PSA - Don't use a Battery Tender Jr. on your Z

Vaughanabe13

It's possible the charger is bad, however I followed the procedures given to me by the manufacturer and the charger is supposedly fine. I also used the same charger on my other car (97 maxima) and it was working fine and the light changed to solid green after a couple days (and I verified the battery voltage on the maxima had increased). So I really think it would be a waste of time to try another BTJr when it's a substantial annoyance to drive 4 hours just to get access to the car (round trip).

And yes, modern cars these days have lots of processors and computers that are drawing power when the car is off. It's entirely plausible the quiescent draw of these cars is higher than typical. On the phone they told me flat out that the Jr. would not work properly on this car, so regardless of whether or not I buy the Plus version I'm not just going to ignore what the manufacturer says about their own product.

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2009 Nissan 370Z Touring, w/sport, 6MT, chicane yellow/black.

kenchan

and my G and Z are both modern cars and are floating fine, so as many others who use battery tender on their modern cars. so to me, if it's not the battery tender, and if it's not your battery, then it's your car.

did you say you bought the car used? if so, there might be a reason why the original owner sold the car..

im not sure if doing a PSA from one bad experience on your one car is a good idea or not? not enough proof or testing when you are probably the only one person with a z that mentioned having problems with the battery tender? i could be wrong but i dont remember reading any other z owner here complaining about the battery tender?

and the sales assciate you spoke to at deltran. probably just wanted to get rid of you.

my suggestion is you check youtube on how to test parasitic drain. some cars (even stock) have more drain than others.

Vaughanabe13

The PSA part of my post is because the manufacturer that makes the charger said it isn't supposed to be used on the 370z. Their words, not mine. Take that information as you will but I have already verified my charger is not faulty and neither is my battery/z. Making claims that my Z is somehow damaged from the previous owner is beyond asinine. Especially since "parasitic load" isn't damage in the first place, and there's no way the previous owner sold the car because of that. I actually know the reason the previous owner sold is because they couldn't make the payments. Not that it matters at all.

Those of you who claim your battery tender jr. has been working just fine on your Z - Have you actually verified that with a multimeter? And was this during long term storage or were you also starting up and/or driving the car during the storage period? I have no access to my z in the winter so a tender is my only option (or nothing).

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2009 Nissan 370Z Touring, w/sport, 6MT, chicane yellow/black.

kenchan

hummmm... in order to make this an actual PSA, can you ask the manufacturer wat the maximum allowed drain amperage is for the jr?

and what is the drain amperage of the 370Z they have on file?

would like to make sound decisions based on data, not based on potential xmas-season-hired-part-timer..

Vaughanabe13

Will do.

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2009 Nissan 370Z Touring, w/sport, 6MT, chicane yellow/black.

kenchan

verify wat with a multimeter? verify the battery's cca using an ammeter you mean?

but why would i need to verify anything if everything is working fine the last 7yrs on one unit and 4yrs on another?

Vaughanabe13

So I guess that's a "no". A multimeter can verify the BTJr is maintaining voltage according to their float curves. It could be you perceive the BTJr to be working but really leaving it off would make no difference. Do you start your car during storage or do you rely solely on the tender? And if you don't start your car at all during storage, how long is it stored for? I'm not trying to prove you wrong/be antagonistic here, I'm trying to figure out the answer.

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2009 Nissan 370Z Touring, w/sport, 6MT, chicane yellow/black.

kenchan

well the battery is showing a healthy 12v+ at all times. it's really the cca that tells if a battery is good or not. for that, you can't just use your multi-meter.

i dont start the car at all during the 4-6month hibernation.

Ubetit

Nothing is an option. I've done it every year. Mustang GT for years, S2000 for 6 years, Z for 2 years. I haven't had to charge the battery once. Never replaced the mustang battery, replaced S2000 battery in year 4 or 5, still on factory Z battery.

Don't start the car for a few minutes, it won't do any good. Either let it sit the entire 4-6 months or start it and drive it enough for all fluids to come up to operating temps.

SouthArk370Z

All valid points. Plus, at the price of trickle/float chargers nowadays, probably not worth the time/effort to troubleshoot.

But there does appear to be something wrong somewhere. I'm not familiar with the BTJr but, judging by the comments of those who are, it should do the job. If it's not the charger then I suspect you have an above normal parasitic load for some reason. I'd put a meter on it and check - if for nothing else than my peace of mind.

Please keep us informed as to what you find out. My curiosity is piqued.

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