'Micro Car Start' for flat battey, any good ?

judexx

Has anyone tried one of these for a flat battery:
www.coopersofstortford.co.uk/coopers-of-stortford-micro-car-start-prodst09611i/
for a variety of reasons I'm unable to charge my Micra's battery and this would seem useful if it was to fail - even if it was just to get me to Kwik-fit !

darkmatter101

Just buy a new battery for £40 from euro car parts

arcon5

You're effectively wanting to buy a spare battery to store to charge your current knackered battery? Rather than replace the knackered battery for one like this that won't give you problems.

Buy a new battery.

forgotmyname

err does that just connect to the cigar socket? Or is that picture of it charging?

If it doesnt have jump leads that connect to the battery then it will only pass 15 amps or so through the lighter socket.

It will blow fuses ort worse.

As above though. Why waste money on something when you can fix the problem fairly cheaply. A new battery would be a better option.

Sister bought one it cost as much as a new battery for her car and she just ended up with one dead pack and a dead car battery.

So had to buy a battery anyway.

Quiet_Spark

Absolute rubbish, the cheap Chinese Maplin version (which does have proper jump leads) doesn't even have the balls to turn a 750 Honda motorcycle engine over for any length of time.

Fix the fault properly by buying a new battery rather than masking the real problem.

forgotmyname

I have a jump pack. But i use it when swapping batteries on people's cars. Save messing with recoding radios and resetting windows etc.

Ive used it on a few other peoples cars, But never my own except when i bought a new battery.

I want my car to start everytime. So i replaced it a few years back before the winter came and prices went up.

Now its colder the suppliers know there will be more demand so why discount.

SailorSam

You're not going to get a lot of power going through a cig lighter.

I had a heavy duty one of these to help start my Cab in the winter if i had trouble. I'd plug it into the mains for 2 ninutes to get a strong boost

http://www.ebay.co.uk/bhp/car-battery-charger-booster

judexx

Thanks for all your replies - the battery is only 18 months old, but unfortunately got totally drained when the courtesy light stayed on overnight !
The breakdown service jump started me, but I read on here that when a battery has drained right down, it may not hold charge as well afterwards.

That's why i was hoping that £13 for the Micro Car Start would be a reasonable 'insurance' rather than having to pay out over £60 for a new battery (incl. fitting) when the old one may well last a while yet.

forgotmyname

Buy a battery charger and give it a good 8 hours+ with a decent 6 - 8amp smart battery charger.

If that starter you looked at only connects to the lighter socket it can only supply 15amps or so. The starter will need 200amps - 400amps.

It will just blow the fuse or burn the wiring out.

No specs for it. Why wont they put the battery capacity and type?

The cheap jump packs mentioned above may need new batteries in 12 months.

I have a Clarke one thats about 8 years old and start to show signs of a weak battery.Worth paying more for a decent one.

Doesnt your car have a battery saver relay? I left my interior lights on the other night. 20 minutes later the relay switches everything off.

mgdavid

judexx wrote: »

...... rather than having to pay out over £60 for a new battery (incl. fitting) when the old one may well last a while yet.

surely nobody pays to have a battery fitted do they?

Norman_Castle

Thanks for all your replies - the battery is only 18 months old, but unfortunately got totally drained when the courtesy light stayed on overnight !
The breakdown service jump started me, but I read on here that when a battery has drained right down, it may not hold charge as well afterwards.

Leaving a light on overnight may drain a battery enough to prevent the car starting but it will not ruin the battery. I've flattened the battery with the interior lights with no long term damage. You've got breakdown cover. Wait and see if there are any signs of a failing battery.

even if it was just to get me to Kwik-fit !

:eek: