Washed my car this past Sunday and forget to hook up the CTEK. Car is now dead (Tuesday) as a door nail. I know these cars draw lots of power but I’m assuming I need to replace the battery?….up to now I’ve been afraid to go anywhere overnight for fear I can’t use the CTEK…if I replace the battery is overnight CTEK use still a must???
Any comments appreciated.

 

Shouldn't be unless you have a drain on the battery. Make sure your red triangle light (Hazard Warning) light goes off about 10-15 minutes after you shut the car off. You should be able to go a good 2 weeks without having the charger on.

 

I drive mine once or twice a week (often short journeys) and I guess I put it on ctek every 3 months.

I could be closer to 2 months but definitely no problem overnight.

 

If I don’t have the CTEK currently hooked up nightly the battery dies…a battery if fully functioning shouldn’t die this quick?

I was told by a forum member that a CTEK should be used every day- is this overkill??

 

Yes, this is overkill. Is the original battery still in the car? I only connect my battery maintainer when the car is stored in the winter. No problem sitting for weeks in the summer.

 

I believe it is the original battery. My car has required the CTEK daily and if not- it dies. I think my next move is a new battery…2016 MY.

 

Although certainly not required, there are advantages to using your CTEK daily if you are willing/able. In theory it will extend the life of any new battery you might buy. So, depending on how one looks at it, it might not be “overkill”.

It will also potentially avoid unnecessary misleading low voltage issues that can masquerade as a whole bunch of different looking things that are not actually happening.

 

9-10 years out of the original battery is great. Definitely time to replace it! I replaced mine at 7 years as a preventative measure.

 

During lockdown (remember those days?) my car sat for three months unused, and it started on the button after that time. It did show "battery low"(!) and I charged it right up after that and it's been fine ever since. Just over 8 years old now, so keeping an eye on it.

 

Yes, ready to be replaced. You can get a JLR battery (AGM) or another brand. Do realize that the new battery may have sat on the shelf for a period of time and will need to be charged... a good reason for a good healthy drive in the car!

Make sure the red triangle goes out, which means there should be no extra electrical draws.

Exposure to cold weather is hard on batteries, so keep this in mind to encourage regular startups and use.

 

Consumer wisdom regards lead-acid batteries was always to buy one within 6 months of the date on the new battery. In the past few years, I buy directly from a local Interstate warehouse that is close to my house....so they are always 'fresh'.

I HAVE noticed that Interstate's date stickers on their batteries are 'optimistic'...that is, if I buy one in October the date sticker says it was new in November! I doubt that one month is much of a difference, though.

 

Not as optimistic as Jaguar's MY - my 25th March 2017 built car is MY18!

 

Changing the battery is easy.

I used a power supply to power the front connection. Thus full power during the process.

The Duralast battery I used was a 800 ah model. The 900 on the larger engine cars also fits.

Takes minutes to change. A bit over $200. I would take any anomaly as a warning;

We travel a bit. Frequently gone for more than a month. The Jag seems unaffected.

If the battery is over 6 years old then I would change it.

The have a habit of expiring at the worst time.

 

I've had my 3.0S coupe for 15 months now. I drive it about once a month, and when it's not in use, it's always on the tender. No problems so far.