Just bought my run around and haven't had a car sitting for any long periods of time, cheers
gooddealz2,
May 22, 7:49pm
Possibly.You could always disconnect it or alternatively buy a battery charger and hook it up occasionally.No reason why you couldn't make the effort to start it occasionally is there!I leave my cars for 3-6 weeks but do like to keep them turned over.I use a battery charger on my oldest car now and again but find the in between car is O.K. without any help.
johnf_456,
May 22, 7:54pm
Just get yourself a trickle charger or a solar charger even
quickstitch,
May 22, 7:54pm
repco or supercheap have solar powered chargers that plug into your cigarette lighter , just sit in next to a window and leave it.
johnf_456,
May 22, 7:56pm
Correct but make sure you cigarette lighter socket has power when the key is out / ignition off. Most cars will not allow power to the lighter socket, good advice but check it out first. Otherwise you will be charging nothing.
carkitter,
May 22, 7:57pm
There are a number of things which need constant power such as engine ECU, dashboard clock, stereo memory, alarm, etc. Over a 2-3 week period they wiil run the battery down enough to prevent it starting. Disconnect the earth cable if the car is going to be out of action for a while. You many want to connect an Amp meter between the -ve terminal and the earth cable to check exactly how much the current draw is with the key off.
eddiedean,
May 22, 7:59pm
Thanks for all the great advice. I''l put it to action :)
johnf_456,
May 22, 8:00pm
2-3 weeks if it runs down that quick I would be very concerned about the state of the battery and charging system. My weekend cruiser / kind of project sits for much longer than 2 to 3 weeks before getting to the point it cannot start.
carkitter,
May 22, 8:03pm
Depends on the current draw, the state of the battery, how you hold your tongue.
carkitter,
May 22, 8:04pm
Also, if it is going to be parked up all winter, over-inflate the tyres to 50psi to prevent flat spots forming.
bluecambridge,
May 22, 8:09pm
.or just put it on up on blocks. I've also heard that if a car is going to be laid up for a good while you should stuff a rag in the exhaust pipe to prevent moisture causing corrosion on the valves
johnf_456,
May 22, 8:12pm
Yeah, but generally speaking most cars will last much longer than 2-3 weeks, from seeing cars in the workshop and car yards. If its a good battery then it should be fine. 2 week is not long at all.
johnf_456,
May 22, 8:13pm
Just move it once in a while or put it on blocks.
tuttyclan,
May 23, 12:59am
Start up the car and move it once a month.When you done that hook up a maintainance battery charger that will top up the battery.It will switch itself off when its charged.Disconnect it when this is done.This will allow the battery to slowly run down.Connect the charger once a week to refresh the battery then disconnect again.
franc123,
May 23, 1:18am
An alternative to the above if you are just using a normal low amp charger as opposed to a modern float type one is to just buy one of those cheap rotary 24 hour timers from Mitre 10 or similar that has the 15 minute segments, about $10-12, hook it up to that and forget about it.I found with a fully charged battery only having the trickle charger switched on for 15 min a day was enough to maintain an average car battery at 12.6V throughout the winter.
eddiedean,
May 23, 1:19am
thanks man, and thankyou to everyone else i have a battery charger now and will def use
lookoutas,
May 23, 2:52am
Start it up and take it for a drive like I did today. But make sure there's enough petrol in it to get carried away and go further than intended. Like i did today. And then make sure you go somewhere that you know people to borrow some gas off.
elect70,
May 23, 8:43pm
Probably rare, but had car parked up in the garage while in Aus for 6 weeks , had a cover over it , & when i opened the bonnet on return bloody rats neston top of the engine .Imagine the stink if id started it up .
eddiedean,
May 23, 9:21pm
You blokes are brilliant. When i posted this thread i thought im going to get so much stick for this but im really impressed with what you guys have said. Cheers again and yes car will be 'wintered' over the next 3 months
antwerp87,
May 23, 11:06pm
Seen that a few times at work. Customers complain theres a burning smell. pop the bonnet and nest siting on top of the accessory belt. big mess
richms,
May 24, 6:39am
If you do put an automatic charger on it and leave it, check on it occasionally.
I didnt and there started to be a horrid shit smell around outside, it was the battery being cooked by a now stuffed automatic charger that was just putting out full blast all the time. One battery later and I now only run the charger on it periodically.
big.b-lil.c,
May 24, 2:56pm
i thought it was only cross ply tyres that got flat spots when parked!
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