Battery icon & Start Engine: See Operator’s Manual
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2017 Mercedes-Benz AMG C63 Cabriolet, 2014 Ducati Multistrada 1200 S
Battery icon & Start Engine: See Operator’s Manual
So, my C63 Cabriolet has been sitting lately due to covid19 (I am working 100% from home) and the constant rain the past week or so. I haven’t driven it in almost two weeks so this morning I started it up and noticed this error message. I checked the manual and it said to take the car on a long drive to charge the battery. My wife and I took it out for a couple hours this afternoon after I gave it a good wash. Car is beautiful and shiny and the engine starts up fine now without any battery error messages but I’m wondering if this is going to be an ongoing problem. I bought the car CPO and never saw this when I was commuting in it regularly but it has been sitting more lately.
anyone else have this happen?
anyone else have this happen?
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From: San Francisco Bay Area
2019 C63CS
This has come up in various threats, recently specifically about the FL, but it's the same for the pre-FL. The issue is that these cars never fully turn off. The car maintains the Internet connection, so that you can check the status of the car, remote lock and remote start. So there is a constant battery draw to keep the cell connection and the electronics behind it powered up. If the car isn't driven in a while it will eventually drain the battery. At least with the FL, the phone app reports the battery state and if it gets too low it starts sending out a notification that the battery is getting too low and advises to go drive the car for at least 30 minutes to charge the battery. If you plan on not driving the car for several weeks, there is a standby mode that can be turned on in the COMAND system. At least the FL has it, I'm not a 100% sure about the pre-FL, but I would expect that it has it, too. You turn that on, and then once the ignition is turned off, the car fully powers down eventually and stays powered down until the ignition is turned back on at which point the standby mode automatically turns off, so you have to activate it each time after driving the car if you plan to let it sit for a while. I've used the standby mode last time I went on vacation for 2 weeks, and when I came back it had a normal battery charge. The other option is to hook it up to a battery tender which will keep the battery charged.
Last edited by superswiss; Apr 11, 2020 at 09:16 PM.
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'20 GLC300 SUV
Yep. Not unusual at all. @Superswiss nailed it.
Question to Superswiss: I've seen a lot of recommendations for the CTEK 3300. It's sold out virtually everywhere I check (must be an older or discontinued model).
What's the best CTEK alternative? The 4.3? I picked up my '20 C43 in late February and I just hit 200 miles last night because of the current situation . . .
Question to Superswiss: I've seen a lot of recommendations for the CTEK 3300. It's sold out virtually everywhere I check (must be an older or discontinued model).
What's the best CTEK alternative? The 4.3? I picked up my '20 C43 in late February and I just hit 200 miles last night because of the current situation . . .
Out Of Control!!
Joined: Nov 2018
Posts: 11,467
Likes: 5,356
From: San Francisco Bay Area
2019 C63CS
Yep. Not unusual at all. @Superswiss nailed it.
Question to Superswiss: I've seen a lot of recommendations for the CTEK 3300. It's sold out virtually everywhere I check (must be an older or discontinued model).
What's the best CTEK alternative? The 4.3? I picked up my '20 C43 in late February and I just hit 200 miles last night because of the current situation . . .
Question to Superswiss: I've seen a lot of recommendations for the CTEK 3300. It's sold out virtually everywhere I check (must be an older or discontinued model).
What's the best CTEK alternative? The 4.3? I picked up my '20 C43 in late February and I just hit 200 miles last night because of the current situation . . .
https://www.juiceyourride.com/produc...31630730461245
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'20 GLC300 SUV
Check out Juice Your Ride. They have two options for the C Class along with the adapter so you can plug it into the 12V socket below the glove compartment.
https://www.juiceyourride.com/produc...31630730461245
https://www.juiceyourride.com/produc...31630730461245
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Joined: Dec 2019
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From: Florida
AMG C63s
Check out Juice Your Ride. They have two options for the C Class along with the adapter so you can plug it into the 12V socket below the glove compartment.
https://www.juiceyourride.com/produc...31630730461245
https://www.juiceyourride.com/produc...31630730461245
Out Of Control!!
Joined: Nov 2018
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From: San Francisco Bay Area
2019 C63CS
Thats interesting. Do you happen to know if that charger has the options to charge continuously, i.e. apply > 12V to battery continuously (disabling the smart charge, which switches it off when full) - need that for reprogramming the tune and this looks like a very convenient way to do that if possible.
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From: Florida
AMG C63s
Its part of the ECU flash instructions to prevent momentarily voltage drops during ECU Flash to avoid corruption - security blanket to not mess up your ECU while being updated. An yes, I am pretty aware what a battery charger is ;-)
Out Of Control!!
Joined: Nov 2018
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From: San Francisco Bay Area
2019 C63CS
I see. I doubt it will do that as that could lead to overcharging the battery. I suppose you could let the battery drain to critical level and then hook it up. Chances are the battery won't fully charge in the time it takes to flash the ECU.
Last edited by superswiss; Apr 13, 2020 at 12:58 PM.
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C63S
I've been having this issue as well on my pre-FL C63S that I've had for a month. It has happened 3 times and each time after I had accessory power or even just doors open for an extended period. And I'm in the same spot where I'm working 100% from home due to COVID so I'm not driving the car daily (though never more than 3-4 days without driving).
The first time I had accessory power on while I was setting up all of the vehicle settings, SiriusXM, etc. Was probably in the car for ~45 minutes doing setup and got the message when I turned off the car. Second time was when I was detailing the interior and the car was off, but I was opening and closing doors over probably 2 hours. The third time was last night when I was detailing the exterior and I kept accidentally locking/unlocking it while wiping door handles before I finally put the keys in the car to stop that. It was probably about an hour before I put the fob in the car.
So none of those times were both high battery usage and a really extended period of time. I did have accessory power on the first time, but it was only 45 minutes. And then the longer times while I was detailing, the car wasn't even on. I'm surprised the battery would drain so quickly in these scenarios. I had a C450 prior to the C63 and it never did this. Does this mean it's possible / likely my battery is dying and in need of replacement soon? It sounds like the short-term answer is to take a longer drive to charge the battery.
The first time I had accessory power on while I was setting up all of the vehicle settings, SiriusXM, etc. Was probably in the car for ~45 minutes doing setup and got the message when I turned off the car. Second time was when I was detailing the interior and the car was off, but I was opening and closing doors over probably 2 hours. The third time was last night when I was detailing the exterior and I kept accidentally locking/unlocking it while wiping door handles before I finally put the keys in the car to stop that. It was probably about an hour before I put the fob in the car.
So none of those times were both high battery usage and a really extended period of time. I did have accessory power on the first time, but it was only 45 minutes. And then the longer times while I was detailing, the car wasn't even on. I'm surprised the battery would drain so quickly in these scenarios. I had a C450 prior to the C63 and it never did this. Does this mean it's possible / likely my battery is dying and in need of replacement soon? It sounds like the short-term answer is to take a longer drive to charge the battery.
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C63S
https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w...rt-engine.html
