hellboy_mcqueen

This weekend, I tried to charge the battery as the car didnt move last 3 months. I have a CTEK 5.0 and I am using it regularly to charge the batteries of my 957 Cayenne Turbo and 987 Boxster. And I use the lighter as it is much easier than clamping to the battery itself. But GT4 didnt like it via lighter.

I plugged the charger. First everything is fine; started charging. But 2-3 mins later car shuts down the charger. Initially I thought, I should not lock the doors. But it doesnt make a difference. Only way to charge was to open the hood and directly clamping to the battery.

Anyone with different experience?

http://www.ctek.com/de/en/chargers/MXS%205.0

STLPCA

For the 6+ months I have had my GT4 I've regularly used my CTEK 3300 plugged into the console lighter socket to keep the battery charged. Works perfectly with no issues whether the doors are locked or not.

997rs4.0

Not a good idea to use ctek chargers on batteries that are low on juice.
They are designed to keep the battery topped up. Not strong enough to charge an almost drained battery.

hellboy_mcqueen

Weird.

My GT4 is German-spec with Clubsport and Sport Chrono; that might be the difference. The ODBII slot is in the fuse box. I think it is different in US versions; under the dashboard.

hellboy_mcqueen

Thx for the tip.

Actually the car multi-display was stating that the battery was 12.0v. And charger said it was more than 75% full already. It didnt loose so much charge based on these readings.

And the battery is Exide. I am really suprised that they are using a cheap battery. Boxster and Cayenne was using MOLL as OEM.

Perimeter

Respectfully disagreee.
I use a CTEK MUS 4.3 which provides 4.3 Amps of current and have used it on low batteries with no problem. I was surprised the case temp was not higher after an hour of max harging.

The GT4 has not arrived yet but my 997.2 GT3 has a cigarette lighter that is not switched off when keys removed. Perfect for cig lighter charging port and difficult to drive away with connected. I love my CTEKS (I have 4) but two things come to mind:

1) Check your insertion into the cigarette lighter, is it popping out?
My CTEK cigarette lighter came with a 1 inch removable red plug insert for long cigarette lighter barrels. Once I plugged it in and the extra length pushed it out and stopped charging

2) Is the lighter switched after delay?
Not sure about the GT4 but in my Audi I found several interior pick off points for tapping into power for my V1 radar install. These were peculiar in that they were switched with a ~10 sec delay to shutoff. Was driving me crazy untril I figured out the delay off - LOL!

Hope this helps

ShakeNBake

I don't seem to have any trouble charging/maintaining my Braille battery via the Braille charger through the passenger footwell 12v port. There is theory that unless there is current passing through it, the car will turn off the accessory circuit.

997rs4.0

I'll check what model my ctek is. Have been using them for years thru the cigarette outlet without issues. Did some work in the garage last fall and the car sat for a while without charge and haven't been driven.
Hooked it up again and the battery didn't like it. Took no charge.
Your charger is probably better than mine.

hellboy_mcqueen

I dont think the lighter is the issue or how good is the adapter put in. When i plugged first, then it works. After 2-3 mins, the charging stops when the car is locked or even if the car is not locked. But when i press the remote to unlock or re-unlock, charging starts again. Same for the other power outlets.

I parked the car in my company garage till weekend. I can try on Friday.

Perimeter

Sounds like the lighter is switched off after a delay.
Darn.

A lot of people may not realize that modern cars are constantly using battery power even when the key is out of the ignition. Was the battery bad or could you charge it back up with a dedicated charger?
3 months subjected to the current draw by modern cars can deplete a battery to reversal.

I love these Comfort End CTEK cigarette lighter plugs - plug it in without a charger and the three LEDs tell you at a glance about your battery health.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/271407226154

golfnutintib

same thing is happening to me, so you are not alone... people are posting on this thread but the posts are not really helpful in dealing directly with this issue...

DeerHunter

When I took delivery of my car, my SA advised me that the ignition needs to be on when plugging in the (dealer-supplied) battery maintainer. If it's charging once the ignition is switched off and the key removed, then the lighter socket will remain functional - otherwise it will turn off after a short while. I stored my car thusly for five months over the winter with no issues.

hellboy_mcqueen

Cool.
That is interesting. I will try this.

golfnutintib

i don't like the idea of the leaving the ignition on... it puts voltage to all the instruments and perhaps even the coil packs and spark plugs.

i may just need to connect a pigtail to the battery directly and connect the trickle charger that way... this sounds like another german engineering 'advancement' that is unnecessary and fixing something that isn't broken...

Perimeter

Not sure this is apples to apples. The way I read it, his SA said that you can shut the ignition off once cigarette lighter charging is active. Take the keys out of the car and it is still charging but you must estabish current draw prior to ignition off

Sounds like Porsche got this right too, although different than the GT3!