CTEK MXS 5.0 Battery Charger with Automatic Temperature Compensation, Black

Bought on the recommendation of members of an online hybrid car forum, as a way of keeping the tiny 12V battery in good shape. Although I have never suffered the dreaded 12v battery failure, I know that the voltage gets low after the car has not been used for a few days. Apparently driving the car around at a steady speed e.g. motorway or dual carriageway run, does not charge the battery up. But having the car stationary with the ignition on in "Ready" mode for 1 hour does do the trick. Far easier to use this trickle charger and leave the car alone while you get on with other tasks. There are two sets of leads supplied with the charger, I used the lead with the ring fittings (M6 eyelet) and attached this directly to the battery in the boot. This allows me to connect the charger to the battery without faffing around with clamps. It also has the advantage that I can plug in the charger, close the boot hatch (the lead is thin enough to stick out) and lock up the car while it is charging. Typically this takes several hours (6-8) but because the charger is automatic and only uses a low voltage to charge, you don't have to keep an eye on it. I use the charger every couple of months to prevent the battery discharging too much. I also use it just before I go on overseas holidays because the car will be sitting in an airport car park for 1-2 weeks. So far, so good and the car has had no issues starting. I also have a Noco jump starter just in case, but so far so good and not had to use it.

Great charger, bought to replace my old one that stopped working. Put it in recon mode as my battery is quite old & almost gone flat. Left overnight, checked it and the battery was back to full capacity.Cable could do with being longer, subsequently ordered the 2.5 Metre extension cable.

This is a brilliant piece of kit, very good quality product and with very intelligent technology

Wow, I can't believe how good this product is. I purchased it after making a really bad decision to buy a Draper charger around eighteen months ago based on all the good reviews for the Draper. This CTEK charger is completely the opposite - it has successfully brought back to life a battery that my other charger claimed was "bad", it has recharged other batteries, it has a visual display showing at what stage of the cycle it is, I have experienced absolutely no sparks during connection (unlike my previous charger which sparked every single time), and I have confidence that the CTEK will continue to perform as intended. Really wish I had purchased this one from the outset. Highly recommended.

