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More Power

Discussion in '308/328' started by samson, May 11, 2025.

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  1. samson

    samson Karting
    Silver Subscribed

    Aug 20, 2005
    230
    Port Saint Lucie, Fl
    Full Name:
    Sam Goldstein
    Hi All, I just purchased a 1980 308gts. Since the cigarette lighter socket is always powered, can I plug in my battery tender to it without worrying about burning up any wires. I’ve been doing that with my 2013 Corvette grand sport for years with no problem. Thanks, Sam
     
  2. mike996

    mike996 F1 Veteran

    Jun 14, 2008
    6,870
    Full Name:
    Mike 996
    In theory, yes. HOWEVER, in practice I found that with my 328 using a CTEK smart charger, the charger would connect OK and seem to work fine but after a few days, checking the charger would reveal a flashing light indicating that it was not "seeing" a battery. It did this consistently and I don't understand why. I then installed a fused wire directly to the battery with the connecter at the front grill. When connected in this manner, the charger functioned properly.

    Interestingly, a similar thing occurs with my wife's 2022 Mercedes S580 if the Ctek charger is connected to the car's "jump start" terminals (per the owners manual!) - it shows that it's not seeing the battery after a day or two. When connected directly to the battery, it functions correctly. I don't know why and the MB service dept can't figure out why and they have duplicated the results in their shop. Since we leave cars for 6 months in "storage" this is pretty important - especially on modern cars with all the electronics. On the 328 for the storage I make sure the battery is fully charged and disconnect the batt at the OEM quick disconnect.
     
  3. samson

    samson Karting
    Silver Subscribed

    Aug 20, 2005
    230
    Port Saint Lucie, Fl
    Full Name:
    Sam Goldstein
    Thanks Mike. I will go directly to the battery with a fuse.
     

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