Flat battery horn going off

[Glyn Jennings]

So today in my 2 years of owning the car I have encountered my first ever problem.  As the car is not used very much I have been in the habit of connecting my CTEK chargers for 24hrs every 2 - 3 weeks.  I think I must have left it too long since the last charge as the Battery is so flat now that i couldn’t even unlock the drivers door. Yesterday I put my CTEK charger on and today the Battery is still flat. I did read that if a Battery is too discharged the CTEK won’t then charge the Battery so I tried a different one.

As soon as I attached that charger the horn sounded once whilst hearing what sound like a faint two tone bleeping noise from inside the car. After about 15 seconds it all goes quiet the horn sounds and the cycle starts again even without the charger attached. The only way to stop it is to disconnect the Battery.  I have now attached the Battery charger to the Battery while disconnected from the car and will see what it is like tomorrow. The car had a brand new Toyota Battery fitted just before I bought the car but I guess little use, the immoblliser and tracker fitted may have caused premature failure. Any thoughts?

[NemesisUK]

Not sure why, or how, the horn should go off if the Battery is flat?

Personally I would leave the CTEK attached permanently that's what it's designed for.

See if the Battery recovers after being on charge for 24hrs, otherwise a new Battery and leave the CTEK doing it's job until you want to drive the car.

[Glyn Jennings]

3 hours ago, NemesisUK said:

Not sure why, or how, the horn should go off if the battery is flat?

Personally I would leave the CTEK attached permanently that's what it's designed for.

See if the battery recovers after being on charge for 24hrs, otherwise a new battery and leave the CTEK doing it's job until you want to drive the car.

I will see how it is tomorrow. Unfortunately it is not practical to leave the CTEK permanently connected as the car is in the road and I have to run the mains cable across the pavement. I put it under a rubber cover but I could not leave it there all the time. 
I can’t use a solar charger either as I keep the car under a cover. It is odd the horn going off in that everything else seems to be dead ie door locks and all the instrument lights. 

[Glyn Jennings]

I have had the Battery on repair mode and trickle charge over the last few days but it seems to be deceased. So today I have ordered a new Yuasa YBX5096 Battery which should be here in the next few days.  I guess I will have to up my game and religiously connect the CTEK charger every two weeks and possibly live with fact I might have to buy a new Battery every couple of years if that doesn’t work.

[Boomer54]

12 minutes ago, Glyn Jennings said:

I have had the battery on repair mode and trickle charge over the last few days but it seems to be deceased. So today I have ordered a new Yuasa YBX5096 battery which should be here in the next few days.  I guess I will have to up my game and religiously connect the CTEK charger every two weeks and possibly live with fact I might have to buy a new battery every couple of years if that doesn’t work.

Glyn roughly how long do you go inbetween drives in the car?

[Glyn Jennings]

4 hours ago, Boomer54 said:

Glyn roughly how long do you go inbetween drives in the car?

In the summer I was trying to do once a week. Now that winters here I try every two to three weeks normally. I am conscious cars don’t like not be used regularly.

[Bob King]

7 hours ago, Glyn Jennings said:

I have had the battery on repair mode and trickle charge over the last few days but it seems to be deceased. So today I have ordered a new Yuasa YBX5096 battery which should be here in the next few days.  I guess I will have to up my game and religiously connect the CTEK charger every two weeks and possibly live with fact I might have to buy a new battery every couple of years if that doesn’t work.

Can I ask if the display lights come up on the CTEK and it’s working okay ?

I ask as I bought a high end CTEK charger and it just made it past the warrant before packing up ☹️

[Glyn Jennings]

13 hours ago, Bob King said:

Can I ask if the display lights come up on the CTEK and it’s working okay ?

I ask as I bought a high end CTEK charger and it just made it past the warrant before packing up ☹️

The lights all come on and I am pretty sure the CTEK is working OK as I used a different charger and got the same result. However I don't think CTEK chargers are as good as they used to be. I had one 10 years ago and it was faultless whereas this Time to Go model I now have packed up after a few months as well so I complained to CTEK which was not a very straightforward process and they sent me another one.  !8 months on it is still going so hopefully it will be OK. I was fortunate as I bought it in Lidl reduced to half price so it was £30.  One thing a CTEK doesn't seem to do is charge a Battery when it is below a certain level of charge. The new Battery arrives today and I will put the CTEK on it just to make sure it is fully charged before I put it in the car. I will update this thread then and hopefully all my issues will be sorted.