There are very few Ctek car battery chargers that haven't won awards, with many car makers simply rebranding standard Ctek chargers as their own (Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Porsche to name just a few). The choice of Ctek models is now vast and can be extremely confusing, further complicated by recent revisions to much of the range in September 2013 resulting in both old and new models being offered for sale alongside each other. I'm a long-term user of the older XS3600, XS4003 and MXS 5.0 - all now updated - and this last week have been using this revised MXS 5.0. Here are my thoughts on the current Ctek MXS 5.0 compared alongside Cteks' own other models:This Ctek MXS 5.0 is a new, slightly updated version of the now discontinued MXS 5.0, which was for quite some time Amazon's "best-selling" car battery charger. This updated model is denoted by the Mode button being "RED" whilst the original MXS 5.0 had a "BLACK" Mode button. The differences between them are minimal and for many users will make little if any difference (see below).The red-button MXS 5.0, like its' predecessor the black-button MXS 5.0, provides up to 5 amps charging current and is capable of charging and maintaining a 12-volt lead-acid car/ van/ camper/ motorcycle/ lawnmower/ jet-ski battery of between 1.2 amps and 110 amps; in real terms, that covers most car batteries up to a larger executive saloon such as a BMW 5/Mercedes E and even many typical camper van leisure batteries. The advantage of all "smart" chargers is that once the battery is charged, the charger will maintain that battery by monitoring its' voltage, and topping it up as and when required so that the battery may be left connected to the charger indefinitely - ideal for infrequently used vehicles. Ctek use a patented, proven 8-step charging sequence, each stage of that process being indicated by a separate LED on the front panel.Despite the apparent complexity of a Ctek charger, for many users it really is just a case of connecting the charger to the battery (the battery does not even need to be disconnected from the vehicle), connecting the power cable to a 240v mains socket, and pressing the MODE button a few times to select an appropriate programme (the settings being memorised for next use): The whole charging process thereafter is entirely automatic, and will stop/signal an error if the battery fails at any step. But for the technically curious, here's my explanation of what's going on:Step 1). Desulphation: When a battery is left standing/ undercharged for any period of time, sulphate begins to form on the internal lead plates reducing its' ability to hold charge. Statistically, more batteries fail prematurely from excessive sulphation than for any other reason. This first step provides a series of rapid 15.8v pulses intended to help shake off any sulphate deposits within the battery.Step 2). Soft Start: This starts charging the battery (at 0.8A or 5A, depending upon your selection), ensuring it can reach at least 12.6 volts within a pre-set time (a maximum of 8hrs).Step 3). Bulk Charge: Charging is continued at full power until most (80%) of the power is restored into the battery. When this step is complete (if you're in a hurry) the charger can be disconnected and the battery used as enough charge is already held.Step 4). Absorption: Charging is continued to maintain full voltage (14.4v), but current is continuously and progressively reduced to avoid over-heating (damage), gently topping-up the battery to maximum capacity.Step 5). Idle Test: Charging stops and the battery is monitored for 3 minutes to ensure the battery is healthy and can retain its' charge.Step 6). Recondition (this option can be omitted): The acid within the battery can separate in old/standing/infrequently used batteries, and where high accessory usage (heated windows/ seats/ mirrors, wipers, headlights, air-conditioning etc) over short journeys does not allow the alternator to fully charge the battery ("acid stratification"). This step provides a 15.8v topping-charge at reduced current for a limited time to promote controlled gassing/forced mixing of the acid within the battery.Step 7). Float Maintenance: This step holds the battery at a constant 13.6 volts for up to 10 days to optimise performance before changing to pulse maintenance.Step 8). Pulse Maintenance: The battery is continually monitored and topped up when the voltage falls through natural discharge and/or parasitic losses (alarm, car memory chips etc). This serves to exercise the battery whilst keeping it charged.Both old and new MXS 5.0 feature a "cold weather/snowflake/AGM" option; in this mode, a higher charging voltage (14.7 rather than the usual 14.4 volts) can be selected on icy days, and for normal charging of some AGM battery types (typically used in stop-start vehicles).How does this new MXS 5.0 differ from other models?Ctek MXS 3.8: Compared to the MXS 5.0, the MXS 3.8 has a 7-step charging sequence (it does not include the "Recondition" option/ function), with reduced charging current (3.8 amps). Ctek recommend its use for charging batteries of 1.2Ah to 80Ah size - covering most small/medium sized cars. It replaces the older multiple-award winning Ctek XS3600/MXS 3.6, which had simpler 4-step charging and 3.6 amp charging current.Ctek MXS 7.0: Has increased 7 amp output for faster charging of 14Ah to 150Ah batteries. It adds a "Supply" mode, providing a constant, smooth 13.6v supply; this is useful to 1) maintain car memory settings when the battery is physically removed/ disconnected from the vehicle, 2) "bumping" a severely flat battery below 2v above that threshold so that normal charging can proceed.Ctek MXS 10.0: As MXS 7.0, but with 10 amp output for charging batteries between 20Ah and 200Ah in size. It also adds an external temperature probe/sensor intended to ensure charging characteristics are correct relative to the true ambient temperature, and are not adversely affected by the temperature of the charger itself.Differences between the older black-button MXS 5.0 and this newer red-button MXS 5.0: 1) All Ctek chargers are temperature compensated; that is, the rate of charge (current) is reduced when working in hot ambient conditions, and when the charger is working hard for extended periods - when it can get hot. The newer "with Temperature Compensation" red-button variant also claims to adjust the charge voltage depending upon the ambient temperature. Unlike the MXS 10.0 however, this is an internal sensor: Logically then, this is monitoring charger temperature rather than true ambient/battery temperature, and could potentially be subject to error where the charger is positioned remotely from the battery and/or if the charger is working hard and itself getting hot, making it an enhancement of limited value in my opinion (although there would be more benefit in very hot climates where charge voltage levels would ideally be reduced). In our UK climate, simply select the "cold weather/AGM" setting in freezing conditions; any difference really isn't that critical. 