Charles,
At only 40, I don't think the oil weight is the problem. More than
likely you need to give your battery a good, long trickle charge. You
should also check its water level and the electrolyte composition ($2
tool from PEP boys - looks like an eye dropper with little colored
plastic balls).
Good luck,
Jeff
At 9:04 AM -0500 11/18/99, Charles D. Sorkin wrote:
>Dear List:
>
>Subject line says it all. The battery wasn't turning the starter very
>quickly when I tried to start the '74 Midget last night. Temperature was
>around 40 degrees. Hooked it up with jumper cables to another car, and the
>result was better, but still not enough to turn the starter very fast.
>What's the problem?
>
>Is it time to take out the 20W50 oil and put in 10Wsomething? With the
>starter behaving badly even with the jumpers, I have to wonder if the
>condition of my battery has anything to do with the problem. Do the Lucas
>starters normally behave this way in cold weather? Eventually, I got the
>car started, and after everything warmed up, it was fine.
>
>I am of course tempted to get a new battery regardless, as the current one
>is a relic from the DPO. What size (product number) should I specify at the
>generic Advance Pep Zone store?
>
>Regards,
>
>Charles
>'74 Midget
>cdsorkin@ix.netcom.com
>Bloomfield, NJ
Jeffrey H. Boatright, PhD
Assistant Professor, Emory Eye Center
Senior Editor, Molecular Vision
http://www.molvis.org/molvis
Mailto:jboatri@emory.edu
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