CTEK Battery Charger / Conditioner
 

Any experts out there can tell me if the mxs 3.6 has been replaced by the multi x 3600 or is there a difference? The mxs 3.6 has rave reviews but I can only find one store selling it all the others sell the 3600. However the one store selling the 3.6 also sells the 3600 £10 cheaper so confused. Any help appreciated, thanks.

Aha it is the other way around! Please ignore me

I've just got one of these..

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CAR-BATTER...item4a9a035fb7

Great bit of kit.

That is an Optimate 4 charger designed to charge motorcycle batteries or low A/hr batteries. It will happily charge/condition a car battery but quite slowly.

I have two ctek chargers 1 bike and 1 multi X3600 for both large and small bastteries and they do work well.

Optimizes are not designed to charge flat batteries, they maintain batteries. They will charge a semi flat battery if need be but their main purpose is to keep unused vehicle batteries topped up and in tip top shape.
The optimate 4 charger is a very good bit of kit and is perfect for my needs.

Lads thinking of getting one of these,my question is can i leave it on the car full time while driving?Only drive about 5mins in morning and evening so alarm must be draining the battery(bat 2 months old,alt charging ok)
Is it really a fit and forget item?:thumb:

You don't leave it connected while driving mate.....

It is plugged into the mains and connects to the battery with a couple of croc clips.

Thanks for the fast reply.I wonder is there anything on the market that you could connect to the battery of your daily driver,and drive on?
Never realised these had to be connected to the mains as i have a charger already,thanks again:thumb:

I don't quite understand what you mean....

Your looking for something that connects to the battery, charges it and keeps it topped up but without actually plugging it in..
If its not plugged in where would it get the power from ?

If your using the car daily then even a short run should keep the battery topped up if the battery is in good condition and the alternator is working correctly.

Your other option is to buy an optimiser like I have and once you get home just connect it to your battery and allow it to maintain your battery over night. Then next morning remove the crocodile clips and drive off.

or one of those solar panels that charge the car

I thought it was a case of fit it to your battery red and black etc
and when voltage goes under 95% it uses its "electrical jiggerpokery" to bring it back to 100% again.Was looking at one on ebay and there was no mention of plugging it in.Thanks for the heads up.:thumb:

Electrical jiggerypokery......:brickwall

Am I right in thinking that some (all?) Subarus don't actually start charging the battery until the engine is warm, which might explain why our man's battery keeps going flat if he only uses it for short journeys.

I seem to recall reading somewhere that if you put the lights on as soon as you've started up, it gets the alternator charging straight away though.

I'm bothered if I can remember where I got this from, so apologies if it's all wrong.

I can assure you my alternator charges the battery as soon as the car is started.

Thanks, I had a feeling it was a load of rubbish somehow! (Edit: But it apparently isn't - see below)

I've heard of issues on BMW's regarding battery charging. Basically when a new battery is fitted the car (ECU) has to be told to charge it. I believe the battery is controlled by its own separate ECU.
Not sure if new age Imprezas use a similar setup as that.

I'll have to do a bit more digging because I'm sure I didn't imagine reading it, but I can't find where it was at present. Perhaps it's not rubbish after all then?

Just go to Halfors and buy their battery/charger/conditioner its about £24.
plugs straight in and clip to your battery terminals.

I use one on the 330s... keeps the battery topped up and charged.

Its not always that cut and shut though buddy, what if you park your car out on the road etc.
I'm lucky as I have a garage so my optimiser is on every night.

if you're on the road you won't be plugging any mains battery charger in then lol

It isn't rubbish. My son's blobeye charges at a faster rate whilst running with the headlights switched on than it does with them off.

Newage Impreza have a 'smart' alternator that doesn't charge unless you have lights or something drawing decent current switched on.

Thanks, I thought that was right (although old age is affecting the memory) and I now know where I read it:

http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar...2/?section=bad

So what happens if your driving around all day without using things that draw large amounts of current ???

Not to worry, just read the link.

Hardwired the connecting lead on my Optimate when I had the Scoob, IIRC it comes with the lead. Made a little bracket and mounted the plug/socket in the number plate opening. Makes connecting up very easy and no need to lift the bonnet, just had to remember to disconnect it when driving out the garage :D

Cheers matty,after getting my alternator checked again,it turns out its goosed:thumb:

The explanation in that link is a load of co$%^$%6#s. The only thing that clutches in and out is the A/C compressor and as for being temp controlled :cuckoo:.

Yes the alternator is intelligent but most of them are now.

The alternator has 3 connections........
1) Output to battery F25(W)
2) Load feedback to Voltage regulator F26 [2](Y)
3 ) Charge Warning light circuit F26 [1] (BW)

The output from the alternator is controlled by the load in use. It it's not high enough then the alternator will not charge.

Most people run around with at least the radio on or the air con/heater blower which should be sufficient to generate a charge.
However on short runs this may be insufficient to compensate for the starting load used.:thumb:

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/donald....%20circuit.JPG

I think I've just become Dave from The Fast Show again! (It's a load of rubbish, er, it's right, er, it's a load of rubbish... I'll get me coat!)

Thanks for the proper explanation Don.