Battery Tender?

[DCS]

After reading about so many electronics issues revolving around battery levels on new vehicles, I am wondering if I should put a battery tender on mine at least for the first few days or until it is fully charged. I currently have a 1 amp charger/tender. I wonder if that would be enough.
I am retired and only drive about 5,000 miles a year - much of that city driving.

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[area5179]

If your vehicle is parked inside and hooked up to a tender, you should be fine. When I had my 2005 GT I had a battery issue that cropped up if I let it sit to long. I used it as a daily driver but if I didn't drive it for a couple of days or was on vacation and it sat for a week, it wouldn't start. I went through batteries like candy and after 2 unsuccessful trips to the dealer I stuck a solar panel Battery Tender charger on the package tray behind the read seats and never had a problem again.

 

[DCS]

If your vehicle is parked inside and hooked up to a tender, you should be fine. When I had my 2005 GT I had a battery issue that cropped up if I let it sit to long. I used it as a daily driver but if I didn't drive it for a couple of days or was on vacation and it sat for a week, it wouldn't start. I went through batteries like candy and after 2 unsuccessful trips to the dealer I stuck a solar panel Battery Tender charger on the package tray behind the read seats and never had a problem again.

Interesting thought about a solar charger.
I wonder if anyone has taken current readings on a GT "turned off". I know there are a lot of electronics that are continually powered on during this time. I have an inductive current meter I can test with when my vehicle arrives.

 

[area5179]

Interesting thought about a solar charger.
I wonder if anyone has taken current readings on a GT "turned off". I know there are a lot of electronics that are continually powered on during this time. I have an inductive current meter I can test with when my vehicle arrives.

Oddly enough, I don't have this issue in my Gladiator and I don't believe it ever cropped up in my 2019. When I got my 2005 it was the first year for that "retro" body style, so maybe there were some first gen teething issues. When I took it to my dealership they ran all sorts of voltage and current tests and could never figure it out. It was parked in a driveway so I took a chance with the solar charger and it worked like a charm. It sat for 10 days while I was on a trip, and when I came back it started right up, no hesitation.

 

[Dena]

So far I am on track to about 3,000 miles a year with my car. It's a daily driver with 6-10 miles a day and the battery is staying up fine. The problem is if the battery sits for weeks without being used, it develops sulphate and that takes a long slow charge to reverse. After it's reversed, 20-30 minutes of driving will fully top off the battery. A good tender isn't going to hurt but if you drive the car two or three times a week, you don't really need one.
Small solar chargers will work if they get enough sunlight a day and they are able to output at least an amp. I would be wary of cheap ones as they don't have the electronics needed to stop the charge when the battery if full. If they over charge, they will gas off the water in the battery shorting it's life.

 

[DCS]

For the most part, I drive every day but short trips like yours.

 

[RaceRedder]

After reading about so many electronics issues revolving around battery levels on new vehicles, I am wondering if I should put a battery tender on mine at least for the first few days or until it is fully charged. I currently have a 1 amp charger/tender. I wonder if that would be enough.
I am retired and only drive about 5,000 miles a year - much of that city driving.

Man, I'm retired too, and I drive more now than when I was working. Retirement gave me the time to enjoy and drive.

 

[RaceRedder]

So far I am on track to about 3,000 miles a year with my car. It's a daily driver with 6-10 miles a day and the battery is staying up fine. The problem is if the battery sits for weeks without being used, it develops sulphate and that takes a long slow charge to reverse. After it's reversed, 20-30 minutes of driving will fully top off the battery. A good tender isn't going to hurt but if you drive the car two or three times a week, you don't really need one.
Small solar chargers will work if they get enough sunlight a day and they are able to output at least an amp. I would be wary of cheap ones as they don't have the electronics needed to stop the charge when the battery if full. If they over charge, they will gas off the water in the battery shorting it's life.

Daily driver and have 3000 miles a year.
Bro, you could have bought a bicycle and the whole Mustang frame without the engine just to park it in front of your house and look at it.

