 diesel does anyone think it would be fine to use on my Yaris cross, see photo.

 Thanks 

I wouldn't risk it, get a smart charger, Ctek or similar 

[Dezzer21]

I thought so did check Battery earlier with a tester showing half charge will have to bite the bullet and get a smart charger.

[Roy124]

Before I knew better I tried a charger with the normal/fast setting.  Lots of flashing lights but I chickened out and called the AA.

That sort of charger will bang in either the high ampage or Trickle charge but it is unregulated.   You have to switch off when done.  Bang in 5A for 10 hours overnight in a Battery with 35AHr capacity isn't going to do the Battery any favours.  At 2A it might not be enough.

A smart or float charger will not overcharge the Battery.

[Derek.w]

Smart charger for agm gel or ca/ca batterys for 14 to 130Ah batterys 14.4 volts 3.8Amps

Can go to 14.7 volts for cold weather charging but its maybe user selectable mode.

The AA will just use a jump starter so it wont do your Battery any favours as it be ratad at 20Ah or more.

[Dezzer21]

How do you know what type of Battery you have fitted when I checked mine all I could see was a plain white casing.

 

[Derek.w]

If its just for charging then its a smart charger a normal charger can partly charge it but its not regulated so can also overcharge your Battery if connected for to long.

If you after a replacment Battery it be AGM but to confirm this you have to at least partly remove the Battery it have a sticker on it near the battery poles.

[anchorman]

9 hours ago, Dezzer21 said:

How do you know what type of battery you have fitted when I checked mine all I could see was a plain white casing.

 

 

[Dezzer21]

Managed to move Battery short distance as didn’t want to disconnect which charger do you think best. Looking at Noco genius 5 or Ctek mxs 5.0 reviews say both very similar.

 

[Jasper.]

I have the ctek mxs 05 and I'm very happy with it but I also have the Noco booster pack and if anything I think the Noco is better made ??

[CruxisCore]

Different things for different jobs. CTEK MXS 5.0 is a smart charger, a trickle charger and a handful of other things you might wanna call it. It is not made for jumping the car. But to slowly charge it in the most optimal of ways. It's what you leave on for over night or something every now and then to maintain the Battery.

Noco booster packs are for jumping the car back alive when the Battery has gone flat. It will get you going again and fits in the glove box, so you can get home and use the CTEK at home to properly revitalize the Battery. Having a flat 12v and needing a booster pack to jump it, but leaving it at that instead of charging the battery up properly at the first chance is a near surefire way to ensure your battery will leave you on the road again.

So a good rule of thumb is that if you ever need to jump the car, you 100% need to charge the battery with a CTEK or similar if you want the battery to not die on you again in 2 weeks which will almost ensure your battery is as good as a paper weight soon

[Jasper.]

I know one's a charger and one's a boost pack , I was merely comparing the build quality. 

[CruxisCore]

I felt they were both quite similar. Rather plasticy (considering how "high quality" they are seen as) but I suppose rather weather proof.

[Dezzer21]

The way I’ve read descriptions the Noco genius 5 is a charger not a boost jump starter, excuses if I’m wrong.

[CruxisCore]

1 hour ago, Dezzer21 said:

The way I’ve read descriptions the Noco genius 5 is a charger not a boost jump starter, excuses if I’m wrong.

That is yes, thought se were talking about noco booster packs (as in GB40 ETC)

[Dezzer21]

Got CTEK MXS 5.0 today put on charge took an hour to get to full.

 

[Dala]

Driving 1.5 hours today - "smart charging" car Battery at 12.8V 99% of the total driving time. It is interesting that the system evaluates a voltage of 12.25V as a sufficiently charged car Battery. 

[Derek.w]

59 minutes ago, Dala said:

Driving 1.5 hours today - "smart charging" car battery at 12.8V 99% of the total driving time. It is interesting that the system evaluates a voltage of 12.25V as a sufficiently charged car battery. 

I think it means this is the voltage now at this moment in time 12.25Volts within a 3 minute time cycle or there about. Then after that its receving a charge.

[Dala]

14 minutes ago, Derek.w said:

I think it means this is the voltage now at this moment in time 12.25Volts within a 3 minute time cycle or there about. Then after that its receving a charge.

Derek, you have a new Battery. Is your graph the same during the day?

[CruxisCore]

I dont have a fancy way to get graphs like this, but just from the cigarette lighter voltage monitor, my few week old Yaris Cross isnt going that low. It seems to charge a lot more often than yours for starters, but in general I havnt really seen it below 12,6v much at all if any

Also, it almost felt like that a new car has some forced charge cycle at the start. For like the first 2 days the voltage didnt drop from 13,9v or something at all, as in it was charging all the time. Then, when it presumably hit a full SoC or some other threshold, it started acting normally. If it's actually hard coded in there, them that's good. It would be smart to have it do that a few times a year probably, but that might be wishful thinking.

[Derek.w]

21 hours ago, Dala said:

Derek, you have a new battery. Is your graph the same during the day?

Dala, Its the same if I charge it using CTEK it wont drop a for a while staying at 100%+ that is.

I also have Veepeak pluged in so its a extra drain of 2 or 3 mA per hour.