F30POST
F30POST
2012-2015 BMW 3-Series and 4-Series Forum
BMW Garage BMW Meets Register Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read
BMW 3-Series and 4-Series Forum (F30 / F32) | F30POST > Technical Forums > Mechanical Maintenance and TSBs: Break-in / Oil & Fluids / Servicing / TSBs and Service Bulletin > Which Smart Battery Charger is Best for my Needs?
ARMA SPEED
Post Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
      04-12-2019, 06:01 AM   #1
nightbreaker
Enlisted Member
15
Rep
44
Posts

Drives: F30
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: Europe

iTrader: (0)

Question Which Smart Battery Charger is Best for my Needs?

Hello everyone,

I am new to the forum, but have been reading the threads since a while and believe that I will enjoy learning more and also sharing info here as well.

Have 3 cars with 45 AMP 74 AMP and 90 AMP AGM (BMW F30 320 battery) batteries and would like to charge them from time to time as sometimes they sit for some weeks.

After some research I have found out that there are 4 options:

1- NOCO Genuis G3500

2- Suaoki 1A-4A charger

3- Noco Genius G7200

4- Suaoki 7A Charger.

As I understand the 3.5A Noco and the 4A Suaoki have very similar characteristics as they both work with 6V/12V batteries and have automatic charging capacity between 1A and 3.5 and 4A.

If I am not wrong comparing to a 4A charger the 7A charger seems to have more chance to repair a dead battery when it tries to desulfate a dead battery with high amperage charge. However 7A version of both brands are unnecessarily more expensive and work between 3.5 and 7A current.

So in this case choosing 4A version makes more sense as it will be able to charge 90 or even 95AH battery which F30 uses in anyway, and it will be better for the battery as lower amperage will be better for the battery.

Any experience with those chargers? Which one would you recommend? I really prefer to pay as minimum as possible as long as my needs are met.

Many thanks in advance.
Appreciate 0
      04-12-2019, 07:37 AM   #2
Billfitz
Lieutenant General
Billfitz's Avatar
United_States
8170
Rep
15,966
Posts

Drives: '15 328iX GT
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: New Hampshire

iTrader: (0)

You don't want to let the car sit for weeks and then recharge the battery with a high capacity charger, you want to put it on a maintainer that keeps if from losing charge while it sits. This is what I use, though I doubt it's available in Europe:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Appreciate 0
      04-12-2019, 08:05 AM   #3
nightbreaker
Enlisted Member
15
Rep
44
Posts

Drives: F30
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: Europe

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Billfitz View Post
You don't want to let the car sit for weeks and then recharge the battery with a high capacity charger, you want to put it on a maintainer that keeps if from losing charge while it sits. This is what I use, though I doubt it's available in Europe:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Thanks for quick reply. 4a or 7a both are smart chargers and work as trickle charger in float mode once the battery is full.

Local availability doesnt matter because I will get it in anyway with help of someone travelling from the states or uk.
Appreciate 0
      04-12-2019, 09:49 AM   #4
nightbreaker
Enlisted Member
15
Rep
44
Posts

Drives: F30
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: Europe

iTrader: (0)

I am still confused and would like to know whether I should pick 4A or 7A trickle smart charger ?
Appreciate 0
      04-12-2019, 09:56 AM   #5
Billfitz
Lieutenant General
Billfitz's Avatar
United_States
8170
Rep
15,966
Posts

Drives: '15 328iX GT
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: New Hampshire

iTrader: (0)

In trickle mode it won't run at more than 2A anyway, so there's no point in spending more than you have to for that. I bought the one I did because it cost no more than pure maintainers that only had 2A or less trickle capacity.
Appreciate 0
      04-13-2019, 12:29 AM   #6
nightbreaker
Enlisted Member
15
Rep
44
Posts

Drives: F30
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: Europe

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Billfitz View Post
In trickle mode it won't run at more than 2A anyway, so there's no point in spending more than you have to for that. I bought the one I did because it cost no more than pure maintainers that only had 2A or less trickle capacity.
Yours is the Stanley Fatmax at the link you shared, which works between 2 and 8amp right? And as it has a mode selector do you have to select to charge either at 8A or 2A or does it analyze the battery condition and automatically select the best amperage ?

And is it really able to recover and fix a dead battery as good as an expensive Noco or Suaoki? Is the reason of price difference only marketing?

