Start/stop function

[OriginalTDave]

Originally Posted by Whiterdesign

Thought I would post this here, as there is a connection re battery charging. Due to the Virus I have laid my car up for a while and we are using the wife’s car as she has been layed off work. To keep the battery charged up I have purchased a Ctek mxs 5.0 charger to leave the car on charge. The charger has a load of modes, one being charge a car with AGM battery which I chose. This goes through a load of stages and finish on stage 7 for 10 days and then stage 8 to trickle. Left in on for 24 hrs and it went to stage 6 and stuck there. Stage 6 should not be used as it’s for the reconditioning of non AGM batteries. Reset a few times and ended up with the same problem . Trolled the internet and basically found that there seems to be 2 types of AGM battery. In fact in the Ctek instructions the car symbol say it will charge some AGM batteries . Found on another forum that someone has spoke to Ctek and they say that if you are not sure which type of AGM battery you have use car symbol only as this charges at a lower voltage than.the AGM mode. Tried charging as a normal battery and it’s now at stage 7 , no problem. Don’t know if any one has used a Ctek and had this problem but I thought it was worth mentioning.

Cant say I am a lover of the Ctek chargers, I have owned 3 different models over the last 5 years and all three ended up with charging issues after 1-2 years of use, nearly always caused by the mode button control. If you google this you will see its a known issue. I have now switched to the Otimate 7 ampmatic chargers and use one for the XC90 and the other on a Merc, there is a 4 meter extension cable available, so you can locate the charger away from the car, just have to make sure you select the correct amp extension rated cable. I certainly will not be buying another Cetek charger.

[bobby2000]

Originally Posted by Wispyone

I came the long way home from work today, including around 10 miles on the motorway at a steady 70mph. A total of around 23 miles, and it's still not reset the start/stop. I would have preferred to keep driving but not possible with the lock down etc.
I hope to get out soon and give it a good run to the coast but alas that will have to wait.

Also the only charger I have is motorbike specific so no good for the car

Cheers

Richard

I use a optimate charger on mine and that is classified as a motorcycle charger, have been using it for around 10 year on my cars, with absolutely no problems.

[OriginalTDave]

Originally Posted by bobby2000

I use a optimate charger on mine and that is classified as a motorcycle charger, have been using it for around 10 year on my cars, with absolutely no problems.

The original series of Optimates were targeted at the motorcycle user, I have one of the first model optimate "intelligent"chargers for motorcycles and its still going strong on my bikes.. also use it on the lawn mower starter battery which is a standard 12v wet cell car battery, it maintains it perfectly through the winter..

Optimate have moved on and upward and they now have higher amperage models for just about all vehicle applications even upto small HGV etc.. Well worth a look at their web site.

[niva441]

Based on this thread I'll need to keep an eye on this as I'm not convinced by this system. My early morning commute was 50 miles across the A14, which I would have expected to fully charge the battery. However it often failed to shutdown. What I find odd is that the car would sometimes shutdown when I stopped then, when I engaged the park brake, start again.

I tend to agree with the earlier comment that the battery isn't up to the job, with the additional though is it the battery or charging system that has been under-specified.

[nu11eaf]

Originally Posted by niva441

Based on this thread I'll need to keep an eye on this as I'm not convinced by this system. My early morning commute was 50 miles across the A14, which I would have expected to fully charge the battery. However it often failed to shutdown. What I find odd is that the car would sometimes shutdown when I stopped then, when I engaged the park brake, start again.

I tend to agree with the earlier comment that the battery isn't up to the job, with the additional though is it the battery or charging system that has been under-specified.

Don't forget that there are other reasons for it not to stop, the most common in my experience is while car is in regeneration mode. This can take about 12 - 15 miles of driving to complete. (Once regen starts which could be at any part of a journey)

[niva441]

Fair point, but with the frequency of this occurrence and the amount of time it spends at constant speed cruise, it should have cleared any regeneration phases.

[nu11eaf]

Originally Posted by niva441

Fair point, but with the frequency of this occurrence and the amount of time it spends at constant speed cruise, it should have cleared any regeneration phases.

I often get a regen just as I am about to arrive at a destination, its sods law.

[niva441]

I'm surprised there isn't a little more flexibility in the regen cycle timing to align with constant speed running. With my usage it wouldn't have to wait long for an opportunity.

[nu11eaf]

Originally Posted by niva441

I'm surprised there isn't a little more flexibility in the regen cycle timing to align with constant speed running. With my usage it wouldn't have to wait long for an opportunity.

I agree there should be a pause until later mode so it can be done on a next journey if it starts near or at an end of a journey. There should also be a message telling the driver why stop start is disabled which would also inform the driver of a regen in progress.

[niva441]

It's brilliant how well technology works with and for us.