Are they good value. Looking at the 4003 for my Wife's car, as it does not get a lot of use. And have had little success with the supercheap auto type chargers.
2nd2none,
Apr 23, 12:52am
I find them good.
serf407,
Apr 23, 12:55am
I don't have that model Ctek, but the one Ido have has worked well for the price I paid for it.
socram,
Apr 23, 7:19am
They have a good reputation.I use one now and they are tiny compared to the traditional type. No problems so far - and don't expect any either.
bigfatmat1,
Apr 23, 7:33am
I think for the price there are better charges on the market.
All these wanky stages to charge a battery is it really needed! or is it just effective marketing.!
op they are good quality but the price is silly.
willz29,
Apr 23, 10:44pm
Which would you recommend then for around the same price!
1ollie,
Apr 23, 11:03pm
They a bloody good unit for how much they are!
clark20,
Apr 23, 11:05pm
They are excellent quality
bigfatmat1,
Apr 24, 1:13am
I would not recommend any for the same price because the price of them is stupid. It would depend on the application and type of battery to what I would recommend.
divermark,
Apr 24, 1:24am
We sell and use them ourselves in our workshop. No issues at all and they take a beating.A lot of high end cars (Bentley etc.) come with one of these in the tool kit. I highly reccomend them for low use cars as they vary the type of charge to suit and switch to trickle charging when not needed.
socram,
Apr 24, 4:23am
I really don't call just over $100 expensive.If it lasts longer than the previous clunky chargers I'll be happy enough and being able to just leave it is great.
Mind you, with modern cars, leaving them for an extended period without a trickle charge will inevitably mean a flat battery - unless you disconnect it - then go through all the hassles of input codes for the radio etc.
bigfatmat1,
Apr 24, 4:55am
exactly my point for $260 you can have a 7 amp ctek charger for the same price you can have a 15amp projector charger with more functions.
If this was going to get used for a charge a maintain charger that would be ok but for charging deep cycle or really flat larger batteries ns70 and bigger the projector would run rings around a ctek 7amp and will perform just as well on charge and maintain. Also chargers need to matched to batteries i.e 10% of it ah rating specially if its a deep cycle application. The just over $100 charger is a only 3 amps thats a good 48hrs days to charge a calcium battery from a few volts.
they are good quality chargers but for %90 of people a there are other brands just as good that can be purchased alot cheaper or a lot better for the same. price
I guess its like buying powerbuilt or snap on. You pay for its rep in quality.
willz29,
Apr 24, 6:48am
I guess I should explain the usage etc.
It is for a car that is parked outside, with a premium Marshall sealed battery 370CCA. Ideally I'd like to connect the charger one a week or fortnight just to maintain the battery for a period of 12 hours or so at a time. Just to keep it running sweet. My wife only uses the car once or twice a week tops, to go down to the mall which is about a 5km trip return, so when the car is running, its for a short time. Hence the battery issues.
bigfatmat1,
Apr 24, 7:05am
I would not of thought that to be an issue formost cars. Obviously it is a calcium/calcium battery fitted. Calcium batteries have a lower resistance hence they can sit for a year and still be charged. Providing the car is late model I can not see that you should need to charge the battery I would be more inclined to think that there is another problem on the car somewhere i.e a current draw . For you the cheap ctek is probably ok all the but only 4 stage charging if you are that concerned you could get a 8 stage 4 amp for the same money. The ctek does come with clips for easy connection most others dont but not hard to add yourself. Whatever charger you buy make sure it can charge calcium/calcium batteries
out_it_goes,
Apr 24, 7:54am
Current draw from a cars electrical system is almost a given. So no battery would last a year without needing a charge especially a modern car with all the onboard electronics. You made a reference to the comfort connectors on a CTEK unit, these connections if added aftermarket would increase the cables resistance meaning the chargers calculations on resistance wouldn't be right. The battery therefore wouldn't be fully charged ever. CTEK also have Indicator Adaptors which have an LED light system in them so you can visually see when the battery is going flat which is perfect for the once a fortnight charge to see when the battery needs a charge. Also means one charger can be used for many vehicles in rotation. Reverse Polarity, Spark Protection aren't stages either, they are features and I've seen many brands claim them to be stages.
bigfatmat1,
Apr 24, 8:11am
lead acid calcium agm gel Charges don't measure resistance they measure voltageand connectors wouldadd unmeasurable resistance to a battery charger however dirt in these connectors ctek or not would add resistance. My reference to batteries lasting a year is open circuit. but in a car typically most cars have a draw of .03-.05 of an amp. this should last months before going to below 10v some cars however need a charger this would be in around the .5% range of vehicles.If I was looking at a vehicle dependent on model any more than these ranges I would be looking for a fault.
willz29,
Dec 18, 4:57pm
I bought the Ctek 4003 today from one of my customers, who highly recommends them. They also mentioned how they are fitted in some luxury cars. That with the fact it has a 5 year guarantee, was enough to convince me to purchase.
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