Battery tender clarification
#1
Battery tender clarification
No shortage of posts on this topic but I am still confused about connecting it. All posts indicate positive tender lead to positive battery terminal. However it seems some posts indicate negative tender lead to spare tire bolt, while others state negative tender lead to negative battery terminal (possibly as part of a permanent installation using ring attachment, not alligator clips).
Tender instructions also seem to recommend good ventilation. So boot lid open or closed?
All the talk of exploding batteries has me concerned. Just looking for some clarity.
Thanks
Pat
2006 XK8 Convertible
Tender instructions also seem to recommend good ventilation. So boot lid open or closed?
All the talk of exploding batteries has me concerned. Just looking for some clarity.
Thanks
Pat
2006 XK8 Convertible
#2
The connecting to the spare tire bolt comes from the drivers handbook for jump starting the vehicle. Either connection will work , spare tire bolt or negative terminal. I have charged both ways and don't see any difference.
The ventilation for the battery is supposed to be a tube running from the battery thru a hose to a hole in the floor pan of the battery area and out to just rear of the right side rear tire.
If you have the proper vent on the battery it dosen't matter trunk open/closed. Charging gives off a gas that is explosive with open flames and sparks. Just air out the storage area before starting the engine or disconnecting the charger.
The ventilation for the battery is supposed to be a tube running from the battery thru a hose to a hole in the floor pan of the battery area and out to just rear of the right side rear tire.
If you have the proper vent on the battery it dosen't matter trunk open/closed. Charging gives off a gas that is explosive with open flames and sparks. Just air out the storage area before starting the engine or disconnecting the charger.
#3
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If a person has gone to the trouble of buying and using the battery tender, then by all means connect the optional quick-connect lead permanently to the battery and use it from then on. On my car the 18" quick connect lead that came with the battery tender wasn't long enough to pass thru the opening towards the rear of the trunk I wanted to use. So I bought a 15' extension and left most of it coiled up adjacent to the battery with only a few inches protruding above and into the trunk proper. If I was motivated I could run it out to the front of the car, or the battery vent hole I'm reading about or some other opening so I could use the tender without having to open the trunk (that's sooooo much work, like changing TV channels without a remote).
Z
Z
#4
I have my C-Tek battery maintainer wired directly to the battery of my 99 Coupe with the quick disconnect in the trunk (boot.) I simply run the wire away from the trunk latch and close it with no problem. The rubber seal allows the wire to pass through with no damage with the lid closed. Easy to do.
#5
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I have my C-Tek battery maintainer wired directly to the battery of my 99 Coupe with the quick disconnect in the trunk (boot.) I simply run the wire away from the trunk latch and close it with no problem. The rubber seal allows the wire to pass through with no damage with the lid closed. Easy to do.
Z
#6
I can't find the original Jaguar installation guide for the XK8/XKR battery charger - only the later XK/XKR.
JAF 0040 - Battery Charger.pdf
The battery is in a different location but the principles are the same.
As I recall, the arguement for connecting the negative to the stud and NOT directly to the battery post is to minimise risk from sparks as the connection is made.
With a vented battery and a permanent wired connection, this risk is removed.
I leave my CTEK connected with the lid closed and the alarm set to put the vehicle in 'sleep' mode and reduce quiescent drain.
Graham
JAF 0040 - Battery Charger.pdf
The battery is in a different location but the principles are the same.
As I recall, the arguement for connecting the negative to the stud and NOT directly to the battery post is to minimise risk from sparks as the connection is made.
With a vented battery and a permanent wired connection, this risk is removed.
I leave my CTEK connected with the lid closed and the alarm set to put the vehicle in 'sleep' mode and reduce quiescent drain.
Graham
#7
Logically, I know the method you are using is the most direct, and safe too. But all that logic doesn't stop me from engaging in fearful imagining that the wire is getting pinched and eventually it will short out, blowing the inline fuse that is in the battery end of the tender cable. So at the end of the day, irrationality wins out.
Z
Z
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#8
Maybe the question you should ask is how many of us have been closing the trunk on our battery tender hookup cables for years and years without ever having a problem. In my case, four years on my old Vette and now three years on my XK8 with no issues. And, mine is hooked directly to the battery posts. As jimmiejag mentioned, just keep the cable away from the latch when closing the trunk.
#9
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So, it sounds like the tender cable is not permanently hanging out of the closed trunk lid. But rather, when you are wanting to hook up the tender, the trunk is opened, then the tender cables are connected, then the lid is shut on the now protruding cable. Do I have that right ?
If so, what is the benefit of shutting the trunk ? After all, the trunk light will go out after a few minutes anyway.
Z
If so, what is the benefit of shutting the trunk ? After all, the trunk light will go out after a few minutes anyway.
Z
#11
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#15
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Admittedly 6 of one, 1/2 dozen of another type thing.
Z
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#16
Graham
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#17
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But that is a good point nevertheless.
Start from the "dead cable", in this case, the battery tender eyelet cable that is already permanently attached to a 12v source, (be it it the battery itself, or an under the hood 12v terminal set). at the eyelet end, and then make the connection between the cables opposite end, which has the 2 pin connector) , and the mirror image 2 pin connector coming from the tender charging unit.
There will not be a spark because the tender is not energized yet by an A/C source. I.e., no complete circuit.
Making these connections, moving backwards from the battery to the A/C plug, until the last thing you do is plug into a live A/C power source. That will eliminate sparking anywhere close to the engine or close to the battery if that's the end you are working from.
......the old power lineman knows, because when you're up on the top of a high voltage pole, the last thing you want is a 20,000 volt spark.
Z
Last edited by zray; 02-06-2018 at 03:12 PM.
#19
So, it sounds like the tender cable is not permanently hanging out of the closed trunk lid. But rather, when you are wanting to hook up the tender, the trunk is opened, then the tender cables are connected, then the lid is shut on the now protruding cable. Do I have that right ?
If so, what is the benefit of shutting the trunk ? After all, the trunk light will go out after a few minutes anyway.
Z
If so, what is the benefit of shutting the trunk ? After all, the trunk light will go out after a few minutes anyway.
Z
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