Flat Battery - Abandoned hope?!

[m4rkw]

So my gut reaction is formed of these components:

1) ODB2 is not designed to handle charging current

2) Cheap chinese eBay electronics of dubious quality

3) The ECU and other expensive computers are accessible directly from the OBD2 port with (as far as i’m LED to understand) no protection circuitry

Sure solar chargers probably only produce a small charging current, but this still seems like unnecessary risk. 

[m4rkw]

Ah my bad I didn't look at the listing closely - saw it was eBay and £25 and assumed it'd be from china. Being made by the AA makes a difference but I still don't think I'd use one as OBD2 isn't designed to charge the Battery.

[Lydiamight]

It's misnamed as a Solar Battery CHARGER---I very much doubt that it will actually charge a flat Battery but what it will do is maintain it with a trickle charge. See below for a review:

Solar Car Battery Charger

The blue flashing LED light will flash as soon as it is the view of a bright light or sunlight, this doesn't specifically mean it is charging. It just means that it is ready to charge when plugged in in its current position in the sun.

Just like above, this solar Battery charger is simple to use, we took our car down to our parents and left it there for just over 2 weeks whilst we went on holiday. We left the solar panel on the dashboard facing south and went on our way.

We returned two weeks later, made sure to unplug it all before we started the car and it worked perfectly. The car started first time and our Battery seemed to be fully charged. This was in late summer though and there had been decent weather in the time we were away.

This may not be so good in winter and you'd need optimal sunlight for it to work perfectly and as expected.

Important Notice

Make sure to remove and disconnect from the connector or Battery before starting your car.

Pros

• Trickle charges a 12V Battery while parked
• Very simple product, easy to use, just plug it in and let it charge whilst you are away
• Great price
• Charges in sunlight, even in the UK, from both natural and indoor lights

Cons

• Make sure you don't leave it plugged in whilst you start your car, you will blow some fuses
• You have to access your (E)OBD socket, easy in some cars, harder in others

Verdict

An awesome car car product, if you are away for a while, it is perfect to keep your cars Battery charged, maintained and topped up for the duration of your stay. The only downside is you have to find the OBD connector, 

[ColinBarber]

4 hours ago, m4rkw said:

Ah my bad I didn't look at the listing closely - saw it was ebay and £25 and assumed it'd be from china. Being made by the AA makes a difference but I still don't think I'd use one as OBD2 isn't designed to charge the battery.

Well obviously the AA don't make electronic devices and this does come from China, but I'm not sure what that has to do with anything considering most electronic devices are made there, and the ones that don't almost certainly have components made there.

The OBD socket isn't designed for charging but these are very low current devices, not doing much more than stopping the Battery from discharging rather than actually charging the Battery.

The newer one the AA brand is a 4W panel rather than 2W, which probably has a little more chance of keeping the Battery topped up for vehicles with smart entry system as that consumes more power but is more expensive at around £35.

[m4rkw]

7 minutes ago, ColinBarber said:

Well obviously the AA don't make electronic devices and this does come from China, but I'm not sure what that has to do with anything considering most electronic devices are made there, and the ones that don't almost certainly have components made there.

You're right, but I would wager that the products being sold by reputable companies (such as the AA) are of significantly higher quality than the average random no-name consumer electronics hawked by no-name companies on eBay and amazon, despite both being made in the same country.