Last edited by nightbreaker; 04-13-2019 at 12:40 AM..
Appreciate 0
      04-13-2019, 08:18 AM   #7
Billfitz
Lieutenant General
Billfitz's Avatar
United_States
8170
Rep
15,966
Posts

Drives: '15 328iX GT
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: New Hampshire

iTrader: (0)

It is switchable between 2A for maintaining and 8A for fast charging. I've never used the 8A setting. When I'm not driving the car for an extended period in warm weather or if the overnight temperature goes lower than -5C I plug it in on the 2A setting, so my battery has never needed a fast recovery charge.
Appreciate 0
      04-14-2019, 02:13 AM   #8
IraHayes
First Lieutenant
United_States
154
Rep
387
Posts

Drives: 328i
Join Date: Apr 2018
Location: CA

iTrader: (0)

Bill, I’m curious. It has been years since I’ve used one of these. Last time I used one I connected the red terminal to the battery, black to ground, as you would when jump starting. I’m wondering if you can connect it to the jump start contacts under the hood?
Appreciate 0
      04-14-2019, 06:15 AM   #9
Soul_Glo
Major General
Soul_Glo's Avatar
United_States
13295
Rep
7,483
Posts

Drives: G20
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Manhattan, NYC

iTrader: (1)

Quote:
Originally Posted by IraHayes View Post
Bill, I'm curious. It has been years since I've used one of these. Last time I used one I connected the red terminal to the battery, black to ground, as you would when jump starting. I'm wondering if you can connect it to the jump start contacts under the hood?
Yes you can and you should- according to the owners manual.
Appreciate 0
      04-14-2019, 06:23 AM   #10
nightbreaker
Enlisted Member
15
Rep
44
Posts

Drives: F30
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: Europe

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by IraHayes View Post
Bill, I’m curious. It has been years since I’ve used one of these. Last time I used one I connected the red terminal to the battery, black to ground, as you would when jump starting. I’m wondering if you can connect it to the jump start contacts under the hood?
Thats also something I would like to know.

So when you charge the battery instead of connecting the charger cable directly to the battery you connect the cable to the + and - terminal screws under the hood?

The advantage in that is not to loose adaptation values.
Appreciate 0
      04-14-2019, 09:04 AM   #11
Billfitz
Lieutenant General
Billfitz's Avatar
United_States
8170
Rep
15,966
Posts

Drives: '15 328iX GT
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: New Hampshire

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by IraHayes View Post
I’m wondering if you can connect it to the jump start contacts under the hood?
I permanently wired a quick connect to the under hood charging posts, the connector extending out of the lower radiator grill. That allows me to plug my trickle charger in my garage into the car without opening the hood or trunk, which I do regularly in the winter.
Appreciate 0
      04-16-2019, 01:26 AM   #12
nightbreaker
Enlisted Member
15
Rep
44
Posts

Drives: F30
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: Europe

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Billfitz View Post
I permanently wired a quick connect to the under hood charging posts, the connector extending out of the lower radiator grill. That allows me to plug my trickle charger in my garage into the car without opening the hood or trunk, which I do regularly in the winter.
Thanks for the info. Most people advises to connect the smart charger directly to the battery and disconnect the battery from the car.

But I am afraid that it might cause the car to loose all adaptations and maybe even the remote door lock function might not work after a long disconnect.

Secondly I decided to buy a max 4 amp charger as I believe it will be highly enough for my 45, 74 and 90 amp car batteries.

As I understand the repair mode of NOCO is just useless and the NOCO G3500 has no difference from BOSCH C3 charger even as both actually only have 3 stages...Fast Charge,Slow Charge and Stand By...And the other stages are just marketing game to fool customers to pay extra money for a simple smart charger. What do you think?
Appreciate 0
      04-16-2019, 07:50 AM   #13
Billfitz
Lieutenant General
Billfitz's Avatar
United_States
8170
Rep
15,966
Posts

Drives: '15 328iX GT
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: New Hampshire

iTrader: (0)

Disconnecting the battery will only cause the clock to require resetting, but there's absolutely no reason to disconnect the battery. There's also no reason to connect the charger to the battery, that's what the charging posts under the hood are there for. 4 amps is more than enough to supply current to those components that draw power while the car is not being driven, preventing the battery from discharging. I had a NOCO 3500, it died after only a year, so I wouldn't recommend it. Reviews of the C3 aren't good, and it's too expensive. Even a 1 amp charger will charge a 90 amp battery from dead to full charge, it just takes 90 hours to do it. The only reason to have a high current charger is if you need to charge a dead battery. By using a maintainer you'll never have a dead battery.
Appreciate 0
      04-17-2019, 04:32 AM   #14
nightbreaker
Enlisted Member
15
Rep
44
Posts

Drives: F30
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: Europe

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Billfitz View Post
Disconnecting the battery will only cause the clock to require resetting, but there's absolutely no reason to disconnect the battery. There's also no reason to connect the charger to the battery, that's what the charging posts under the hood are there for. 4 amps is more than enough to supply current to those components that draw power while the car is not being driven, preventing the battery from discharging. I had a NOCO 3500, it died after only a year, so I wouldn't recommend it. Reviews of the C3 aren't good, and it's too expensive. Even a 1 amp charger will charge a 90 amp battery from dead to full charge, it just takes 90 hours to do it. The only reason to have a high current charger is if you need to charge a dead battery. By using a maintainer you'll never have a dead battery.
Thank you very much for the useful info again. In this case if I connect the 1 or 2 amp charger to the pots under the hood will it still charge the battery?

