diff --git a/system-test/maxtest/src/mariadb_func.cc b/system-test/maxtest/src/mariadb_func.cc
index 9c2cd4054..da136d7b4 100644
--- a/system-test/maxtest/src/mariadb_func.cc
+++ b/system-test/maxtest/src/mariadb_func.cc
@@ -50,6 +50,9 @@ MYSQL* open_conn_db_flags(int port,
         set_ssl(conn);
     }
 
+    unsigned int timeout = 15;
+    mysql_options(conn, MYSQL_OPT_CONNECT_TIMEOUT, &timeout);
+
     // MXS-2568: This fixes mxs1828_double_local_infile
     mysql_optionsv(conn, MYSQL_OPT_LOCAL_INFILE, (void*)"1");