RX-8 I have is a second car, so it is mostly garaged in winter. I maybe drive it 5 km every other day if there is no snow on the roads, but that's about it.

Now, I am worried about my battery being discharged and car failing to start because of the battery and flooding the engine.

So I want to keep my battery in good shape during the winter. First of all, is it a concern at all? Or I should just keep driving car a little and it should be enough?

Secondly, anyone can recommend any chargers from these:

http://www.canadiantire.ca/browse/subcategory_landing.jsp?FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=1408 474396672454&bmUID=1228154411941&deptid=1408474396672395&ctgrid=1408474396676381&subctgrid=1408474396672454&freshPage=true

How about this:

http://www.canadiantire.ca/browse/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=84552444330 0965&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=1408474396672454&bmUID=1228155077614&OmniCrossSell=0111536%2012V+Manual+Battery+Charger

This is automatic and can be plugged into a cigarette socket (is RX-8 socket active when ignition off? Hmm...)

Get a trickle charger that plugs onto the terminals (not the cigarette lighter).

Get it hooked up, and leave it for the winter. Cover your car or use a california duster from time to time. Also, jack your car up on stands so you don't have flat spots on your tires. Oh yeah, if your car is jacked up, don't put the parking brakes on.

I will be driving it at least twice every week, just wanna keep the battery in shape.

What's wrong with using trickle charger through cigarette adapter? or is it just plainly not connected when key is not in?

twice a week? Then that's fine. I wouldn't even consider that garaged.

Footman, thanks for reply. So, driving 50 kilometers per week should be enough for the battery? Just never drove a car so little.

Yeah, more than enough!!! 50km just to keep the battery topped!

Yeah I'm thinking of doing the same. Take it out once or twice a week for a short hard drive.

Damn, double post

Out of curiosity, one "cold" start (at around 10 degrees celsius) - how long do you have to drive at 3000 RPM to replace the charge?

I know it is very hard to calculate, but a rough estimate?

and who is SHE? :)

Better to replace the charge with a charger BEFORE your run - charging a weak battery is very hard on alternators AND batteries, the alternator tries to do it all in the first mile......

http://www.ctek.com/EN-CA/Charger-Academy.aspx

These are fantastic and about $75 retail. Given what miracles they can work on a damaged battery, worth every Swedish Krone!

S

Random posts deleted - chat in the lounge.

S

I keep my car on a trickle charger when I am not driving it......I have had a few dead battery mornings and learned my lesson.....I agree with stealth.....charging your battery from dead by driving your car is a bad idea....your battery wont last as long as it should and possibly cause issues with other major things. 50km a week is NOT enough to keep the car charged..TRUST ME...ITS NOT....I use mine about 100km a week and my battery is dead in 2 - 3 days of not using the car...once in 1 day when the weather got really cold ( battery is fine..had it checked after this )....you should just really get the charger and hook it up to the battery when the car is parked...got mine from crappy tire for 50 bucks.....I use it mostly for my bike battery during winter.....been a life saver....and nice piece of mind.

Looks like I was wrong, from Gecko's statement.

I think a good way to check is, if you have an ammeter, hook it up in series with the positive terminal once your engine is off. The reading shall tell you the current drain when you have your car parked. That usage is for such things as remembering your radio presets, and your ECU remembering all the important calibration details, odometer, etc...

Your battery has a "Amp-Hour" rating which is the capacity of the battery. Say it was rated for 200 Ah. That theoretically means your battery can dispense 200 A of current for one hour before it's dead. Another way to see it is that it can theoretically output 1 A of current for 200 hours constantly. Neither of these scenarios are possible performance characteristics of the battery. However it will give you a rough idea.

Once you have that drain current value. You can divide it up by the Amp-hour rating of the battery and that will give you roughly how long the car can sit parked before the battery is dead... roughly...

I believe the 2004 models had weaker batteries than 2007's, so you'll have to check yours to see if it has the upgraded battery or not.

charging your battery from dead by driving your car is a bad idea....your battery wont last as long as it should and possibly cause issues with other major things. 50km a week is NOT enough to keep the car charged..TRUST ME...ITS NOT....I use mine about 100km a week and my battery is dead in 2 - 3 days of not using the car...once in 1 day when the weather got really cold ( battery is fine..had it checked after this )....you should just really get the charger and hook it up to the battery when the car is parked...got mine from crappy tire for 50 bucks.....I use it mostly for my bike battery during winter.....been a life saver....and nice piece of mind.

The car is garaged at 10 degrees celsius (not outside). Currently the battery is in good shape, not dead. Realistically, I will drive 100km per week, twice. Still need a charger?

If your car goes dead after not driving it for 3 days, that sounds very wrong. I always left my cars for a 2-week vacations without a problem. Not RX-8 though but I don't see it should be different...

[QUOTE=Footman;2751345]Looks like I was wrong, from Gecko's statement.

Sorry Andrew.....I didn't mean to be rude.....just re-read my post and I apologize.....I am just feed up with my car. And Jimmy, the RX8 is not like the other cars you have owned....I honestly wouldn't leave my car sitting for more than 5 days without a charger on it......I usually do it if I leave the car for 2 days...just tired of the hassle...I would say that its always good to have a charger so just wait till one goes on sale or get one now for piece of mind...your call. urgh....less then 2 months now....count down is on!!

Gecko, seems you are not happy with the car. Too many mechanical problems or something else?

Ok, is the cigarette lighter socket on when the key is out of the ignition? Because I want to buy trickle charger that connects through this socket, to be able to do quick connect/disconnect

The cig lighter gets no power when car is off.

The cig lighter gets no power when car is off.

damn! then I'll just drive the car more. I don't want to disconnect/reconnect the charger under the hood each time...

overkill, battery chargers are for storage

i would personally just test the battery out every year before winter hits and use a battery blanket plugged in along with an oil pan heater for a few hours before driving