Greetings,
I'm considering an F-type V8S (or R?) convertible in my future (a year or so) and I'm here researching and lurking as part of my purchase decision. I previously owned a 97 XK8 from 2000-2009 and was an active participant on the Roadfly forums at that time (and others currently) and greatly appreciate the value of internet automotive forums.

My questions are regarding storage of these cars without a battery tender/similar device.

I've searched the forum and have read the recommendations not to let the car sit for more than about 4 weeks without some sort of battery tender on the car.

It is possible due to various circumstances that this car would sit for 6 or 8 weeks without use, in a location without access to power (so no ability to use a battery tender).

One of my cars has a battery disconnect button in the trunk, adjacent to a power port. The disconnect is intended to put the car into a sleep mode during longer term disuse. A review of this forum as well as the US-spec driver's manual (thanks for the helpful sticky links!) turns up no similar disconnect/sleep feature on an F-type.

My questions are:

1. Has anyone experienced regular non-use for greater than 4 weeks at a time, without any issues or need to jump start the car?
2. Is there a battery disconnect/sleep feature?
3. Does anyone know or have experience with the impact to the car from the battery running flat, and requiring a jump? I'd expect to lose window indexing and maybe radio presets, but any risk to damage to the car?

My XK8 lost window indexing and I think the seat memory presets whenever the battery was disconnected to be replaced, but the rest of the car had no issues that I could recall.


Thank you for your time.


Jeff

 

Jeff,

Virtually all modern cars have enough residual drain that leaving them for extended periods without being plugged in will almost guarantee a dead battery. From experience, it doesn't take many 'going flat' cycles to permanently kill a battery. Certainly a pain and expensive to boot. Losing the presets is the least of your worries.

Either find a way to get power to the car or plan on disconnecting the battery at the beginning of the storage period.

 

Mikey,
Thank you for your reply.


A few years ago I had an 07 vette and 09 CTS-V in my daily driver rotation. I would store one for 6 weeks and drive the other, then swap. At 6 weeks of down time, the in-storage car would still start up when I'd swap cars although certainly the battery was weaker. I eventually found that at 8 weeks the vette needed a jump start. Had to open the hatch and use the emergency manual door release to open the driver's door since the latches are normally electrically actuated.




Disconnecting the battery may be the best choice. The driver's manual is a little ambiguous, page 153 shows battery connection points for jump-starts under the hood, but is the battery there as well?

 

There are two batteries in the F-Type. They are both in the trunk. The smaller battery only powers the engine start/stop feature std. on all F-Types for fuel savings.

 

One data point to consider. I live in Western NY (cold this time of year). I parked mine in my garage in the second week of November. I put "getting a charger" on my list of things to do, but you know how that goes. Last week (6 weeks later) it was 60 outside, so I decided to take her out. It fired right up, no lost settings. So, now I am wondering whether to even get a charger or not.

 

Thank you Foosh.

LMS- good data point, thank you.

As for battery maintainers, I recommemd a CTEK. I use one for those cars at my home.

 

I've just purchased the Jaguar OEM version of the CTEK battery conditioner. Its well worth getting versus the CTEK labeled version for one key reason: It comes supplied with a cable that facilitates charging of both batteries and provides a simple and discreet 12v lighter-style connection that is really quick/simple to connect to. One suggestion though is to supply the fitting dealer with the instructions from this forum as most dealers have never had to fit one.

Plug in and forget as fully automatic. Really happy with it.

The smaller battery actually powers the main car systems (in car entertainment etc.) whilst/during the stop/start motor actually uses the main battery as it needs the amps.

 

We have taken three (3) 30 day to 40 day vacations since buying the car. Never a start problem. I had a C6 and we could only go 2-3 weeks. We wound up buying a CTEK tender/charger and then the C6 was fine.
No need with the "F".

Scott

 

We're saying the same thing. We went around and around on this here on the forum, until we received the definite answer. You can disconnect the small battery completely and still have all systems operational, and the only thing that won't operate is the engine start/stop feature (Eco-mode).

As I said, the small battery is exclusively dedicated to the engine start/stop system, which means that it does power those systems while the engine is shut down at a stop in "Eco-mode."

All other times, all of those systems are operating off the alternator/main battery systems.

