Leaving car for 3 months

[Ezzie]

I’m leaving my 2005 Lexus 400h for 3 months in Greece, on private land. Do I disconnect the starter Battery? I have an excellent power pack for when I return at Christmas if that makes a difference. I didn’t disconnect last year and the Battery was as dead… is disconnection a better option? I’d presumably leave the car doors unlocked?

[Boomer54]

In my experience most cars have stuff running in the background causing a gradual depletion. On that basis I would tend towards disconnecting to offset that depletion and then just reset the stuff in question. However, given the period in question is 3 months I suspect your Battery will be dead anyway so why bother disconnecting.

[Neilo]

A Solar panel trickle charger might help, it sits on your dash and plugs in to your obd socket - if your not comfortable with that some Solar panels come with croc clips if you wanted to remove your Battery and put it inside your car to keep it topped up.

 

[Spock66]

Letting the Battery fully discharge is not a good option as it may not recover, so either disconnect or ensure there is a charging source.

Also ensure the Hybrid Battery is at maximum charge.

[LenT]

2 hours ago, Ezzie said:

I’m leaving my 2005 Lexus 400h for 3 months in Greece, on private land. Do I disconnect the starter battery? I have an excellent power pack for when I return at Christmas if that makes a difference. I didn’t disconnect last year and the battery was as dead… is disconnection a better option? I’d presumably leave the car doors unlocked?

I take it that you don’t have a convenient power supply nearby, otherwise a CTEK trickle charger would keep the Battery fully charged.

Failing that, and on the basis that the car’s out in the open, then a good quality solar charger, as Neil suggests, placed on the dash, should keep the Battery topped up.

Another tip for a car that’s going to be stationary for some time is not to park it with the brake on.  Chock the wheels if necessary.

[Illogan]

On 9/14/2023 at 10:32 AM, Neilo said:

A Solar panel trickle charger might help, it sits on your dash and plugs in to your obd socket - if your not comfortable with that some Solar panels come with croc clips if you wanted to remove your battery and put it inside your car to keep it topped up.

 

That's exactly what I would do