2) The cable attachments have been modified to reduce wear. 3) The AGM and "Recondition" functions can be used separately or together in both 0.8 or 5amp charging modes. 4) The "Recondition" programme has been modified to either 2 or 6 hours at 1.8A max. 5) The Absorption phase has been speeded up to max 8 hours. 6) Efficiency is claimed to be improved by reducing overall power consumption. Do any of these changes make a difference? Not really in my view, but (so far at least) there's no cost increase over the older model.Ctek MXS 5.0 Test and Charge: Newly introduced 9/13. This is denoted by the "BLUE" Mode button: This is identical to the MXS 5.0, but also has additional functions to test 1) Battery Voltage (12.4-12.6v static value), 2) Start Power (9.6-10.5v whilst cranking), 3) Alternator Charging (13.3-14.0v whilst engine running). Stated values are indicated normal; above or below are indicated as high or low respectively. It's an admirable attempt to introduce additional post-charge testing, but in my view the measured values are too narrow to be of any real value, and currently at a very high cost relative to the standard MXS 5.0. A separate digital tester will provide more comprehensive, meaningful test results where battery and starting/charging system testing is required.Also available: Ctek MXS 5.0 Polar: Denoted by "ORANGE" Mode button and casework. As MXS 5.0, but adapted so that it can also be used in severely cold temperatures down to -30c. A Ctek Lithium XS 5-amp version also introduced for lightweight Lithium batteries (option on some Porsche models etc).All these CTEK chargers provide sufficiently smooth charging current and can in most cases be connected directly via your cigarette lighter socket (provided the socket can be used even when the key is out of the ignition) - without disconnecting the battery from the car or even lifting the bonnet! The cars' sensitive electronics should remain unharmed in all charging states except when possibly using (choosing to use) the recondition function. A Ctek cigarette lighter socket connector is available for this purpose (not suitable for use with the 10 amp MXS 10.0), and is well worth buying in my opinion if only to avoid the dirt under the bonnet: The basic cigarette lighter connector accessory is here; the newer version which adds LED indicators to show when your battery needs charging is here. All these chargers - as is common with all SMPS smart-chargers of all makes - also require a minimum voltage from the battery to be able to recognise it. With Ctek chargers, that's as low as 2 volts (most other smart-chargers require at least 7v) - a car battery is already considered flat when it falls below 10.5 volts! If your battery has dropped below 2v, you'll need the "Supply" mode of the MXS 7/10 to "bump" a charge, jump your battery first from another vehicle/battery, or use an old-fashioned transformer-based charger just to pump a little juice into it so that smart-charging can then begin. Be aware though that with any battery that's below a 2v level there is possible risk of unrecoverable internal damage, so caution is needed. Ctek smart-chargers use a charging algorithm based on IUoU, which is faster and more efficient with all automotive battery types (and which is distinctly different from the methods used by many other brands of smart-chargers I've tested): Whilst this technology is generally acknowledged as being the best of the eight or so alternative algorithms that could be employed for charging and recovering even old and abused batteries, even a Ctek can't always perform miracles; if your battery is heavily sulphated, internally damaged or corroded, or otherwise life-expired (usually due to neglect or misuse), it'll likely need replacing. My Ctek MXS 5.0 just last week correctly diagnosed my seriously-aged 11 year-old Mercedes battery as "failed" during charging. Ignoring the warning, 2 days later the car failed mid-journey due to (upon closer examination) internal shedding of lead-paste from the grid! That the battery DID last 11 years (5-7 years is considered good) is I think testament to the value of regular Ctek charging and maintenance.In my view, this latest Ctek MXS 5.0 adds little of real value over the already excellent model it replaces. Balancing cost against quality, performance and features, it will likely prove to be yet another Magazine Award Winner and "Amazon Best Seller" as it satisfies even the most demanding of users needs brilliantly: It offers virtually all the features of the more expensive models with only a very few periphery functions and some "large battery" charging speed being sacrificed. Perhaps the threat comes from Ctek's own lower-cost MXS 3.8 which, now upgraded in features, seriously challenges this models' market leading position. For that reason, coupled with a few personal minor reservations over production economies evident with this latest model (casings are now glued rather than screwed together, and the leads are both shorter and somewhat less robust when compared to older models I own) this MXS 5.0 loses a star.Of course, an even bigger threat to Ctek's market dominance perhaps comes from other makers copying as far as possible the Ctek smart-management technology, the most extreme of these examples coming from supermarkets who periodically offer similar looking/ functioning chargers with many of Ctek's key basic features for substantially less money (some for as little as just 30% of the cost of this MXS 5.0). Whilst I personally have relied on the brilliance of Ctek chargers for nearly 15 years and thus remain a firm Ctek convert, for those for whom a car battery charger is just an annoying forced purchase, some of these other-band smart-chargers I've tried do seem to work very well indeed and, whilst most of these other brands do use simpler charging principles, may prove a preferred purchase on cost/performance grounds alone.

Perfect choice for a multi function charger!!

perfect charger well made item cool price display easy to read simple to set up perfect.