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Battery Trickle charger

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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 02:45 AM
  #1  
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Battery Trickle charger

Hi !!!

I just bought the MB OEM battery charger and it’s not working on my G... I’m connecting it to the trunck lighter adapter

any help pls !!!!
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 08:30 AM
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A little more info on the model year of G might help diagnose better. I'm just theorizing on this because I don't know for sure, but it's possible the cigarette lighter "times out" after awhile so you aren't getting a charge. I've heard of a few cars (not sure of the brand) that will time out so the cigarette lighter doesn't drain the car if something is left plugged in all the time (like a radar detector). I always charge Gs straight from the positive lug and grounding post under the hood. The G is actually one of the easiest vehicles to hook up to a charger thanks to this convenient feature.
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 09:43 AM
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Originally Posted by YSL500
Hi !!!

I just bought the MB OEM battery charger and it’s not working on my G... I’m connecting it to the trunck lighter adapter

any help pls !!!!
The 12 volt outlets power down when the vehicle is shut off, and are disconnected from the battery through relays. You won't succeed trying to trickle charge this way. Find the battery jump start terminals if you can't locate the main battery and connect there. Not sure what MY your G is, but 2019+ main battery is under the cargo floor and jump start terminals are in engine compartment on passenger side. If you need to trickle charge frequently, you could add a connector for quicker access.
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 11:19 AM
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Yeah the lighter adapter way won't work unless the vehicle is on. From a quick search it looks like the Mercedes OEM charger is just a rebadged CTEK charger. It should have come with alligator clips?

If so locate the charging posts in the hood and connect it that way. I have a Noco charger and it says to connect positive/red first, then ground/black, then plug in the charger and when done reverse the order. Also, I think the batteries are AGM.
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 12:08 PM
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Originally Posted by YSL500
Hi !!!

I just bought the MB OEM battery charger and it’s not working on my G... I’m connecting it to the trunck lighter adapter

any help pls !!!!
As much as MB would like everyone to believe that only its $150 trickle charger is suitable for its OE battery, MB's AGM battery is branded as Varta, one of the dozens of brands made and sold by Clarios, which was spun off from Johnson Controls a couple years ago. Clarios makes DieHard and many of the private label brands sold at Walmart, Autozone, etc. Is a Varta AGM H8 size battery the same as a Walmart EverStart or an Autozone DuraLast? Who other than the Clarios people sworn to secrecy knows? Obviously they don't want to disclose if Walmart's $175 battery and MB's $400 battery are the same except for the label. Maybe Consumer Reports has done or will do a story on this topic. Stanley/B&D makes an AGM compatible 40A charger for about $60. But if all you need is trickle charging, one of the small Noco units for about $30 can't be beat.
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 01:02 PM
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What a timely topic - I’ve been hunting around for the battery last night. Most MBs have the battery in the trunk so a wired connection to the terminals is feasible. For the G, has anyone wired a plug in socket in the cabin to the main battery?

Last edited by z168; Dec 20, 2020 at 01:04 PM.
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 01:21 PM
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Originally Posted by z168
What a timely topic - I’ve been hunting around for the battery last night. Most MBs have the battery in the trunk so a wired connection to the terminals is feasible. For the G, has anyone wired a plug in socket in the cabin to the main battery?
I posted a thread on the battery location last July 28th on this forum. Adding a charging connection directly to the battery is feasible, but fishing the cable around the floor panel without some modification could be a problem as the panel fits quite tight. Instead, you might be able to fish a cable forward following the routing of the main battery cable and locate a charge connector under the rear seat. You'd still need to feed a cable through the rear window while charging (better than leaving a door ajar). My preference still would be attaching a connector to the jump start terminals in the engine compartment.
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 01:46 PM
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Another option is to get a special adapter and charge through the tow connector.



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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 02:49 PM
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Originally Posted by Hodog16
Another option is to get a special adapter and charge through the tow connector.
I like this! where where where?
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 02:50 PM
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Originally Posted by streborx
I posted a thread on the battery location last July 28th on this forum. Adding a charging connection directly to the battery is feasible, but fishing the cable around the floor panel without some modification could be a problem as the panel fits quite tight. Instead, you might be able to fish a cable forward following the routing of the main battery cable and locate a charge connector under the rear seat. You'd still need to feed a cable through the rear window while charging (better than leaving a door ajar). My preference still would be attaching a connector to the jump start terminals in the engine compartment.
Thank you! You just saved me a few hours of fumbling round
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 03:33 PM
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I googled charging through towing socket and found the picture. Looks like it's from a UK vendor, here are some options:

https://www.mobilecentre.co.uk/ctek-...-towing-socket

https://www.mokmaskw.com/index.php?m...ucts_id=210377

I'm not sure if this will work with the G but in the Land Rover world it seems to work well.
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 03:50 PM
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Originally Posted by Hodog16
I googled charging through towing socket and found the picture. Looks like it's from a UK vendor, here are some options:

https://www.mobilecentre.co.uk/ctek-...-towing-socket

https://www.mokmaskw.com/index.php?m...ucts_id=210377

I'm not sure if this will work with the G but in the Land Rover world it seems to work well.
One note of caution -- there is a current sensor on the trailer light circuit that disables the blind spot monitor and (I think) the lane keeping assist and possibly some other driver assist functions when pulling a trailer. I'm not sure what might happen if charging current is pushed through the wiring in the opposite direction. Has anyone tried this?
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 04:52 PM
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I would only charge from the post under the hood, not on the battery or through the lighter.

