At 12:08 AM 10/8/01 -0500, Bob D. wrote:
>On our old cars, turning the ignition off should be the same as
>disconnecting the battery, unless one has added a clock or a modern radio.
(Or the wiring has developed
>a high resistance short somewhere on a "hot" line.)
>
>Modern cars have all sorts of computerized gizmos that never completely turn
>off, they just go to a low power mode. Your modern radio alone will draw 1 to 5
>mA. Of course this small current will take a long, long time to run the battery
>down, but then most new cars aren't put into storage for the winter.
>
IMHO it is still a good idea to remove the battery from a car that is
going to
be stored for a while, especially if the "storage" amounts to parking the
car outside.
Battery removal is easy, and it helps to prevent the formation of corrosion on
battery posts and cables/fasteners arising from a combination of moisture and
battery acid/vapors. It may also help to prevent a fire caused by the local
rodent population eating through the wiring, and causing a short. BTW, mice
LOVE LBCs.
I haven't figured out why, but it is true. Note that the storage location of
the car in question is rural.
One other item for outside storage - better to leave the car parked in
gear with the wheels
chocked and the parking brake off. This way the parking brake will not
corrode in the "on" position freezing against the drums causing problems
in the spring.
Good luck,
Gene Balinski
80 B
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