Does anyone have any recommendations for a battery charger/maintainer for 1996 XJS? Are they connected directly to the battery terminals? Thxs

 

I just picked up a 1.5 Amp 12V Three Stage Onboard Battery Charger/MaintainerIt indicates Power, Charging at local auto parts store for under $30.Hooked directly to car battery terminals, along with Battery Warmer for the cold mornings.
Just Plug in and leave.

Jaguar Stored In Shop

 

I use a Deltran Battery Tender Jr., .75 amp. It can be attached directly to the battery or attached with alligator clips. Works great.

 

Noco G3500 and G7200 are more expensive but are very good.

 

I wired my maintainer to the battery cables in a way that I leave hooked up and use a plug outside the boot lid to use the maintainer which is mounted on the wall of my carport.
RagJag

 

I have the same one, I agree works great. I used the alligator clips on mine since the battery is out of the Jag. Current working on checking, cleaning and replacing thing that need.

 

Don't have any product names or links, but they make a product that I think you can plug into the cigarette lighter to maintain the battery.

Saw it on Harry's garage a while ago, he has an old mercedes he keeps in france, and has this installed on the car. He cut a hole out of the car cover so sunlight can shine through to the solar panel and keep the battery charged.

If the car is inside a tender may be a better option. If you don't drive it then just unhook the battery...

 

I use a battery disconnect switch on my car. Marine type, no spark. It saves the battery from dying.

 

I have been pretty happy with this Schumacher so far-

 

I had a similar Schumacher, not sure if it was the same model number but it didn't last too long before it stopped working correctly.

 

A battery disconnect device will cause any memory settings to erase. Such as electric clock, radio settings, seat memory, etc. Had one. Worked, but didn't like the hassle of loosing the settings.

 

I agree. If you have an older carb'd car these are awesome and I would put them on anything and everything. If you have a newer car with electric clock, radio settings, or especially o2 sensors, I wouldn't use one of those.

 

Hi
I have a problem with a dead battery, and it seems that I cannot open the trunk. Is there an issue where, if the battery is dead, it is impossible to open the trunk (boot) to access it?
The keys don't appear to turn all the way.
Bill

 

After a bit of research 3 Years ago I purchased a Ctek charger. This european company makes the same chargers for Ferrari, RR, Bentley, Lambo etc.

I have never had an issue with it, my car is always charged and the battery is always conditioned. You could look up how it compares. It surpasses and its cheap for what it does.

 

No prob. You can jump start the car from the right hand side battery stud located on the bulkhead (firewall). I've done it many times, myself. -- Furthermore, you may just power the car at that same point with a suitable external 12 volt source and pop the trunk lid open.

Cheers,

 

I have a 1.5 amp charger/maintainer from Schumacher ($30.00) and I'm constantly using it on my cars, especially the XJS, if only because it doesn't get driven very often. It isn't a fast charger, but that's not what what it's designed for, as sometimes it takes up to three days to finally flash the green LED, of course, depending on how discharged your battery is. From there on, it will maintain the right charge forever.

However, for a faster charge, last Christmas I stole a great charger on sale at Harbor Freight Store. It offers three selectable charging levels, with the lowest being a 2.0 amp charger-maintainer, then a 10 amp charger and also a 50 amp jump starter. Believe it or not, it once started my XJR (4.0L V8). MSRP $79.99, I bought it on sale back at Christmas for $29.99. Right now on sale for the same price (coupon on-line). Great device and for this price it is, indeed, a steal.

Cheers,

 

You can plug any charger-maintainer to the cigarette lighter receptacle provided that you rewire it so it is hot at all times. I have no idea why Jaguar has insisted in providing only switched power to it. My wife's little Z3 comes from the factory with a hot receptacle, which makes things so easy, like using the 12v vacuum, or tire inflator, charging a cell phone, etc. I rewired my XJS and it saves me beaucoup headaches. -- Just rewire it already and make life easier... you'll find yourself often taking advantage of the convenience.

Cheers,

 

This is the Harbor Freight 3-level charger/jump starter:

 

I bought one of the 1.5AMP 6/12VDC battery charger maintainers for about $35.

It came with a alligator clip type of connectors going to a charger male/female plug.
I removed the alligator clips and spliced it to an extension cable that had ring terminals on the other end. The 94 XJS 2+2 has a +12VDC (HOT DC) on the firewall
(US driverside) and a ground terminal on the passenger firewall side.
I wired up the extension cable to those terminal posts and routed the
charger cable connector out the front grill on the drivers side headlight.
Now I can connect the charger without opening the bonnet.
I also found out later it comes in handy when the car is locked and the battery has gone down. Just connect the charger for a few moments and you can now operate
the door locks !

 

Drivers side (LHD) terminal


Thanks for Scarbro and ForcedAir!
So to be clear - near the top of the firewall on the right hand side facing the car from the front, I found a terminal with a rubber cover, sort of like the cover on many car battery terminals. I also found another similar one on the other side (left hand side facing the car from the front). Am I to understand that the left hand one is negative ground? The diagram in the Jaguar manual makes it look like all those terminals are positive.