Need a Battery Charger for Top Up - Optimate 6 or Ctek 4.3?

[Steve Sr.]

I have recently discovered that the "smart" charger in mt 2016 Toyota Rav4 is not as smart as it thinks it is (goes for the whole car!) and chronically undercharges the battery. I recently replaced the original OEM battery because it had near zero capacity but would still start the car just fine... as long as you didn't leave it "on" for more than a few minutes before starting it. Go figure.

The battery was maintained with periodic drinks of distilled water as required. But it appears that the undercharging likely led to sulfation and the subsequent loss of capacity.

I am retired so the car sees errand use only several times a week for relatively short distances. So between the car's undercharging not so smart charging system and my low use it looks like I need a supplemental charger to keep the battery more fully charged and extend its life.

After reading a lot of reviews and usage history on this forum I have decided against the Noco chargers due to their overly conservative charging strategies. That leaves Ctek or or Optimate.

Which would you choose for my application or is there some others that I should consider?

Thanks,
Steve

 

[mk378]

The original battery lasted more than 7 years and you think that is a problem?

 

[UncleDave]

optimate 6 - covers a wider range of battery sizes.

 

[joekingcorvette]

I have a Ctek charger and love it. Mine is the smaller one .08 and is more of a maintainer than a charger however it will charge a battery to full capacity however it take about 24 hours. Since I purchased my Corvette with the factory charger that plugs into a cigarette type receptacle I am changing my other chargers to the cig plug in. I bought 3 pigtails to use with my other chargers. My Corvette came with the battery protection package however the seller was moving and it's still packed away in a box and I am supposed to get it this fall or before. Cteks are my favorite.

 

[Rand]

Battery tender is 29.99 at costco.(its a charger maintainer.. not the JR model.)

It must not be that big an issue if the battery lasted 7 years.

My 2011 and 2015 subarus made it 3 and 2 years.
2019 jeep was also 3 years.

 

[Steve Sr.]

It must not be that big an issue if the battery lasted 7 years.

My 2011 and 2015 subarus made it 3 and 2 years.
2019 jeep was also 3 years.

Well, I have gotten 10 years out of an OEM battery in my 2001 Highlander without the "smart" charger. My usage has also decreased due to retirement and the new battery is a JC unit from Wally World so likely lower quality to start with.

 

[Rand]

Well, I have gotten 10 years out of an OEM battery in my 2001 Highlander without the "smart" charger. My usage has also decreased due to retirement and the new battery is a JC unit from Wally World so likely lower quality to start with.

2016 has more electronics
I agree a battery charger isnt a bad idea.. I was just suggesting 7 years isnt a bad run.

The smart charger systems ARE stupid. the 2010 accent the wife had.. it would keep it around 12.3 volts.. that is less than half charged.
all to get .25 mpg better gas mileage. Hoping new ones work better than that early system.

The full size battery tender from costco at 29.99 is a nice charger and you can leave it plugged in.

also comes with ring terminals for permanent installation if you so desire.
IIRC its 4.5amps so overnight would charge even a mostly dead battery.

It is this one.. instore its 29.99 or was yesterday. The value for your $$ is high.

https://www.costco.com/battery-tender-4.5-amp-supersmart-battery-charger-%2526-maintainer.product.100679769.html

I have one installed 24/7 on a 2013 equinox that gets about 1000 miles a year.

 

[Steve Sr.]

optimate 6 - covers a wider range of battery sizes.

Have you had a chance to try any of the newer versions of the Optimate chargers? The newer models don't look like yours so something has changed. Maybe for the better. Maybe not. Since they are not sold on sites like Amazon it is hard to find many reviews.

 

[Steve Sr.]

2016 has more electronics
I agree a battery charger isnt a bad idea.. I was just suggesting 7 years isnt a bad run.

It is not, but even during this time there were some issues. Once I turned the radio on while I was waxing the car and it killed the battery enough that it wouldn't start. Same thing happened about 6 months ago. Battery got so low that the radio shut off.

The smart charger systems ARE stupid. the 2010 accent the wife had.. it would keep it around 12.3 volts.. that is less than half charged.
all to get .25 mpg better gas mileage. Hoping new ones work better than that early system.

While I was scratching my head with the old battery I stuck a meter in the cigarette lighter plug and noticed some interesting voltage patterns. In normal driving I would see 13.9-14.1. When coasting or braking it would go up to 14.25-14.3. Never saw it go above this. With the new battery I actually saw it go to 14.8 for a while after a restart which I never saw with the old battery.

 

[UncleDave]

Have you had a chance to try any of the newer versions of the Optimate chargers? The newer models don't look like yours so something has changed. Maybe for the better. Maybe not. Since they are not sold on sites like Amazon it is hard to find many reviews.