[ColinBarber]

1 hour ago, Glyn Jennings said:

One thing a CTEK doesn't seem to do is charge a battery when it is below a certain level of charge.

I use Noco Genius smart chargers. They have a forced mode for when the voltage is too low for standard charging to take place. I'm surprised CTEK don't have that functionality.

[Glyn Jennings]

New Battery now fitted and everything back to normal now. I did find that as soon as connected the new Battery the horn was going off continuously until I hit the unlock button on the remote key fob. I guess this is because I unlocked the car using the key in the lock.  My daughter has an Honda FRV and that does this same if you use the key in the door to unlock when the Battery is playing up so perhaps it is a Japanese thing.

[Bob King]

6 hours ago, ColinBarber said:

I use Noco Genius smart chargers. They have a forced mode for when the voltage is too low for standard charging to take place. I'm surprised CTEK don't have that functionality.

I went over to NOCO after the CTEK let me down …excellent bit of kit 👍🏻

 

 

[Bob King]

32 minutes ago, Glyn Jennings said:

New battery now fitted and everything back to normal now. I did find that as soon as connected the new battery the horn was going off continuously until I hit the unlock button on the remote key fob. I guess this is because I unlocked the car using the key in the lock.  My daughter has an Honda FRV and that does this same if you use the key in the door to unlock when the battery is playing up so perhaps it is a Japanese thing.

It was all down to the dead Battery …you just need to be sure the charger is working ok.

 

[Glyn Jennings]

1 hour ago, Bob King said:

I went over to NOCO after the CTEK let me down …excellent bit of kit 👍🏻

 

 

I keep a NOCO jump starter in the boot just in case I ever get stuck out and about

[Boomer54]

1 hour ago, Glyn Jennings said:

I keep a NOCO jump starter in the boot just in case I ever get stuck out and about

That's a coincidence. I keep mine there ,but call it wife.

[Nigel Coleman]

I also have a NOCO 1250 amp jump start pack which I purchased for my Mercedes CLK 320 which I now hardly drive and is always going flat.

I have also used it to help other drivers - IT IS THE MOST IMPRESSIVE PIECE OF KIT I HAVE EVER PURCHASED!

It also has the forced mode like the charger.

NOCO Boost X GBX45 1250A 12V UltraSafe Portable Lithium Car Jump Starter, Heavy-Duty Battery Booster Power Pack, Powerbank Charger, and Jump Leads for up to 6.5 L Petrol and 4.0 L Diesel Engines : Amazon.co.uk: Automotive

I was lucky as it was on offer at £99.99 when I purchased it but after getting and using it I would of happily paid the full price.

[LenT]

3 hours ago, Nigel Coleman said:

I have also used it to help other drivers - IT IS THE MOST IMPRESSIVE PIECE OF KIT I HAVE EVER PURCHASED!

I have a neighbour who only occasionally runs his E-Type Jaguar, so the Battery is constantly running flat.  He used to borrow my mains powered booster, but I retired that some time ago.

Recently he popped round to borrow it again, but he was a bit surprised when instead I produced a small box from my car boot.  As we walked to his garage, he said that he thought he might borrow the big booster but I suggested we could try this first.

As I connected the considerably smaller NOCO to his Battery, he was clearly unimpressed and said “It’s a big engine, you know!”  So his look of astonishment when the Jag’s engine turned over once before roaring into life, was something to behold.

Astonishingly, three weeks later he turned up again accompanied by a friend.  Apparently he was going to give him a run in the Jag but the Battery was flat again - and could he borrow the NOCO!  This time he couldn’t stop telling his friend about this amazing device I had.

Fortunately, although I hadn’t recharged it, the NOCO performed its magic again.  This time my neighbour took a photo of it on the basis that he would get his own!

Whether he has I shall no doubt discover as winter approaches. 😊

[Glyn Jennings]

I’ve just bought one of these so hopefully now I can keep an eye on Battery charge level. I don’t expect it to be 100% accurate but it’s better than nothing.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Battery-Monitor-Campervans-Compatible-bluetooth/dp/B08VHMJYXY
 

[ColinBarber]

15 minutes ago, Glyn Jennings said:

I’ve just bought one of these so hopefully now I can keep an eye on battery charge level. I don’t expect it to be 100% accurate but it’s better than nothing.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Battery-Monitor-Campervans-Compatible-bluetooth/dp/B08VHMJYXY
 

These are very accurate.

