Battery booster / jump starter

[Lukai]

I'm thinking of getting a booster pack / jump starter for my C2.7

I don't use the car daily, so sometimes it doesn't get driven for a few weeks, or even longer during the winter. Thus sometimes I come to start it and the battery is dead. It is becoming a pain shifting the cars around to be able to get jump leads set up, hence why I'm thinking of a booster pack to make the whole process less hassle.

Anybody got one that they recommend, without breaking the bank? It obviously needs to be one that is suitable for larger engines etc etc

Cheers

[DaveD]

my cab is off the road for six months and i use a battery conditioner which gives it a low level of charge and discharge and keeps the battery in top condition but if you have no local power how about one of these

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=228624

a friend of mine uses one and has no probs

Ps they do a bigger one as well

[e30ata]

get a half decent one from maplins about £35- £40 ,and ebay good place to luck

[Lukai]

Thanks for the info, I'm not always going to have the access to the mains so had dismissed the idea of a trickle charger. I like the idea of the solar panel but it the car will more than likely be indoors so no sunlight

I had been looking at something like this...

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=49038

But after reading the customer reviews at the bottom people seem to have trouble jump starting cars from it... does anyone know what the cranking power will need to be for a 325??

Cheers

[Grrrmachine]

I bought a cheapo chinese unit from a supermarket over here, and it's lasted longer than a lot of my cars have! Even managed to crank over an old 3-litre Merc diesel (W123) which had its own 100Ah battery gone flat, so it's powerful enough for a large petrol engine too.

I wouldn't worry too much about the booster itself; it's the flimsy little power brick chargers (500mA!) that are the weak point.

[charlE30]

ABS equiped early cars are prone to the relay being blown when jump starting and I'd imagine the boost pack would do the same. If the car is garaged you can get special top up chargers that you leave connected and it'll just keep topping the battery up. I think you can get them www.frost.co.uk

Just found it....

http://www.frost.co.uk/item_Detail.asp? ... ubCatID=26

[jacko]

Thanks for the info, I'm not always going to have the access to the mains so had dismissed the idea of a trickle charger. I like the idea of the solar panel but it the car will more than likely be indoors so no sunlight

I had been looking at something like this...

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=49038

But after reading the customer reviews at the bottom people seem to have trouble jump starting cars from it... does anyone know what the cranking power will need to be for a 325??

Cheers

This is exactly the one I have. It has no trouble starting my 325 even when there is not enough power to run the clock! Once you connect it just leave it for ten minutes before you try it and hey presto.

[BruceVeedub]

I have that one from Maplins and it worked fine on my old MK2 Golf but it doesn't even begin to turn the 325 Cab although it is supposed to work on engines up to 3000cc - was about £50 badly spent......grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

[RM2186]

I have the Maplins one as well and it works fine on the 325's that I have, including an auto.

I would consider taking that back for an exchange Bruce

[Rich_W]

http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/produ ... starters-2

Had this for a few years now. What I would suggest though is perhaps a 12V master cut off switch if the car won't be used for a while.

http://www.fuelpumpsonline.co.uk/fia-ba ... -237-p.asp

Or if the car is garaged get a trickle charger / optimiser thing.

[Fushion_Julz]

I have one of these http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/produ ... starters-2

I bought it principally to start my van as it is too heavy to push and it doesn't get used all that often and one of the batteries can loose charge...

I also have 3 of those Maplin solar trickle chargers...Can'r recommend them, really as they don't provide enough current to really top up a battery that is being slowly drained...