 

It is possible due to various circumstances that this car would sit for 6 or 8 weeks without use, in a location without access to power (so no ability to use a battery tender
Jeff

Hi Jeff. Have you thought about one of those solar panel rechargers? They sell them at various hardware stores. I'm sure there's a way to make one of them work. I think over time, you will find the battery will be drained if you leave it that long between starts. I'm sure if you disconnect both batteries it will be fine when you reconnect them. I think you will lose the various settings though.
Don

 

Great idea! My motorcoach was delivered with a 100a solar array mounted on the roof, which charges both chassis and coach batteries.

Those are very popular for use on RVs, and they're readily available at websites like Camping World and other RV supply businesses.

 

I believe I saw the installation instructions for that fitting in the Driver's Handbook. It looks to be the same concept as is used in my DB9. I purchased a cig. lighter connection for my CTEK and use it in the DB9's power/charging port in the trunk (this car stays at the house). Eventually I also found the Aston-branded CTEK that would have come with my car when new. It has a hard-wired cig. lighter terminal. Sounds like the Jaguar unit may be similar.

Thank you Scott. I'd seen a lot of 2-3 week reports on the C6 corvette forum although for some reason I had much better luck with my 07 when I was rotating it in and out of storage back in 2009-2011.

Don, thank you for your inputs.


If I put an F-type into my driver rotation, it would spend time at a storage facility with some of my other, older (non-computerized) cars. The older cars just sit with their batteries disconnected until I'm ready to take one out, so I've not worried about battery maintainers for those. I hadn't thought about the solar charger but can ask the storage facility for permission to mount the solar panel on the façade above the storage unit in which the Jaguar would occupy. That unit would then be targeted for any computerized car in my rotation.


I do realize it sounds like a crime to leave an F-type in storage, unused. It would be an occasional daily driver and a weekend car. Sometimes work consumes my weekends (for weeks at a time) and moving cars in and out of the storage facility takes a back seat to other things so the forum's responses are helping me understand the constraints with which I would need to work.


My desire to buy the F-type currently comes without the thought of selling another car, and that creates the requirement to put a modern car into storage. The Jaguar not being in storage means the DB9 or 07 Vette would be in storage, both with the same parasitic battery draws that make it important to rotate cars every 4-6 weeks, or get charging abilities into my storage facility.


Maybe it'd be better to rent a building than renting more units!

 

Jeff,

Here's a picture of the installation of a Battery Tender Plus per the Jaguar dealer supplied maintainer instructions. The CTEK hooks up exactly the same way. The red (+) lead from the maintainer hooks up opposite the yellow wire in the battery bus. The black (-) ground lead is on the bottom of the picture hooked to the ground cable on the trunk floor.

Hooking it up this way charges and maintains both batteries.

BTW, the Jaguar dealer sold unit ("OEM") is no longer available according to the parts guy at my dealer. He looked it up in his system, and it indicated no longer available through JLR, but I'm told it was a CTEK-manufactured unit.

 

Thank you Foosh, very helpful.

 

Any idea which CTEK model was used as a basis for the OEM unit?

 

Probably the cheapest so they could get maximum profit. I currently have the CTEK 7 which was cheaper than their version.

The CTEK 10 is even better and now just as cheap.

 

Don't know, and I haven't seen one. Was thinking about ordering one, but obviously couldn't when the dealer said no longer available, at least in the U.S.

Most people are using the Battery Tender Plus very happily, and they're available anywhere. I'm glad I didn't get sucked into buying the JLR unit at likely thrice the price or more.

 

I ordered the CTEK 7002. It took me about 5 minutes to install into the distribution box in the truck so it can quick connect - nice solution. I've been using it for about 2 months now although I have been taking the car out on nice days...

 

Yes, it's the same with the Battery Tender Plus, which I already had. You're right, it's about 5 minutes or less to hook-up in the battery bus on the F-Type. I have the pig-tails for it installed on all my vehicles, and just move the BT to whichever one been sitting idle the longest.

It's probably the best $59 I ever spent.

 

Just took mine out of storage during an unusually nice weekend. After about 8 weeks with no battery tender (kept meaning to and then.....) it started up with no problems.


Just another data point for you.