[Boomer54]

2 hours ago, Glyn Jennings said:

I’ve just bought one of these so hopefully now I can keep an eye on battery charge level. I don’t expect it to be 100% accurate but it’s better than nothing.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Battery-Monitor-Campervans-Compatible-bluetooth/dp/B08VHMJYXY
 

Me too, and probably for the same reasons as you. Winter round the corner and usage dropping so be good to monitor the Battery.

[Bob King]

6 hours ago, ColinBarber said:

These are very accurate.

Agree they are very accurate , I’ve had one on my car for around 3 years.

 

[LenT]

 

On 10/9/2023 at 7:00 PM, NemesisUK said:

Personally I would leave the CTEK attached permanently that's what it's designed for.

The CTEK system of a plug-in charging lead that’s permanently connected to the Battery makes this a very simple operation.  An added benefit is that leads are available that have three traffic light leds to indicate Battery condition at a glance.  

I fitted them to both our cars and as an early warning that an overnight trickle charge might be advisable, they work pretty well.

https://www.ctek.com/uk/battery-chargers-12v-24v/accessories/car-accessories

[Boomer54]

19 hours ago, Boomer54 said:

Me too, and probably for the same reasons as you. Winter round the corner and usage dropping so be good to monitor the battery.

It's arrived. Cannot believe how small this is. There again I suppose it has to be if it is to be attached to the car Battery. Anyway, off to put it on and set up.

[Bob King]

54 minutes ago, Boomer54 said:

It's arrived. Cannot believe how small this is. There again I suppose it has to be if it is to be attached to the car battery. Anyway, off to put it on and set up.

I didn’t get on with the app the QR code suggested, I went for this one 👍🏻

 

[Boomer54]

8 minutes ago, Bob King said:

I didn’t get on with the app the QR code suggested, I went for this one 👍🏻

 

All good here so far. Only thing I note is I have to be very close to the car for the Bluetooth signal to work.

I was sat inside with it, approx 3 mt between the phone and box separated by one external wall (so two layers of brick and cavity).  I also note older houses have a density of brick that is well known for hindering signals.

For me this issue is a small thing as I will not mind just going out to the car with it when I want to check the Battery situation. Got a bit to do just to make sure I have it all set up right. For the moment I just ok'd it being a regular Battery from the options given, but honestly I don't know if it is ,or not. The failing light beat me to any chance of checking it out today. Come back to it tomorrow to complete the installation properly.

[Barry14UK]

when you have let your Battery go flat it will certainly reduce its life and may even kill it.  What can sometimes work it to couple your flat Battery to one that itwell charged (so as to give 12volt rather than 24volt/) and connect to your charger which can sometimes bring the flat Battery voltage up after a long  charge, even a CTEK but will depend on how far the flat Battery has deteriorated.

The NOCO may have performed better in other models but the GB40 performed poorly compared to others tested here.  *This guy has good reputation for testing products.https://www.google.com/search?q=consumer+product+testing+on+boost+starters&sca_esv=573826436&ei=cYQtZa6zAauChbIPjtaPkAQ&ved=0ahUKEwjur5bRnPuBAxUrQUEAHQ7rA0IQ4dUDCBA&oq=consumer+product+testing+on+boost+starters&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiKmNvbnN1bWVyIHByb2R1Y3QgdGVzdGluZyBvbiBib29zdCBzdGFydGVyczIFECEYoAFIzKkCUIodWIDuAXABeAGQAQCYAYgBoAGJDaoBBDEzLjW4AQzIAQD4AQHCAgoQABhHGNYEGLADwgIKEAAYigUYsAMYQ8ICEBAuGIoFGMcBGK8BGLADGEPCAgcQABiKBRhDwgINEC4YigUYxwEYrwEYQ8ICBRAAGIAEwgIIECEYFhgeGB3CAgYQABgWGB7CAggQABiKBRiGA8ICBxAhGKABGAriAwQYACBBiAYBkAYK&sclient=gws-wiz-serp#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:6e5b03b1,vid:JN8A2nIMUWA,st:0