CTEK experiment
 

I have been experimenting with the Ctek to see whether it is worthwhile to lock the car while in the garage. When I was at the jag dealer the tech told me that when you leave the car it stays on full alert for 20 min. then half shuts down for another 20min then fully shuts down, If you lock it it partially but never fully shuts down because of the security system. Decided to see if it makes a difference in the time it takes for the CTEK to go to fully green charge if I lock it or not. In my highly scientific scenerio I found that the CTEK goes to green quicker when the car stays unlocked. Typically takes 3-4hrs if locked, 2h if not. I guess it makes sense if jag tech was right. Don't think I will bother with locking it in garage if I connect the CTEK.:icon_deadhorse:

Quite surprising results. I keep my 2009 Jaguar XKR on a CTEK3300 100% of the time when not being driven. The car is "locked" in the garage at all times. (Reason for locking...my detached garage was broken into in 2013 and the thieves went thru the car, loaded it with items from the garage (racing stuff) and tried to steal the car...not the Jaguar, but another car).

My CTEK3300 goes from Amber to Green in just 15 minutes. I am really surprised to hear that "bobdr1's" CTEK takes up to 3-4 hours. This is not a normal Amber to Green time. I have 3 cars on CTEK3300's and all take only 15 minutes at most to go from Amber to Green (2009 Jaguar XKR, 2014 Porsche Cayman 981 & 2015 Corvette C7) when connected to the CTEK3300 after returning from driving.

Interesting and I find the results surprising also. I don't have a Ctek buy have a Sears smart charger and after I use the 2012 I plug it in and it takes about 20 minutes to go from amber to green. Oh the car is also locked.

Had the system checked out by dealer in December. All was fine. I only connect the ctek every few days if I know I won't be driving it for a day or two. That may explain some of the longer times. There is a definite difference in the 09 and 2010 jags electrical drains from my experience and jag dealer confirmed. My times were estimates, may be less but definitely not under an hr.:icon_deadhorse:

That could be the difference here. When I got my car it had a 6 month old battery in it but it sat in the dealers for a week and then took 4 days to get it shipped here. It started right up from the truck but when I got it into the garage I put my small 10Amp charger on it. The charge was down and after an hour it was back at full charge state. Put my smart charger on it and it took 5 minutes to go to green. I hook up the smart charger after every drive and it takes about 20 minutes to go to green. The other day I hooked up my other smart charger to my Lexus which I haven't used in a week as I use my truck in the winter. It took about 12-15 hours for the light to go green.

bobdr1:

I would suggest that you connect the CTEK 100% of the time when "not" driving the Jag. You will notice a total difference in charging times. Batteries can slowly discharge just from sitting. Keep in mind that the CTEK is not a battery charger, it is a smartcharger. Even while the CTEK is connected, you may very well see the CTEK cycling from Amber to Green which is normal as the battery is slowly discharging, and the CTEK goes to work sending a very low charge back into the battery.

To park the car and then "not" connect the smartcharger defeats the purpose of the CTEK.

The MY of Jag, 2009 vs 2010 and beyond, has no difference in the way the smartchargers work.

At least give it a try. It only takes a few seconds to connect the CTEK unit. You will be glad you did.

Thanks for doing the experiment, as it brings awareness of how the CTEK smartchargers should function.

Hey guys,

the only thing I have to contribute to this, my 2010 xkr needed a new display unit as it never shut down and would always drain my battery in 12 hours. Now with a new display unit it goes dead in 3 weeks... I installed a battery tender and now charge it weekly. If your battery tends to drain really quickly I would suggest having the dealer check the display unit to see if it shuts down correctly. Fortunately mine was covered under warranty if yours isn't, it's about 2600$ dealer replacement.

Same as above in my previous post.........you should consider keeping your Deltran Battery Tender connected at all times when "not" driving the car.

The battery should not go dead in 3 weeks.

1. I don't think the car needs to have the CTEK connected everytime you park the car at home. I don't think it "defeats" the purpose of the ctek, the purpose is to have a battery that is adequately charged when you need it. If the car discharges so drastically everytime you drive it that you have to externally charge them so they will perform adequately than these cars have a major problem ( which I don't think they have!)
2. My point on the 09 vs 10+ models is that jag changed something with the 5.0 models which drains the battery much faster. Obviously it has nothing to do with the CTEK function.
3. My experiment was more intended to see if I really needed to lock the car in a secure location overnite to help the battery. Don't think it is necessary.
4. Yeah I know you can connect CTEK everytime but think it is slight overkill for a car that is driven frequently. I don't think I will have any significant battery issues since getting the CTEK which I highly recommend also.:icon_deadhorse:

I can buy not hooking up a smart charger every day if you use the car every day. I haven't been able to drive or start my car for the last 6 weeks due to all of this climate change snow here. So I am on the charger and waiting for the big melt. When the temps get over 35 I'll crank her up and at least let all of the fluids warm up.

I plug in the Ctek every night. But, I don't bother when I know that I will be out in the car later during the same day. I think that is more than sufficient for a daily driver. By the way. We had to replace the original battery in my wife's 08 Lexus ES350 today. Just three months shy of when we bought the car seven years ago. Not too bad for an OE Panasonic battery. OH, and it was replaced with an Interstate.

Ctek full charging time
 

With regards to the time it takes for the CTEK 3300 to go form amber to green........I keep my CTEK on continually, even if I drive the car more than a few times a week. Once I shut the car off and lock the doors after a long drive, the CTEK goes on and it can take hours before the amber goes to green. I've never had any issues with starting or any electrical gremlins. My alternator is putting out 14.5 volts. I don't think the amount of time the charger goes to full charge should be an issue as long as the car performs as it should.

Ditto Bocatrip on my car

My wife and I sold our home last September and moved in the middle of the night, before the kids moved back. In any event, we purchased a beautiful condo on the lake and couldn't be happier. The underground parking spot for my Jag is right beside an electrical outlet, so I attached my charger to the car, put the cover on and figured I didn't have to worry about it until the spring. That was until some dolt complained that having the car plugged in represented a fire hazard and I was asked to disconnect. I had to go to the condo board and educate them on the safety of the chargers and finally they agreed to let me continue on. The best part is that a number of those that sit on the board have summer cars that they keep under wraps for the winter and I've noticed, walking through the underground that at least three of them now have their cars hooked up to a battery maintainer.

That's hilarious :)

I just makes sense to do so no matter what brand they choose.

People will complain about anything...Some people are never happy.

I have had my 2007 XK since last October and use it about three time a week for short distances when the wife's car is not available. So far I have had no problems with the battery and do not put it on a charger or smart charger at all.
Are we getting a over concerned about the battery issue with these cars, or am I lucky so far?

Tony:

Consider yourself VERY lucky. A day will come when electrical issues surface or something on the Jaguar won't work correctly. Most likely it will be battery related and you will be sorry that you did not take the advice of so many Jaguar owners here on this forum, that have purchased a CTEK smartcharger or one of their own brand choice. When an issue arises, most likely you will be making posts asking for advice, when you could have solved the problem by connecting a smartcharger to your Jaguar.

Here's my suggestions:



It will happen.

I totally agree with Richzak but also the MY 07--09 are not as electrical power hungry as the 2010-on models.:icon_twocents: