488 Battery - how long does yours last?

[R11ysf]

Typical story, car parked in a London underground car park with no access to power. Battery dead in 16 days to the point it won't start the car. I know I should keep it on a trickle charger but that isn't an option.

So for those in a similar position how long does your battery last before dying? Is 16 days very short? Car has alarm and tracker fitted.

Secondly, has anyone found a good solution to this, running a trickle charger off a portable battery pack or using a CS FREE?

Thanks

[Francois de La Rochefoucauld]

I’m afraid Ferrari’s are known to chew through power. I suspect the battery was dead a good deal earlier than after sixteen days. My 488 only used to last a day or so at one point, a new battery at £900 meant that it would last about week before needing charging!

I had similar problems with a Lusso, new battery in that as well!

I’ve since had a break from Ferrari ownership.

[oharedm]

I have read into this when I owned a 488 GTB. I wrote a detailed technical report on batteries and posted it on FChat some years ago. I covered Lithium vs Sealed Lead Acid Batteries (AGM) for 458 (all models) /488 (GTB and Spider, NOT Pista)/F8 (Tributo and Spider).

Your problem is parasitic drain. I have not measured it myself but I have read of estimates of shutdown currents of 40 – 75 mA based on whether the car alarm is set or not. The OEM AGM battery has a 70 Ah capacity. So with the car alarmed, a 50% drain would take 467 hours (35 Ah/75 mA) or about 20 days. But that is a perfect battery and 10-16 days is very typical. Even i you do get it started it will light up like a Christmas tree with all sort of errors. This is caused by the voltage drop from on cold cranking.

Trickle charging is the optimum solution with a high quality charger (CTEK ONE). If you have no power then a Lithium Battery with low voltage protection auto cutoff will work but you are looking at close to a £900 for an Antigavity equivalent.

[R11ysf]

Interesting, thank you both. I have a brand new Ferrari battery fitted when I bought it 2 months or so ago. I have read the auto lights run on sensors so set those to off before parking to reduce the drain. I wonder what else there is that can be turned off prior to parking to help, maybe the stereo or auto wipers?

IF 16 days is normal then not ideal but I will need to find a solution somehow as I can go on holiday for a month 1 or 2 times per year.

[TwoMinds]

A CS Free hooked up to a deep cycle leisure battery will help, but probably not for two months at that rate of parasitic drain.

[oharedm]

In your situation I think you should seriously consider this option.

https://www.antigravitybatteries-uk.co.uk/automoti...
The 40 A is more than enough.
The key feature for you is that it will shut down to prevent a complete drain.

[Plainview23]

I was going to pipe up with Antigravity too but others got ahead of me.

I'm going to put one in my Scud when I get a chance over coming weeks; lots on Fchat have them and all are very positive.

[R11ysf]

I've just seen the Ctek CS Free had dropped £50 overnight. I've ordered that and some battery clamps to run it as a trickle charger off a spare battery I have.

I'll let you know how I get on, I'm away for 2 weeks soon so I'll charge it all up and see what happens.

[Fast Eddie]

R11ysf said:

Interesting, thank you both. I have a brand new Ferrari battery fitted when I bought it 2 months or so ago. I have read the auto lights run on sensors so set those to off before parking to reduce the drain. I wonder what else there is that can be turned off prior to parking to help, maybe the stereo or auto wipers?

IF 16 days is normal then not ideal but I will need to find a solution somehow as I can go on holiday for a month 1 or 2 times per year.

I have exactly the answer for you.
Drop the car round to mine and I'll keep it warm while you're away - ask nicely and I might even collect

[7GJR]

Two weeks by the looks of my dead battery today -despite being on trickle. Apparently the connectors can become corroded on the rear of the car.

[Trev450]

7GJR said:

Two weeks by the looks of my dead battery today -despite being on trickle. Apparently the connectors can become corroded on the rear of the car.

I presume you are refering to the magnetic contact above the number plate.

[MrBogSmith]

Mine died last month even though it was on trickle and needed replacing, which is a real pain on the 488.

