battery charging

[Ameer Antar]

I doubt that the cig. lighter thing would work on older cars which have old 
wiring and may have an old battery. The cig. lighter thing will work if you 
just left the lights on in your '97 whatever, but the amount of current 
that can pass thru there is small. Also the cig. lighter is not directly 
connected to the batt., so there usually is a voltage drop between there, 
esp. in older wiring. Using this on an older car will prolly just take a 
long time comparatively.

Also, jump starting is fine...even Audi says it's OK. Fried alternators 
could be a weak link in the alt. or wrong jump procedures. But another 
cause could be charging at the post while having a large resistance to the 
batt. The alt is connected right to the post, but the batt. is connected to 
the post thru a crimp which often corrodes and is a cause of many problems. 
This resistance between post and batt, could cause fried alt.'s since there 
is a lower resistance to the alt. Electricity always seeks the easiest 
path. Unless you know the condition of the wiring, connecting to the + 
batt. post might be safer, at least in older Audi's. But they always say to 
connect the ground on the dead car on the chassis [not the - post] while 
hooking directly to the good batt. Even on the instructions w/ my cables, 
batt-->batt. is not the preferred way. good luck.

-ameer


At 12:23 PM 11/17/2000 , cobram at juno.com wrote:
>I have no experience with these cig. lighter devices.  But why don't you
>just use the jumper posts conviently located under the hood?  I just
>jumped the 5KS (kids left radio/interior light on) using the 200TQA, both
>of the jumpers hooked up under the hoods.  Sometimes a bit of  a pain to
>find a decent ground (on the earlier cars the ground strap works well),
>but when you do she sparks right up.  Battery-->battery is the preferred
>way, but not always possible when the battery is under the seat and the
>car is on a busy street.
>
>BCNU,
>Cobram at Juno.Com
>http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Flats/1469/
>
>
>Mark Trank <MTrank at exch.co.albemarle.va.us> writes:
> > Have any listers ever used a battery starter that connects via
> > cigar/rette
> > lighters?  I have been called upon a few too many times to jump
> > start a
> > stranded motorist and its a huge hassle to access the battery in the
> > 200q's
> > back seat (requisite Audi content) in order to do the right thing
> > and assist
> > someone.  Last time I had to do this, it was pouring rain, child car
> > seat
> > had to be pulled out of the rear seats, etc.  Not fun.  Direct mail
> > outfit
> > based here in town advertises a device called an "easy-start jump
> > starter"
> > that claims to allow you to jump start your car through the lighter
> > sockets.
> > You plug the device into the "donor" car, then into the "dead" car,
> > wait
> > five minutes and start the engine.  An LED display is said to
> > confirm
> > correct connection and charging.  Cost is about $30.00.  Don't know
> > whether
> > the premium is worth it or not.
> >
> > Advice is appreciated, as always.
>
>
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