Thread: D4 2nd battery charging

Originally Posted by scarry

With the new battery i checked it a couple of days ago,after a run,and it was at 12.49v,today it is at 12.35v,vehicle hasn't been anywhere.
So it is already below what the dealer has said is it's minimum.

Hi again Paul, the problem is that dealers only see vehicles for a few hours and this what they base their “battery Knowledge” on.

All batteries will have a surface voltage just after the charging device has been removed/turned off.

This surface charge has next to nothing to do with the real SoC of the battery, but a dealer will measure the battery and see 12.5v and higher and they believe they know what the “normal” voltage is.

Having the battery settle, to allow the surface voltage to dissipate is also the reason I ask for voltage readings to be made at least 10 to 12 hours after the motor was last running.

My dealer praised the Traxide.

I have had "low battery warning" come up a few times on my MY12 with a Traxide fitted 18 months ago (only after the radio has been left on for a while after the engine was turned of)

I raised it with the dealer and they will check it next week. When I told him i had a Traxide, he said they were great and certainly what they "recommend"

Originally Posted by lpj

My dealer praised the Traxide.

I have had "low battery warning" come up a few times on my MY12 with a Traxide fitted 18 months ago (only after the radio has been left on for a while after the engine was turned of)

I raised it with the dealer and they will check it next week. When I told him i had a Traxide, he said they were great and certainly what they "recommend"

How do you get the radio to stay on?
With mine it will turn on and then go off in about 5 minutes,which is a PITA


Unless i push the start button without foot on the brake,but then the ignition is on, which i would have thought would drain the battery quickly.

Originally Posted by scarry

How do you get the radio to stay on? With mine it will turn on and then go off in about 5 minutes,which is a PITA Unless i push the start button without foot on the brake,but then the ignition is on, which i would have thought would drain the battery quickly.

Now that I think about it, I was checking the brake lights and indicators on my trailer. One of them brake light on the trailer had a short so the D4 wouldn't "recognise" the trailer. I also I also had the ignition on- as well as the radio while fixing the trailer brake light. That probably contributed the low battery warning.

Checked my main battery this morning, car has been sitting for 5 days, 12.4v, took it for a long drive, home to Dapto and back.

Think we need to start charging the battery while it's sitting at home, I have a Battery Fighter 1.25, multi stage battery charger, I think this should do the trick.

I have this



Baz.

Baz,12.4 is not to bad,mine was often on 12.0,and the LED on the SC 80 would be flashing,after a week or so.

Is yours on the original battery?

I try and put mine on charge overnight once a week.

I will be more vigilant with this as it is soon out of warranty and has just had a new battery fitted by the dealer.

The car often sits around for a week or so not going anywhere,or maybe a short trip or two,we have company cars.

I use a Ctek smart charger.

Originally Posted by scarry

Baz,12.4 is not to bad,mine was often on 12.0,and the LED on the SC 80 would be flashing,after a week or so.

Is yours on the original battery?

I try and put mine on charge overnight once a week.

I will be more vigilant with this as it is soon out of warranty and has just had a new battery fitted by the dealer.

The car often sits around for a week or so not going anywhere,or maybe a short trip or two,we have company cars.

I use a Ctek smart charger.

Yes original battery, 3/1/2yrs old and now out of warranty, like you, the car sits around and does short trips up to the shops and back, 2min trip, I have a TDi Golf for to and from work.

Baz.

After following Tims advice I now have a 12.6v or thereabouts reading. Will be interesting to see how it holds up.

Any opinions on the difference in reliability between self reported voltage (via iidtool) vs multimeter readings ?

That trickle charger will do the trick Baz and welcome to my world of frequent battery maintenance ! Hope the golf is going well - I love the contrast between small cars and the disco