Looking to get a battery charger for my 82SC and seems that the BatteryMinder is the one; however, they have a 12volt/1 amp model and a 12volt/4 amp model.

Any suggestions as to what amps I need? Anyone with experience with the BatteryMinder?

In addition, is there anything else besides over-inflating the tires and adding gas stabilizer that I should be doing? Any sort of checklist that I should be going over?

Thanks!

 

I use several BatteryMinders on various vehicles which don't get driven all that regularly. I have never seen the 4 amp model - All of mine are 1 amp. And the 1 amp should be all that you need. You are really only trying to keep the battery topped up, and the BatteryMinders will only put out their full current when the battery is low. Once topped up, they will keep it there with milliamp charge currents.

Tom

 

The 4 amp model might be useful if you had a dead or low battery and you wanted to charge it overnight. It will automatically switch to a trickle charge when the battery is topped up. So the 4 amp model is like having a regular charger plus a trickle charger, but if I recall, the price is almost triple the 1 amp charger.

 

Classic911:

How much is the BatteryMinder? I just ordered a 1.5amp unit by Schumacher today. The best price I found is at Ace Hardware. All you need is 1 amp unit to keep your battery topped up.

Calvin

http://www.acehardware.com/product/i...ductId=1296395

 

Best price I found for the BatteryMinders was at Batterymart.com ($40), although I haven't checked around for a while. http://www.batterymart.com/batteryminder.php

One thing about the batteryminder over other maintenance chargers is the pulse charging mode. When I used to race R/C cars I became a firm believer in pulse charging as a way of maintaining the longest life and most capacity out of batteries.

No affiliation, etc.

Tom

 

I ordered a 1 amp BatteryMinder through Batterymart last night.

Hopefully, the weather here in the NYC area will stay dry so I can still go out for a blast......

 

I just ordered three BatteryMinders through Batterymart last night.

I'm glad the weather here in Connecticut is still good. Gotta take the Carrera to DMV for registration, as the temporary plate is almost expired. Can't wait to write that big check for the tax.. :-(

JP

87 Carrera Targa 17K miles
73 Mercedes 450SL 109K miles
1937 BMW R6 Motorcycle - mileage unknown
1940 BMW R12 Motorcycle - mileage unknown

 

Love the 17 buck unit from Harbor Freight. Replace the alligators with a cig lighter plug (assuming your socket works) and you can just plug it in to the car.

 

Here's my winter storage checklist:

- Warm up car with final drive of the season.
- Fill tank with fuel not too far from home and add fuel stabilizer at the gas station if car is going to sit more than 3 months. Adding stabilizer at the gas station allows the stabilizer to work through the fuel lines completely.
- Change oil and filter.
- Wash car.
- Wax car if possible and if temperatures permit.
- Drive the car a bit so water is not standing in corners or used compressed air to blow out water from crevices.
- Remove rims and clean brake dust from inside rims. Brake dust is very corrosive!
- Treat seals and rubber trim with your favorite rubber or vinyl protectant (don’t use silicone based Armor All type products). Treat the dash and interior pieces too.
- Clean and condition leather and vinyl.
- Vacuum interior and trunk area.
- Pump tires up to max pressure noted on sidewall of tire (to prevent flat spotting).
- It's not the worst idea to change transmission fluid and flush brake fluid sometime before storage.
- Drive the car onto plastic in storage area to keep condensation from forming on the underside of car from warm winter or spring days. This is important if you store your car on a concrete surface.
- Block wheels.
- Leave car in neutral (manual transmission cars). Insure that the transmission is not holding the car in place.
- Do NOT set parking brake.
- Remove battery or at least disconnect negative terminal. If your battery must remain in a cold environment, charge once a month minimum. If you put your battery in the basement, it doesn't hurt to trickled charge it monthly either. A 1 to 2 amp type of charge is a good charge rate. Put the battery on a piece of wood to isolate it from the cool concrete.
- Don't close doors and front trunk all the way. Just close them to the first stop. Doing that does not squash the seals as much.
- Plug air cleaner intake, exhaust pipe and cooling fan if possible. Remember to write down what you closed up so you can reverse the process in spring. You don't want to forget to remove covers from your intake or fan in spring!
- I scatter moth ***** around and under my car to discourage field mice from making nests. They do smell foul, so this step depends on your storage situation.
- Cover car
- Pray for spring
- Extract car from storage when spring arrives, be sure to remove all plugs from exhaust, intake, etc. and warm car up with a drive.
- Change oil only.

NOTES:
- I do NOT start my car periodically over the storage period. Starting the car during the winter months and letting it idle builds condensation. Idling never gets the car to operating temperature to burn off condensation. I have too much salt spread in my area to be able to do any type of driving during winter months. I refuse to subject my car to the effects of road salt. Your situation may be different where you live.