RennWerks
Go Kart Newbie
- Location
- Hither n Yon
OK, let me acknowledge upfront that I know from nothing about Golf GTI battery maintenance and re-charging. (Hondas, yes; VW Golfs, no.) I weaned myself off air- and water-cooled V-dubs in the late '80s, but after reading Georg Kacher's raving about the M7.5 in the March issue of CAR, I decided it was time to rejoin the fold. (Georg is a very clever writer!) So, while I'm waiting for a (USA model) 2017 manual-transmission GTI Sport to arrive in a week or so, I've been trying to bring myself up to speed on the sorts of things an old dog should learn about maintaining one.
I should explain my intended use of this car. I've always been a DIYer. My GTI will be a weekender -- a car I'll drive 30 miles or so nonstop on Sunday mornings eight or nine months a year, depending on the weather. The car will sit idle during the winter. Obviously, then, I need to buy a battery maintainer, and Ctek seems to be the obvious choice.
My first question concerns the model Ctek I should choose. I'm open to advice and recommendations. In this regard, I searched the board to see if anyone had discussed a permanent or semi-permanent installation of the Ctek hookup devices I read about elsewhere, but found none. So, I'm guessing the practice of most Golf owners is more ad hoc -- i.e., those who use battery maintainers hook them up as needed rather than as a matter of routine. OK, I can go with that, but I'd appreciate a Dick-and-Jane walk through to include advice as to whether the car's hood (bonnet) can be left open or, in the case of a V-dub, must it be closed to avoid draining the battery. (In this regard, I understand the the car's doors must be locked to minimize the drag on the battery.)
Next scenario: I have several decades of practice hooking up battery chargers to Hondas. (For clarity, I'm talking about a battery charger, not a "maintainer" like a Ctek.) No special routine has been required. I've simply been clamping on a multi-decade old Schauer 6-amp battery charger to installed batteries and turning it on for 15-30 minutes weekly for years, no problem. However, from what I've read here and elsewhere, this practice is not only not recommended, I gather doing so may fry a Golf's electronics. Here again, advice and recommendations are solicited as to whether this habit -- i.e., hooking up a low-amp battery charger to an installed VW Golf battery -- is tolerable or discouraged.
Break, break. From what I've read, I'm guessing it would also be a good idea to buy a code-reader/code-clearer of some sort. In this regard, it's my understanding that the car's electronics will allow a DIYer to clear the routine maintenance codes (oil-change interval code, for example) without having to visit a VW garage. I'm fine with that. Am I, a DIYer, likely to need a code-reader/clearer for any other routine use?
All informed opinions concerning these and other matters that come to mind would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
I should explain my intended use of this car. I've always been a DIYer. My GTI will be a weekender -- a car I'll drive 30 miles or so nonstop on Sunday mornings eight or nine months a year, depending on the weather. The car will sit idle during the winter. Obviously, then, I need to buy a battery maintainer, and Ctek seems to be the obvious choice.
My first question concerns the model Ctek I should choose. I'm open to advice and recommendations. In this regard, I searched the board to see if anyone had discussed a permanent or semi-permanent installation of the Ctek hookup devices I read about elsewhere, but found none. So, I'm guessing the practice of most Golf owners is more ad hoc -- i.e., those who use battery maintainers hook them up as needed rather than as a matter of routine. OK, I can go with that, but I'd appreciate a Dick-and-Jane walk through to include advice as to whether the car's hood (bonnet) can be left open or, in the case of a V-dub, must it be closed to avoid draining the battery. (In this regard, I understand the the car's doors must be locked to minimize the drag on the battery.)
Next scenario: I have several decades of practice hooking up battery chargers to Hondas. (For clarity, I'm talking about a battery charger, not a "maintainer" like a Ctek.) No special routine has been required. I've simply been clamping on a multi-decade old Schauer 6-amp battery charger to installed batteries and turning it on for 15-30 minutes weekly for years, no problem. However, from what I've read here and elsewhere, this practice is not only not recommended, I gather doing so may fry a Golf's electronics. Here again, advice and recommendations are solicited as to whether this habit -- i.e., hooking up a low-amp battery charger to an installed VW Golf battery -- is tolerable or discouraged.
Break, break. From what I've read, I'm guessing it would also be a good idea to buy a code-reader/code-clearer of some sort. In this regard, it's my understanding that the car's electronics will allow a DIYer to clear the routine maintenance codes (oil-change interval code, for example) without having to visit a VW garage. I'm fine with that. Am I, a DIYer, likely to need a code-reader/clearer for any other routine use?
All informed opinions concerning these and other matters that come to mind would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
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