Agreed. I don't understand what the issue could be here but I'd love to know what people are talking about. Here's the same debate over on 6speedonline but one person, another direct battery connect guy, seems to have nailed it.

http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/9...-tender-2.html

 

This.

 

Lex, can you elaborate on "this?"

 

I don't understand the reasoning either. But, since both posts are readily accessible, with a diagram in the manual, I followed his advice.
Another suggestion he gave me was to lock the car. Since I will not be able to get the car fully warmed up any time this winter, he said don't ever start the engine. After a couple of weeks with the car locked, the electronics go into some sort of safe mode.
btw, like your John Deere, my other driver is a Kubota with loader and backhoe. Talk about unsprung wt!

 

What would be wrong with just disconnecting the negative terminal from the battery? " make sure the hood is adjared open"

 

Plug battery maintainer into the cigarette lighter or footwell. Run cord out the passenger door. Close it. Lock it. Done. Been doing this for many-many years.

 

I did lock the car as well. There's no way to even take a spin around the block (that's 5 miles here in the country) here on a nice day given our road conditions. So I won't start it until the Spring. Loader and backhoe, huh? You're ready for anything. I've got lots of implements but no backhoe.

 

Got it. Thanks.