Last weekend I did a winter maintenance hat trick on my 2010 BMW 535xi Touring. I installed an
oil pan heating pad, a
battery warming blanket, and an 1.1 Amp trickle charger.
I made a quick trip to Canadian Tire and decided on the NOCO Genius G1100. Noco also makes another model with better environmental protection designed to be installed semi-permanently in the vehicle. However I decided I'd try this one - reasonably priced about $60.
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| Noco Genius G1100 1.1 Amp Trickle Charger |
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| IP 65 rating should mean that this charger is splash proof and dust proof. |
Installation of the harness directly to the car was simple. There is a grounding post direcly on the rear fender, where I installed the negative (black) ring terminal under the OEM hold down bolt.
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| Black negative cable installs to ground lug on right rear fender - with other car electrical grounds. |
The positive connection was also simple, underneath a bolt in the rear fuse box where the positive battery cable connects to an aluminum bus plate.
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| Positive connection on the bus plate in the rear fuse panel, where the batttery cable attaches. There is a black plastic cover for this bolt - which I reinstalled after testing the connection. |
The trickle charger will normally bring the battery back to 100% charger overnight. It's a nice charger - auto voltage sensing, senses the battery is an AGM glass mat battery, and switches off when it reaches full charge.
I made all the electrical connections and installed the charger in the plastic tray above the battery - and grounded the 110V electrical extension cable ground wire to the body of the car (green wire). This way - if line or neutral ever shorts to sheet metal, it will trip the breaker in the house before presenting a shock hazard to someone touching the car.
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| Note green ground wire - grounding the 110V extension cord to the car body ground for safety. |
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| Noco Genius G1100 chager installed in the tray above the battery. The other connections are for the battery blanket warmer, and the oil pan heater. |
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| I ran the electrical feed through a small hole in the battery box, underneath the car out underneath the rear fairing. This way - it is quick and easy to connect power without having to open the hood or the trunk - quick and easy. When not in use, the cord tucks in above the fairing and is protected from road salt and splashing. |
Works great - quick starts in the morning on very cold days, and no battery issues.
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