Mines the Ctek and is straight to battery terminals too and works fine 
Trickle Charger?
- Thread starter Paul M
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Rambling
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Mm, I've tried that already, the green light came on steady then after a bit started flashing, the limited instruction says that indicates its not connected to battery and has gone to power save mode and not charging.
I thought it was the extension lead causing the problem so swapped it for another lead - same problem. I began to suspect the unit so tried it on a stand alone battery and it worked fine!
I've cleaned the grease from the terminals and tried the clips on every position but it still doesn't like it. Hence my question last night
I thought it was the extension lead causing the problem so swapped it for another lead - same problem. I began to suspect the unit so tried it on a stand alone battery and it worked fine!
I've cleaned the grease from the terminals and tried the clips on every position but it still doesn't like it. Hence my question last night
Rambling
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Just tried putting the negative to the body (difficult as most bits within reach are plastic!) but hasn't worked either. I've tried another stand alone battery and that works fine so I'm stumped now. Last resort will be dismantling the terminal connectors to try a better contact but I didn't think you had to do that with CTEK
Rambling
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Ok, the almighty power of Google suggests that the Z battery is just too flat for the CTEK to recognise its there (bit of an oxymoron but hey ho).
Next question can I just stick a normal charger on it to get it going or will it damage the electrics?
Next question can I just stick a normal charger on it to get it going or will it damage the electrics?
I had exactly the same problem as this - not on the Zed but my ride on mower. The battery was so flat the trickle charger didn't see it. I put a standard battery charger on for a couple of hours on its own then changed over to the trickle charger and it was fine. Best of luck but if the Zed battery is that flat it may not come back.
Do you +ve and -ve posts under the bonnet on Z3s?Just tried putting the negative to the body (difficult as most bits within reach are plastic!) but hasn't worked either. I've tried another stand alone battery and that works fine so I'm stumped now. Last resort will be dismantling the terminal connectors to try a better contact but I didn't think you had to do that with CTEK
I use those on my Z4 rather then connecting to the battery. It means you can lace the extension cable through the gap between the bonnet and bodywork. There's just enough room for a low power extension cable without crushing it. Put the extension socket in a gap in the engine and the charger in another. Close the bonnet and lock the car. Ideal if it has to be charged outside. No need to worry about taking out bulbs.
If the battery has gone in to deep discharge (less than 10.5V) it's likely the clever electronics in the charger can't see a voltage that it thinks is safe to charge hence the flashing lights. Do you have enough juice to light any lights even dimly?
Have read that you can connect a good battery in parallel +ve to +ve, -ve to -ve) then connect up the charger. It will see the good battery. But, keep an eye on the battery temperature and if it gets hot STOP.
Alternatively jump start if you can and run a while to get the voltage in the battery high enough to allow the charger to work.
If batteries routinely go into deep discharge it might be scrap by the third time.
Once the battery on a zed goes flat it is normally the death of them and time for a new one.
Agree - same in most cars. if you can get it up and working for a short while it might get you a few days grace though.
I have a couple of £13 aldi ones, (Lidl are the same) and they have done all my sorn vehicles brilliantly well every year. Even keeps the ability to start my father in laws Jaguar after months of non use.
However I recommend you get a CTEK as you may possibly have plenty of money for something that will do exactly the same.. but you sure will feel superior about it in the knowledge that it cost 5 x the price and you can look down on our menial purchases thinking they can't possible keep a battery going for 5 months, ......... (whereas I know differently)
However I recommend you get a CTEK as you may possibly have plenty of money for something that will do exactly the same.. but you sure will feel superior about it in the knowledge that it cost 5 x the price and you can look down on our menial purchases thinking they can't possible keep a battery going for 5 months, ......... (whereas I know differently)
There were on sale in Lidl last week also, might still have some in store if your lucky.
I'm personally not into trickle charging. If you have a good battery it will hold the charge for some time, certainly a month or more between starts. That said, my car gets used at least every few weeks so i'm no authority on this, just a thought. Cars are best used regularly for all sorts of reasons IMO.
In the summer it certainly isn't a problem but regular overnight -3 to -5 temperatures soon run your battery down. Little more than a week can see mine struggling to start.
Even inside my garage it gets below freezing and I can tell my battery is becoming tired. 3 year warranty one at work is £45 + vat. £52.
Tony.
Tony.
Interesting, mine is also kept in an unheated garage, original BMW battery replaced with OEM battery (BMW) about 6 years ago. Cost about £100 but you get what you pay for IMO. Starts on the button (sorry key!) each time.
You definitely get what you pay for where batteries are concerned, but mine isn't likely to be the original one on a 2003 car, oh, and my car is a daily use car. They have a life, and that's it!
Tony.
My MC is 2001 and on its second (Bmw) battery. VFM I suggest! (reliability and long service v purchase price). Might be different if in short term ownership.