As I see the 1 AMP chargers are recommended for bike batteries which makes me get confused. Is that just marketing to get extra dollars on 4 amp or 7 amp charger sales?
Appreciate 0
      04-17-2019, 07:18 AM   #15
Billfitz
Lieutenant General
Billfitz's Avatar
United_States
8170
Rep
15,966
Posts

Drives: '15 328iX GT
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: New Hampshire

iTrader: (0)

Connecting the charger to the posts is electrically identical to connecting it directly to the battery. 1 amp chargers are recommended for bike batteries because that's all a bike battery needs to fully charge a dead battery overnight.
Appreciate 0
      04-19-2019, 03:21 AM   #16
nightbreaker
Enlisted Member
15
Rep
44
Posts

Drives: F30
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: Europe

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Billfitz View Post
Connecting the charger to the posts is electrically identical to connecting it directly to the battery. 1 amp chargers are recommended for bike batteries because that's all a bike battery needs to fully charge a dead battery overnight.
Thanks for the info. If all difference is the long duration of charge in case of getting the 1 amp charger, then I will get it to charge my original 90ah AGM battery which already is at 12.8V. So it should not take more than a day hopefully.
Appreciate 0
      04-19-2019, 07:16 AM   #17
Billfitz
Lieutenant General
Billfitz's Avatar
United_States
8170
Rep
15,966
Posts

Drives: '15 328iX GT
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: New Hampshire

iTrader: (0)

With BMW I'd still go with 2 amperes. The reason for that is the same as the reason for using a battery tender: the electronics are never off. I haven't bothered to measure the current draw when the car is just sitting, but I know it's there. My 2A charger supplies the current that the car draws when sitting, with enough capacity left over to bring the battery back to a full charge after a short drive, even when temperatures drop below -10C. A 1A charger might do so as well, but since I don't have a 1A charger I can't say so from personal experience.
Appreciate 0
      04-22-2019, 08:22 AM   #18
axis
First Lieutenant
United_States
18
Rep
345
Posts

Drives: 2019 430i Gran Coupe
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Florida

iTrader: (2)

I have one of these, it works great.

https://smartercharger.com/collectio...est-and-charge
Appreciate 0
      04-22-2019, 09:13 AM   #19
Polo08816
Brigadier General
1594
Rep
3,926
Posts

Drives: 2014 335i M Sport
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: MD

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by axis View Post
I have one of these, it works great.

https://smartercharger.com/collectio...est-and-charge
So one feature that may be useful is the supply feature which is available in units like the Multi US 25000 and MXS 25EC.

NOCO's chargers don't seem to be able to supply enough amperage to be worthwhile although some of them are compatible with lithium ion batteries found in the M cars.
Appreciate 0
      04-22-2019, 09:28 AM   #20
Billfitz
Lieutenant General
Billfitz's Avatar
United_States
8170
Rep
15,966
Posts

Drives: '15 328iX GT
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: New Hampshire

iTrader: (0)

For $120 it better work great. For $25 mine works well enough.
Appreciate 0
      04-22-2019, 12:14 PM   #21
axis
First Lieutenant
United_States
18
Rep
345
Posts

Drives: 2019 430i Gran Coupe
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Florida

iTrader: (2)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Billfitz View Post
For $120 it better work great. For $25 mine works well enough.
I didn't pay 120 for mine, got it on eBay for quite a bit less. CTEK is the OEM for a lot of high end auto makers chargers, so that's why I went with them. They make some less expensive models as well that would work.
Appreciate 0
      05-04-2019, 05:39 PM   #22
evdok
Lieutenant Colonel
evdok's Avatar
United Kingdom
818
Rep
1,907
Posts

Drives: 330D M/SPORT xDRIVE INDIVIDUAL
Join Date: May 2015
Location: WORCESTERSHIRE

iTrader: (0)

I have just bought a ctek msx 5.0 smart battery charger due to a battery message telling me to drive a distance for it to charge, I do around 4.5k miles a year & would like to know shall I charge & recon or just give it a normal charge?
__________________
Happy Motoring

Evdok

Appreciate 1
Post Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 12:59 AM.




f30post
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
1Addicts.com, BIMMERPOST.com, E90Post.com, F30Post.com, M3Post.com, ZPost.com, 5Post.com, 6Post.com, 7Post.com, XBimmers.com logo and trademark are properties of BIMMERPOST