Holiday. What do I do with Battery?

[waddler]

I'm off on holiday for 2 weeks and would like to know what to do with the Cerbera (i can't take it with me unfortunately). Just had a brand new battery and don't want it to run flat.

Should I disconnect the battery? or
Leave it fully immobilised & alarmed? or
Leave it immobilised not alarmed? or
Get a trickle charger and leave it connected for 2weeks?

[trefor]

If you have a garage then leave the trickle charger connected. Or, disconnect the battery. Obviously neither work if the car is outside.

[dannylt]

I find that the car is safe to leave for up to three weeks. Any longer than that and you run a risk of it going down. I very often don't touch it for two weeks. Anyway, you have jump leads in the boot right?

danny

[lrussell5]

risky - if it does run down (and this can happen easily in a week if you have an unknown earth leak) the battery will be permanently damaged. Buy an Optimax trickle charger for £50 and rest in peace, incidentally these can also repair dead batteries to some extent which other chargers or alternators cannot.

[p7ulg]

I would recommend using the trickle charger I bought one after my Cerbera battery went down and it cost me £190 to sort out!

[johnmckenzie]

Two weeks should be absolutely no problem at all. I have left my 4.5 as much as four and a half weeks and it starts up fine as long as the battery is in top condition and was fully charged up when last put away. I think some people find that they get problems in less time. IMHO this is because they use the car intermittently all the time (if that isn't a tautology). It's not appreciated by many that if a battery of the Cerberas capacity - 72Ah I think - is say 50% discharged, it will start fine but take around 2 hours of non-stop driving at decent revs (over 2000) to fully charge back up. If its stop-start,lights on, wipers going, fans blowing etc that can be extended easily to 4 or 5 hours!!
I dont get any problems because whilst I use the car intermittently, it's normally to do a 220 mile blast to Cornwall from Oxford

Regards

John McKenzie

[gazzab]

I bought a solar panel thing from innovations and this keeps it topped up. Only cost £25.

[simond001]

Halfords do a great "Professional Charger". Its about £50, but will trickle and top up. Can also be left on permanently.

I have installed a small 7.2v Tamiya plug directly to the battery so i can plug this in when its in the garage. Insurance company warned me that leaving the car unlocked / windows open to use cigar lighter attachement could be used against me if car was stolen.

This also means that i use the same charger / connector for everything from charger, to tyre pump, even for a portable lamp when the car breaks down !!

[hexhamhc]

If the battery is brand new a two week break should be no problem, also if you have a secure garage just leave the car unlocked/unalarmed as it will be secured through the immobiliser. For long term parking up than a battery conditioner is a must, this can be wired via a plug to the cigarette lighter socket to keep the connections to a minimum. You'll need power in the garage also! We have them in stock if required!! Cheers Tony.

[Chris]

Are the chargers that connect through the cigarette lighter ok to use on a Cerbie?

[richb]

I use one on my Griff no probs', I guess you need to check that the lighter is live with the ignition off, just plug something in and see if it works. If so then yes, your in business.

[p7ulg]

quote:
Are the chargers that connect through the cigarette lighter ok to use on a Cerbie?

Yes used one on mine to good effect also Tuscan & Chimaera

[DavidP]

quote:
Are the chargers that connect through the cigarette lighter ok to use on a Cerbie?

The sparky at Castle said that Cerbs tend to blow the fuse with constant cig lighter use. I've got a trickle charger fitted....works a treat.

[dyb]

Quote -

Slightly off topic here but if your car's nicked, how's the insurer going to know if you left unlocked or not ? - A question I've always wanted know.
I never lock mine but leave it in the garage. People often if they take it for spin, so I give the keys and say - if you can get in it and start it- your welcome. No-one has managed it yet.

Dyb