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CTEK battery charger question

Discussion in '458 Italia/488/F8' started by 720, May 7, 2015.

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  1. 720

    720 F1 Rookie

    Jul 14, 2003
    2,623
    So. Cal and No. Utah
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    Rick
    #1 720, May 7, 2015
    Last edited: May 7, 2015
    It's my understanding that the battery charger Ferrari provides with the Speciale is a CTEK. I decided to buy a CTEK 3300 battery charger for my Stradale. I read the manual, and it said that the connector should first be connected to the battery THEN the charger should be plugged into the power outlet. And when disconnecting the CTEK charger the power cord should first be unplugged from the power outlet and THEN the connector should be disconnected from the battery. I know one day I'll forget to follow these procedures, so my question is what will happen when I forget? It would be much easier if I could simply leave the charger plugged into the power outlet "all the times" and then just plug/unplug the car as I come and go.

    I mentioned this to my Ferrari dealer and he told me that if I did not follow these procedures the CTEK battery charger would "appear" to be charging the battery properly, but in fact it would not be charging it at all.

    I have no prior experience with CTEK chargers so I don't know if this is true or not?
     
  2. PhilNotHill

    PhilNotHill Two Time F1 World Champ
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    Jul 3, 2006
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    FelipeNotMassa
    #2 PhilNotHill, May 7, 2015
    I do it the recommended way but am sure i have done the opposite as well. Everything worked fine. No problems after 20k+ miles.

    I plug the battery maintainer into a surge protected power strip just in case.
     
  3. 720

    720 F1 Rookie

    Jul 14, 2003
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    #3 720, May 7, 2015
    We can put a man on the moon...

    Good idea about the surge protector :)


     
  4. PhilNotHill

    PhilNotHill Two Time F1 World Champ
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    Jul 3, 2006
    27,855
    Aspen CO 81611
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    #4 PhilNotHill, May 7, 2015
    Lightning in CO is a problem. And random power surges are rare but does happen. We had a neighbor lose both garage door openers from a lightning strike. We have surge protectors on our garage door openers as well.

    Best
     
  5. ONEOFEW

    ONEOFEW Formula Junior

    Jan 19, 2006
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    Steve
    #5 ONEOFEW, May 7, 2015
    up until I saw your post, I wan't even aware that i had to connect the CTEK to the car battery first and plug the power. Since 2008 I've been connecting my Cteks 3300, 4.3, 7200 exact opposite order. To me never been an issue.
    I had a ferrari OEM CTEK short out while plugged to my car due to a power outage, look to be charging, but it drain my battery, and wasn't because I had it plugged in the reverse order.
     
  6. 720

    720 F1 Rookie

    Jul 14, 2003
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    #6 720, May 7, 2015
    Philnothill had a good suggestion about using a surge protector just in case.

    My dealer said that if I didn't follow the hook up instructions as described the charger would "appear" to be charging like normal, but it would not be charging at all. This just doesn't seem right to me. I sent an email to CTEK tech support asking about this. I'll post their response if/when I get one.

    Thank you.


     
  7. ONEOFEW

    ONEOFEW Formula Junior

    Jan 19, 2006
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    #7 ONEOFEW, May 8, 2015
    My CTEK was on a surge protector, when the power came back on it was done. OEM charges Ferrari supplies us are the cheapest CTEKs, they are undersized for a car battery. They will eventually quit, its just a matter of time.
    3300 is a better for car battery, 7200 is extremely robust, they last forever.

    As for the specific plug in order I have a feeling it has more to do with safety, imagine the CTEK is powered, as you plug it to your battery it makes an arc in the engine bay or the trunk near fuel, potentially can cause an explosion.
     
  8. Webraider

    Webraider Karting

    Sep 12, 2011
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    Ulli
    #8 Webraider, May 8, 2015
    Not absolutely sure about this as I did no actual reverse engineering on this one, but my modest guess is that the CTEKs (and compatibles) use an electronic circuit that checks the voltage of the battery as soon as connected and that "decides" on both charging current and voltage BEFORE actually applying the mains.

    For that evaluation process, it will use the battery for its own power supply and only later on, when the actual battery charging commences and higher currents come into play, will it use the mains as the source for that.

    So, it makes perfect sense to always follow the procedure described: FIRST connect the charger to the car, THAN to the mains. Reverse order when disconnecting.

    This is the case for Porkers as well, btw.

    Come on, it's not THAT complicated. ;)

    Cheers,
    Ulli
     
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  9. 720

    720 F1 Rookie

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    #9 720, May 8, 2015
    You young guys can remember everything. I like to keep things simple. LOL

    Anyway, I got a good response from CTEK tech support. The procedure they recommend is safer given the off chance of sparks if the charger is plugged into a power outlet...but the CTEK is "spark free" so not too much risk no matter which order you do things.


    "The procedure is more safe if you do it in the suggested order.
    The advice is for your own safety, if there would be any gassing from the battery or sparks or so. (CTEK is spark free, but anyway!)

    There is no rules how to do it, just a recommendation.

    Med vänlig hälsning,
    Best regards,
    Teresa, CTEK SWEDEN"
     

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