Vantage - how long before your battery goes flat?

[olv]

Hello! New V8 Vantage owner here.

Curious as to how long some of you are able to leave your cars for before the battery is too flat to start the car?

There’s no where for me to hook up the trickle charger in my car park and there will be times where I don’t use the car for 2-3 weeks at a time. There’s no tracker or aftermarket power drains fitted as far as I’m aware.

I do appreciate it’s bit of a ‘how long is a piece of string’ question.

Cheers

[justin220]

I think mine would struggle after 2 weeks. It has managed a two week stint once when I forgot to put the trickle charger on, but doubt it would make it to 3 weeks.

[Gday2]

I had mine sitting for 2 weeks wihout trickle charger, no problem starting.
Bear in mind this depends how the battery is charged, short trips/city driving will not recharge it very well, trips over 1/2 hour do.
Hope this helps
Christian

[bogie]

4-5 weeks easy enough, not gone further without driving it yet.....

[olv]

That’s helpful. Thanks everyone. Sounds like I don’t need worry about it for the time being.

[davek_964]

Mine is usually on a trickle charger if I'm not using it, but I have left it for over a week and it sounds like the battery is still fully charged when it starts. The previous owner told me that he did not keep it on trickle charger and had left it a couple of months between use and it was still fine.

[gibbon]

Old 2006 Vantage, never had a flat battery, have left 3-4 weeks at a time.

My 'new' 2012 Vantage struggles to make it to 3 weeks, battery is brand new. I was told the newer cars have a more complex alarm / tracker / security which accounts for the difference, no idea if this is true, but sounds plausible.

[alabbasi]

I think that the last time I drove mine was March. Courtesy light still comes on. I will need to check if it starts. The SL55 that sits next to it has both trickle chargers plugged in.

[Shnozz]

Mine gets left 3 - 4 weeks at a time and never had any bother.

The only time I had any issue was after it had been parked up a week or so and I used the boot socket to use a 12v hoover. Switched off the circuit due to low battery power so "saved" me from being unable to start it.

[vpr]

I have same concerns and raised the question here

Mine lasts about 7-8 days which is a pain as it lives out and I can't be arsed to keep plugging it in. It's been back to the dealer and they say it's all functioning correctly

[alabbasi]

vpr said:

I have same concerns and raised the question here

Mine lasts about 7-8 days which is a pain as it lives out and I can't be arsed to keep plugging it in. It's been back to the dealer and they say it's all functioning correctly

Get a solar powered charger. You might be able to squeeze an extra day out of the English weather.

[johns355]

Had my V8Vr since March, never once been on a trickle charger, never had any issues (touch wood!) J

[Sisifo]

Old topic, but related and thought would take the advantage to ask the question.

I too have just acquired a V8 Vantage (2012.25MY). I will be almost everyday to work (20 minutes one way) and back. I have read that this may not suffice and the trickle charger may be needed.

How often should I charge it? for how long? and, is it an issue if the charging takes place outside (worried about rain while charging)?

Thanks in advance everyone!

Luis

[Mr.Tremlini]

Having read numerous battery comments over the years, it seems there really is no consistency with battery life in these cars. It`s weird that such a high-end vehicle would require a battery conditioner if left for more than 10 days because the lead-acid unit could fail! Either that or concerns are excessive, however some claim a couple of weeks and theirs will not start. What is draining so much power? Many point to the tracker, I don`t have one, I guess.

I cannot believe that 20 minutes twice a day is not sufficient to keep it charged up?

It was a point of concern when I first bought my Vantage (2007) too, as I had been scare-mongered into believing that if I left it for a few days it wouldn`t turn over. I plugged it in if I was away for a several days and was even more concerned in the grip of Swiss winter. Being inquisitive, fatalistic, or a bit of an idiot (you decide) I gradually extended the sitting periods and now happily leave it for weeks without issue. The longest period was just recently, where it sat for seven and a half weeks (53 days) while we were away on holiday.

I`d love to hear some real facts about this issue, what causes it etc (Calinours?). I might have to dig out the owners manual and see what it reckons.

[Krhuangbin]

Reading on here, some cars seem to drain theirs within 45 seconds of turning off, others last much longer!

Mine is left for 4 weeks at a time sometimes, and cranks very strongly on the starter motor doing the oil pressure start procedure thing, every time.

I bought a Ctek the same time I bought the car, have never used it.

Battery is 2 years old.

I think the tracker is the big draw?

[Sisifo]

Thanks a lot! Switzerland has a similar weather to ours (Luxembourg). Dont know if you were charging it outside, but if so, any concerns on rain, getting the charger wet, etc.?

Best,

[bogie]

Its hard to say exactly re the charging, but if you could do an experiment yourself, as most of the chargers (Opimate, Ctek etc) have a battery indicator. You plug it in, it displays battery low, mid, high, full etc.

If I haven't done any longer trips I tend to plug mine in once a month and leave it for the day, or overnight. At least you are getting some charge into it for 2 x 20mins per day, you may get away with a long run at the weekend, or take the long way home now and again.

There is a 12vDC port in the boot on right hand side, get the 12vDC lead for your CTEK or Optimate. I just plug in there, put the charger in the boot and shut the boot, does not matter if it rains.

[Sisifo]

Thanks a lot Bogie, much appreciated!

[Mr.Tremlini]

Sisifo said:

Thanks a lot! Switzerland has a similar weather to ours (Luxembourg). Dont know if you were charging it outside, but if so, any concerns on rain, getting the charger wet, etc.?

Best,

Yes, for the first couple of years I was charging outside, but had indoor parking for the last 6 years and have not actually used it since. As written above I was using the boot plug, and had an AM car cover over it at the same time so rain/snow was not an issue.

[Hoofy]

This thread might be useful.
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...