 

[SAL-E]

After reading about so many electronics issues revolving around battery levels on new vehicles, I am wondering if I should put a battery tender on mine at least for the first few days or until it is fully charged. I currently have a 1 amp charger/tender. I wonder if that would be enough.
I am retired and only drive about 5,000 miles a year - much of that city driving.

I would most definitely put a battery charger on it when you bring it home. The battery charge is usually pretty low at delivery unless your dealer charges it for you... probably uncommon.

As for a battery tender, it's a good idea if you don't drive it very far. Please note that the Gen7 Mustangs have AGM batteries, so if you have an old tender, it may not be optimal for your battery.

 

[DCS]

I would most definitely put a battery charger on it when you bring it home. The battery charge is usually pretty low at delivery unless your dealer charges it for you... probably uncommon.

As for a battery tender, it's a good idea if you don't drive it very far. Please note that the Gen7 Mustangs have AGM batteries, so if you have an old tender, it may not be optimal for your battery.

This is what I have: Yuasa (YUA1201000) 1A Automatic Battery Charger and Maintainer. It doesn't specifically say it is for AGM batteries.

 

[SAL-E]

I looked it up on the Yuasa web site. It says it is suitable for AGM batteries, so you should be good.

 

[Dena]

Daily driver and have 3000 miles a year.
Bro, you could have bought a bicycle and the whole Mustang frame without the engine just to park it in front of your house and look at it.

Believe me, I have considered it! The problem is in the winter you're dealing with near freezing temperatures in the morning and in the summer temperatures over 100 degrees. I like my creature comforts and prefer not getting sweaty unless I can clean up afterward. Where I live is somewhat on the edge of town so sidewalks are spotty. A horse might be a better option but the HOA would have fits.
Last but not least, most things are located much farther away. I have two grocery store, about 6 hamburger places, about 5 pizza joints, about 3 places that serve Mexican food and two Chinese places within 3 miles of me but Costco, Sams club and better restaurants are much further away.
I don't mind cooking for myself and I do but hauling all the food home on a bicycle is a bit impractical.
I guess that is to be expected as this is a bedroom community populated by younger people who tend to eat a fair amount of fast food.

 

[Crew4991]

After reading about so many electronics issues revolving around battery levels on new vehicles, I am wondering if I should put a battery tender on mine at least for the first few days or until it is fully charged. I currently have a 1 amp charger/tender. I wonder if that would be enough.
I am retired and only drive about 5,000 miles a year - much of that city driving.

Retired + don’t drive much?

Sounds to me like you need to go on a road trip with your mustang.

 

[DCS]

Retired + don’t drive much?

Sounds to me like you need to go on a road trip with your mustang.

Every once in a while, I do take a trip from Ocala to Gainesville (about 40 miles). After I get the GT, I plan to go more often during warmer weather. I think The battery will be OK once it is fully charged with a battery tender.

I'm guessing that the batteries Ford has have been sitting for weeks or months until installation in a vehicle. Then the vehicle is driven a mile or two and then sits outdoors in the cold (this time of year). It finally gets put on a rail car where it sits until the railcar is full. Then the railcar goes to it's destination. The car is unloaded in a storage area where it sits, yet again until a truck has a full load to take the vehicle to its final destination - the dealership. That's a whole lot of "sitting".

 

[RyanB3239]

After reading about so many electronics issues revolving around battery levels on new vehicles, I am wondering if I should put a battery tender on mine at least for the first few days or until it is fully charged. I currently have a 1 amp charger/tender. I wonder if that would be enough.
I am retired and only drive about 5,000 miles a year - much of that city driving.

My GT350 (2017) are always hooked up on my battery tender never had a single issue, but on the other hand, my 2024 has some issues from the start. They have to jumpstarted my car twice from the dealership because it’s completely drained. and when I got home I plugged it in for five days to get it fully charged and trickle charge. I have the battery tender Junior I think it will not be a problem..

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