Keeping batteries alive???

[RemarkLima]

Hey all,

Just a quickie, and not RX7 specific but basically we have to many cars and no use for them We now live a 5 minute walk to the train station and with 3 cars that batteries are always going flat and it\'s a PITA.

I\'ve got a jump pack in the boot of a mates car, and I can never seem to get it off of him! But is there a 12v DC converter or something so I could jump the car(s) off the mains or similar?

How do you guys who just use the car at the weekends stop it being a 20 minute job just to get the fduking thing started?

Cheers,
Mark

[Nik da Greek]

If you have access to mains supply near the cars, you could get a trickle charger battery  condtioner widget thing. Like a little mini charger that just keeps the battery topped up. Very popular with bikers who don\'t use their bikes through winter, loads of firms do them, Optimate the most common, or Oxford, Acumen, etc. Or get one of those solar panel trickle chargers that sit on the parcel shelf if there\'s no handy power supply? My mate\'s got one in his Skybus and it seems to work well

[FEED Addict]

I use an accumate charger, very good! Only use the car at weekends between April and October.

[RemarkLima]

OK, are they water proof and such like? The cars are kept outside but there\'s power near by...

Sounds like it could be a worthwhile investment rather than keep buying expensive batteries!

[FEED Addict]

No it\'s not water proof ( big air holes to keep it cool)but you can buy long leads for them so the unit could be inside!

[Nik da Greek]

The Acumen trickle charger I\'ve got for the bike was about £35 from Demon Tweeks (can\'t post you a link cos their website\'s fubar atm!). It\'s pretty much identical to the Optimate and all the others. Its about the size of a pint glass (though not cylindrical, obviously!).  Not waterproof, like Gary said, but does have a nice long lead. You also get a pair of connectors that you attach to the battery terminals permanently, and they just have a short lead ending in a block connector so you just plug it straight in to the charger when needed without faffing around with crocodile clips. I don\'t suppose they\'d fit an RX-7 battery terminals straight off, but would be very easy to alter so they would. Also get crocodile clips with it, too. It\'s designed for bike use, but I don\'t see any reason why it wouldn\'t work on a car battery just as well

[FEED Addict]

Mine is the same just a quick connector, disconnect and pull over rubber cap tuck into engine compartment drop down bonnet and wayhay! Will be in the garage on Sunday if you want me to get some details from it?

[L18M]

may help to get new batt or check the alt earthing.
in past when my car didnt start jus by using it weedays i found that the alt wasnt charging the batt.
i quick loosen of the alt from the adjustable bar n make sure theres a gd earth helped a lot.

hope it helps.

[RemarkLima]

Cool, thanks guys! I think that\'s the solution then... I like the sound of the quick connector TBH, means the GF would be able to use it without getting pi$$ed off with having to fart around the oil bits of the car too much

[RemarkLima]

may help to get new batt or check the alt earthing.
in past when my car didnt start jus by using it weedays i found that the alt wasnt charging the batt.
i quick loosen of the alt from the adjustable bar n make sure theres a gd earth helped a lot.

hope it helps.

Cheers for that, but I\'ve had the multimetre out and all the alt\'s are charging fine, the batteries are new (until maimed by deep charge cycles), but it\'s more a problem now as we can easily not drive a car for 3 weeks at a time and then the alarm just drains any juice left away.

[LeedsLad]

you could try a solar charger you can get smallish ones for £25 i use one on mine just to try and counteract the drain from the alarm. you can get one from maplins i do belive.

[Nik da Greek]

http://www.demon-tweeks.co.uk/products/ProductDetail.asp?cls=MCYCLE&pcode=MISOPTI

Got a link to the Optimate ones from Tweeks if it\'s any help. Bit more expensive than the one I got, but basically you\'re paying a bit for the name I think