jumbolump

New 993 owner w. noob ? Looking for battery maintainer for winter months when car is sitting. I like the sound of the Porsche Battery Maintainer that plugs right into the cig lighter but does it work well? Any draw backs to maintaining charge via the cig lighter? Or is a direct clamp to the battery the preferred method via product like the "Battery Tender". They are both same price ($59).

Any advice much appreciated from those in the know. thanks.

mike cap

The Porsche Maintainer is the one to buy. New # 980-611-981-00. $55.00 from Suncoast Motorsports in Florida. Have used mine for 8 years and works great. Super long cord that fits under the door easily. You'll be happy....

MarkD

I have used the little Porsche cigerette lighter plug in tenders and ctek for many years with no problems.

I just ordered another ctek for my tractor... been meaning to do that for a long time.

but you might not want to listen to me.
I tend to not think too much about battery chargers... and so far, so good. My batteries don't go dead and they last as long as batteries should last.

matt777

I use the CTEK 3300 with the permanently mounted battery harness which has a quick connect on it. It works well for me.

jumbolump

Thanks forr the feedback. The Porsche model that attaches to the cig ligher just sounds so much more user friendly. I heard that you have to have a "hot" lighter when ignition is off or just turn the ignition on half if not. Any truth to that?

No HTwo O

Ignition off. Key out. Plugged into cig. lighter. Good to go!

jumbolump

DONE. thanks.

IXLR8

Porsche does not make battery chargers...neither does BMW or MB.

The one to get is the one that gives you a bit of control over the charging process.

As a minimum, that would be the CTEK Multi US 3300.

It has waterproof connectors (if that matters) and comes with two plug-in harnesses; one that connects directly to the battery and another with a pair of clamps.

You'll notice on page 9 of the Owner's Manual that it has three modes which will fit your needs.

They are priced around $50.

No HTwo O

The red light on the simple Porsche battery maintainer turns off, when the battery is fully charged. Don't be alarmed if this takes a couple days.

Canyon56

As Alex says, the Porsche model is actually a CTek. Mercedes does the same thing, rebrands CTeks.

Get a Porsche one, but buy it from CTek and save $$. The 3300 is exactly the same one Porsche dealers sell.

It's a great charger, btw. Even without having "Porsche" or "Mercedes" written on it.
http://www.ctek.com/EN-US/consumer/mus-3300.aspx

mike cap

The Porsche Maintainer # 980-611-981-00 from Suncoast Motorsports is pictured. This is the one to get. As "No H2O" says....Ignition off. Key out. Plugged into cig. lighter. Good to go.

MarkD

Obviously Porsche doesn't make batt chargers...

Any idea who makes that one for Porsche?

I have a couple of these that have lasted years. I am sure the version without the Porsche logo is a bit less...

But then it wouldn't match my Porsche sunglasses. And wine glass set. And underwear...

tropheus

I always had problems over the winter time and even in the summer if I didn't drive the car for 4 weeks. Now they are on the CTEX charger and I love it. Especially the quick connectors with having the power lines fix to the battery. No messing around with the trunk carpet anymore.

Jack

gonzilla

I have the CTEK 7002 and the quick connect on both of my cars. It's a pretty cool system.

Matt Lane

I've used this model sucessfully for 3 years. Easy, no fuss, no problems.

M