No I haven't had anything new from them in a while. Same with Ctek.

If I needed another charger I would buy the new Optimate 6 gold.

I have a hard time trusting amazon reviews regardless of product.

 

[Steve Sr.]

I have a hard time trusting amazon reviews regardless of product.

Regardless of website I always start with the lowest rated reviews. This limits the amount of reading required and may give some great details on common problem areas. However you still have to filter out the user can't read instructions / improper use scenarios but usually this is pretty obvious.

 

[UncleDave]

Regardless of website I always start with the lowest rated reviews. This limits the amount of reading required and may give some great details on common problem areas. However you still have to filter out the user can't read instructions / improper use scenarios but usually this is pretty obvious.

Same thing going that way - anyone can write a review of anything.

We once had a cinematographer write a review of a camera we built without ever actually using it.

 

[ripcord]

I have recently discovered that the "smart" charger in mt 2016 Toyota Rav4 is not as smart as it thinks it is (goes for the whole car!) and chronically undercharges the battery. I recently replaced the original OEM battery because it had near zero capacity but would still start the car just fine... as long as you didn't leave it "on" for more than a few minutes before starting it. Go figure.

The battery was maintained with periodic drinks of distilled water as required. But it appears that the undercharging likely led to sulfation and the subsequent loss of capacity.

I am retired so the car sees errand use only several times a week for relatively short distances. So between the car's undercharging not so smart charging system and my low use it looks like I need a supplemental charger to keep the battery more fully charged and extend its life.

After reading a lot of reviews and usage history on this forum I have decided against the Noco chargers due to their overly conservative charging strategies. That leaves Ctek or or Optimate.

Which would you choose for my application or is there some others that I should consider?

Thanks,
Steve

If you were needing to add water regularly, your battery was being over charged, not under charged. Modern non-maintenance starter batteries use a lead calcium alloy for the plates that does not off gas during normal operation like the old lead antimony batteries did.

 

[twX]

It is not, but even during this time there were some issues. Once I turned the radio on while I was waxing the car and it killed the battery enough that it wouldn't start. Same thing happened about 6 months ago. Battery got so low that the radio shut off.

That tends to happen when a battery is going bad. I wouldn't suspect the charger has a problem without voltage measurements. Test the new battery with the old charger. If the battery measures >12.6 V after charging and then resting for a while, and the float voltage is at least 12.9 V with the charger connected to a fully charged battery, then the charger is doing its job. If the float voltage never drops below 13.5 V once the battery is charged, the charger may be continuously stressing the battery which might shorten the battery life.

 

[Steve Sr.]

If you were needing to add water regularly, your battery was being over charged, not under charged. Modern non-maintenance starter batteries use a lead calcium alloy for the plates that does not off gas during normal operation like the old lead antimony batteries did.

This was not to my knowledge a maintenance free type of battery. It had removable caps. I never had to add much water especially towards the end of its life.

 

[Steve Sr.]

That tends to happen when a battery is going bad. I wouldn't suspect the charger has a problem without voltage measurements. Test the new battery with the old charger. If the battery measures >12.6 V after charging and then resting for a while, and the float voltage is at least 12.9 V with the charger connected to a fully charged battery, then the charger is doing its job. If the float voltage never drops below 13.5 V once the battery is charged, the charger may be continuously stressing the battery which might shorten the battery life.

This was not with a secondary charger but with the "smart" one in the car.

 

[ripcord]

This was not to my knowledge a maintenance free type of battery. It had removable caps. I never had to add much water especially towards the end of its life.

Virtually all flooded lead acid starter batteries have been "maintenance free" for 30 years. Even if they have caps. They can lose a tiny bit of water from evaporation in hot climates but won't normally need constant top offs like deep cycles do.

 

[benjy]

my CTEK 4.3 is 15 YO keeping several motorcycles HAPPY! + me too. all batteries are older including the OE in my 13 Vic Hammer

 

[meep]

my CTEK 4.3 is 15 YO keeping several motorcycles HAPPY! + me too. all batteries are older including the OE in my 13 Vic Hammer

That’s good to hear. I know mine gets hot when it’s sending full rated power, all those 4 amps or so, so I’ve wondered how long it will truly hold up … and when I mounted it on the plywood wall of my garage put metal behind it….

m

 

[joekingcorvette]

They mailed the Corvette C-tek maintainer charger to me and it arrived today! I plugged it into the cigarette lighter socket in the back seat of my F-150. The Corvette's on a $13.00 motosport charger from Walmart right now. I like the Corvette emblem on the factory battery protection package option.