I don’t know the technical terms, but there is a voltage regulator that connects inline with the battery, if you connect directly to the battery you are bypassing that and can risk damaging the (sensitive) electronics.

I am not saying it can’t be done, but do so at your own risk.
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 05:59 PM
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Originally Posted by Hodog16
I googled charging through towing socket and found the picture. Looks like it's from a UK vendor, here are some options:

https://www.mobilecentre.co.uk/ctek-...-towing-socket

https://www.mokmaskw.com/index.php?m...ucts_id=210377

I'm not sure if this will work with the G but in the Land Rover world it seems to work well.
One other consideration -- trailer lights and the vehicle's tail lights are wired in parallel so that they light in unison. Depending on the vehicle's wiring configuration, attaching a charger to the trailer light connector might divert the charging current to the tail lights instead, causing them to light up. I concur with the last posting -- if you want to charge the battery connect to the battery.
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 06:06 PM
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Looks like this is more work than its worth. I will just plug it to the terminals under the hood then
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Old Dec 20, 2020 | 11:35 PM
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Thnks for your help guys

MY 2019

i think the best idea will be to connect to te good terminals, I need to get the clamps didn’t get them or I lost them hahahaha
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Old Dec 22, 2020 | 12:38 PM
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Without hacking anything, I will see if its possible to wire a connection straight from the jumping points and lead it down to the right hand side front bumper.

Edit: trickle charging it from the jump points takes forever. Will have to route a line to directly to the battery somehow

Last edited by z168; Dec 23, 2020 at 01:21 AM.
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Old Dec 24, 2020 | 02:43 PM
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Update: with the trickle charger taking forever to charge from under the hood, decided to access the battery directly. 4 hours later its fully charged.

Already ordered a cable connecter. I plan to route it to the driver seat underneath for easy access. Will post photos when I get to it
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Old Dec 24, 2020 | 03:34 PM
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Pls !!!!


plsQUOTE=z168;8231994]Update: with the trickle charger taking forever to charge from under the hood, decided to access the battery directly. 4 hours later its fully charged.

Already ordered a cable connecter. I plan to route it to the driver seat underneath for easy access. Will post photos when I get to it[/QUOTE]
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Old Dec 24, 2020 | 08:11 PM
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Originally Posted by z168
Update: with the trickle charger taking forever to charge from under the hood, decided to access the battery directly. 4 hours later its fully charged.

Already ordered a cable connecter. I plan to route it to the driver seat underneath for easy access. Will post photos when I get to it
This seems rather unusual - the under hood terminals are direct cabled to the battery since this access point can be used for jump starting. Charging from this point should be as efficient as conecting directly to the battery. BTW, why the need for charging? I drive my G twice a week, about 100 miles/week, and don't need to attach a charger between use.
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Old Dec 24, 2020 | 08:19 PM
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What difference does it make as to how long it takes to charge? I don’t think it Will charge any faster going directly to the battery. I’m using a one amp maintainer and using the charging points under the hood. My Porsche charges through the cigarette lighter and is much easier. Can’t charge the Mercedes through the cigarette lighter, it’s switched off when you turn off the vehicle.
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Old Dec 24, 2020 | 09:14 PM
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It usually doesnt take me more than a day to fully charge a battery. Plus its inconvenient to open and close the hood. If my plan works it should be plugged directly to the battery and accessible by the driver door.
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Old Dec 27, 2020 | 01:15 AM
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The cheaper chargers take forever to charge...get a CTEK charger rated for higher power and you are GTG.
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Old Dec 27, 2020 | 09:54 AM
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Originally Posted by z168
It usually doesnt take me more than a day to fully charge a battery. Plus its inconvenient to open and close the hood. If my plan works it should be plugged directly to the battery and accessible by the driver door.
The H8 AGM battery used in the G and many other ECO start/stop vehicles has a rating of about 100 amp/hours. If your battery is depleted to the point where it won't spin the starter, much of the battery's capacity needs to be restored. A 1 amp trickle charger will take a couple days to top it off, while a 40 amp charger wil do the job in a couple hours. A 5 amp charger will probably get the battery up to starting in 8-10 hours. I use a 1 amp charger to maintain the battery on a car I store during winter and it's adequate for this.
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Old Dec 27, 2020 | 05:05 PM
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Originally Posted by streborx
The H8 AGM battery used in the G and many other ECO start/stop vehicles has a rating of about 100 amp/hours. If your battery is depleted to the point where it won't spin the starter, much of the battery's capacity needs to be restored. A 1 amp trickle charger will take a couple days to top it off, while a 40 amp charger wil do the job in a couple hours. A 5 amp charger will probably get the battery up to starting in 8-10 hours. I use a 1 amp charger to maintain the battery on a car I store during winter and it's adequate for this.
Apart from a Tesla (which interestingly may need to be plugged to a trickle charger) all the other cars I charge take no longer than a day. I may still have the original battery on this one so it would be a good idea to replace it preemptively. Right now it starts without issues and just want to be ready when I leave it for a few weeks at a time without driving it
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