Morris Minor Owners Club

I'm not using the pickup much at the moment, and naturally the battery needs maintaining, I understand that the best way is to charge on the bench and discharge now and again with a bulb across the terminals. Am I right?

Hi Les, I have been using one of these solar chargers for the past couple of years and have had no issues. http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/solar-powered ... rger-l58bf
Every time the car is parked in the garage I connect it as a matter of course.

As above -stick it on a solar charger. No need for discharging !

I have got one of those chargers but the garage is quite dark, I suppose I could hang the charger out of the window, might need to extend the leads.

Exactly - put it outside on a south facing wall - try to shelter it from the weather,but without shading it - and yes - extend the leads - but take car to preserve the polarity!

I was once told that batteries last better if they are discharged then recharged,don't know if this is correct,and that there is a plug in to the mains charger that does this for laid up cars.Saw one once on an MBG in storage,but can't remember the make.

Morning all,
My vote too for a solar charger. I've extended the leads of mine to reach a window and it just hangs in the garage window. Its inside the garage rather than outside in the weather and even though its not in a particularly sunny spot, its gets enough light even through the glass to keep everything topped up nicely. I must I was a little sceptical at first but it does its job well.
Best wishes, Colin.

How will a charger 'discharge' a battery - where will it put the energy???? Solar charger is the answer.

just use your car on a dry winter day , they thank you for using them

Not if there is salt on the road....

but if you do there is a nice little project on the horizon to keep you amused

did state dry winter day i am all for using the car if road conditions suit

But the powder salt is still there......I did this once - underside of the car was white with salt - which then attracted moisture......

Surely there's always been salt on the road while these cars have been around... And an amazing proportion of them have survived. If they are looked after I don't see any reason why they can't be used all year round. That's what I do..

And me too
you have to use them they are not museum pieces

Hi
You should NEVER deliberately discharge a lead/acid battery. It likes to be kept within the top 95% of charge. Every time you discharge the battery you shorten battery life significantly.
Preferably buy one of the new type trickle chargers which keeps the battery topped up, but does not over charge, Ctek is the name of one type. They are maybe a bit more expensive than a more conventional type but well worth the money in battery life. You leave the charger on all winter!
cheers
Colin

aupickup wrote:And me too
you have to use them they are not museum pieces

Yes, they need using...and passers by love to see them too. I don't want to leave a lot of unused pristine cars behind after I snuff it. We only pass this way once so enjoy it.

could not agree more steve well said#to many on here molicoddle their cars

I don't use my Minor unless the temperature is between 22 and 24 degrees, dry and humidity no less that 80%, not too windy and have checked the radio can receive the weather channel. I also check where all the bridges are on route, so I can shelter under if the worse happens.

Quite right too ! Oh and to get back on subject -the solar charger does all you need - needs no power supply - and only costs ~ £10. No need for any fancy charger....