The dead battery was from 2020 so I impressed it lasted that long.

[RSTurboPaul]

oharedm said:

I have read into this when I owned a 488 GTB. I wrote a detailed technical report on batteries and posted it on FChat some years ago. I covered Lithium vs Sealed Lead Acid Batteries (AGM) for 458 (all models) /488 (GTB and Spider, NOT Pista)/F8 (Tributo and Spider).

Your problem is parasitic drain. I have not measured it myself but I have read of estimates of shutdown currents of 40 – 75 mA based on whether the car alarm is set or not. The OEM AGM battery has a 70 Ah capacity. So with the car alarmed, a 50% drain would take 467 hours (35 Ah/75 mA) or about 20 days. But that is a perfect battery and 10-16 days is very typical. Even i you do get it started it will light up like a Christmas tree with all sort of errors. This is caused by the voltage drop from on cold cranking.

Trickle charging is the optimum solution with a high quality charger (CTEK ONE). If you have no power then a Lithium Battery with low voltage protection auto cutoff will work but you are looking at close to a £900 for an Antigavity equivalent.

What is sucking that level of power while just sitting parked? It seems totally ridiculous that an alarm system and/or any continuous monitoring systems should require so much power that it kills a grand of battery every two weeks unless charging from a wall. You wouldn't accept it on a £12k Dacia so why is it acceptable on a £200k+ car?!

[7GJR]

Trev450 said:

7GJR said:

Two weeks by the looks of my dead battery today -despite being on trickle. Apparently the connectors can become corroded on the rear of the car.

I presume you are refering to the magnetic contact above the number plate.

You presume correctly

[dng992]

lol these posts make mclaren battery seem good

leave 2 weeks no problem come back

[Griffith4ever]

RSTurboPaul said:

What is sucking that level of power while just sitting parked? It seems totally ridiculous that an alarm system and/or any continuous monitoring systems should require so much power that it kills a grand of battery every two weeks unless charging from a wall. You wouldn't accept it on a £12k Dacia so why is it acceptable on a £200k+ car?!

Anything with a tracker fitted is my experience.

996 C4S with tracker - 2 weeks then dead (they perfect timing to find out in an airport car park)
R8 V10 with tracker - about 10 days.

The R8 is on a trickle charger with a magcode connector hidden in the front grille.

OP - can you run a small wire to outside? (appreciate its an underground car park). I use a small solar panel and an MPPT charger in my other garage to keep my quad and dirt bike charged. Used the same setup with my TVR of old. 30w is enough even in winter. I use a 40w panel.

[R11ysf]

Unfortunately in central London I'm not close enough to get a panel in to direct sunlight. I did buy a 50W panel and put it directly under a fluorescent strip but it didn't work!

[speedbird1000]

Some have 2 trackers in them both running, as new tracker fitter often won't take out original tracker. I am soon removing 488 tracker as is a ripp off on annual fees and will want original removed. Tracker might be most of the drain could see if you can fit hidden on off switch...

[ex-devonpaul]

Do the trackers 'ping' their location periodically?

If you're in an underground car park could it be like a mobile phone using more battery seeking a signal when you're in a weak/dead spot and making it worse?

[Griffith4ever]

ex-devonpaul said:

Do the trackers 'ping' their location periodically?

If you're in an underground car park could it be like a mobile phone using more battery seeking a signal when you're in a weak/dead spot and making it worse?

They must ping it constantly, or you'd not be able to track them and I guess that just like a phone they have to work harder with a weak signal. That's why they are hard on batteries. Even with no subscription they keep doing it. T

Only two cars I've had with trackers are the only two that need charging to last more than 10- days to 2 weeks till flat. Both i never subscribed to - if that makes any difference. Both times my parking was in good signal (mobile) but both were garaged (which blocks any attempt at a GPS fix). Don't know how trackers work - are they triangulated (I assume so) or do they have a GPS receiver that broadcasts location? I'm assuming they are triangulated as this requires only a weak radio signal from the car.

Edited by Griffith4ever on Friday 29th March 10:43