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Purchased a 2020 and now have just over 1000 miles on it. It had sat the last two weeks and the vehicle would not crank. Just a lot of lights and clicking. The battery voltage was 11.6 and it did start with a jump start.
What kind of storage times are you guys seeing without the need for a battery tender?
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I keep mine on the tender most often but is has sat for 2 weeks without a problem.
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you can turn off the thermal circuit braker too .
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I have one of the earlier models, and the way they wired the seat heaters is not the best.
If you leave the heaters on they don't automatically turn off when you take the key out, they stay on for quite a while, unless you cycle the ignition. Not sure why they do it this way. But, I make sure they're off when I park it. If it's going to sit for a while, I reach behind the passenger seat and flip the battery breaker off.
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I've noticed on another forum that people have dying/dead batteries even though they use a battery tender. I want to mention that on my 2018 VV there is an in-line 10 amp fuse under the hood on the charging wire (near the left wheel). I found my fuse blown - I never dertermined when or why. Strangely, the tender always showed a green light, like the battery was fully charged. I don't usually leave the VV just sit long enough to worry about a dead battery, so was unaware the battery was not being "tended". After I switched to a different brand tender, I saw that the tender showed it was charging (which it wasn't), but never reached fully charged (maintaining) level. This led me to look for the fuse.
Also, on mine, the seat heaters, and the 12-V socket only stay live for about 5 minuted after you shut down and remove the key.
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When I received my 2019 Venice, I was told to re-insert the key and then remove it without turning after shutting down. Mechanic said that would turn off all circuits that would otherwise stay on for a while. Never had any trouble with the battery. Your mileage may vary!
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Also see my 9-29-2020 post above.
After my original battery (Duracell) failed after 23 months due to low CCA, I replaced it in 8/2020 with a NAPA battery, and all was well until yesterday.
Battery tender was on it. It had 14 volts when tested w/o the tender connected. It couldn't turn the starter. I checked all the connections and ground wires I could find; all were tight. I had the battery bench tested and it only had 125 Cold Cranking Amps, instead of 500. It was replaced under warranty.
To me, this early loss of amperage (CCA) in relatively new batteries has only happened to this Vanderhall and two motorcycles. In autos they seem to degrade slowly over time. I am wondering why. Maybe the batteries cant hold up to the rough ride. Is there a better option?
