Car battery

[ericmark]

Glad to see not listed as pointless, I have a number of items which have a built in cut off, so once battery drops to a set voltage they stop working, inverter is set a little low at around 11.5 volt, but split charger for caravan set quite high around 13.2 volt, this would ensure when vehicles are left for a long time the battery does not go completely flat.

The big problem is bonnet and boot lamps, if they stick on once closed you don't know. I am sure they could make a timed switch for both if they really wanted to.

 

[rsgaz]

£30 to get the number

Ouch, that's the price from a dealer I assume?

There's people on eBay who will give you the code for 99p. They just need your radio's serial number usually (or sometimes your VIN).

 

[WhydidIstart]

The big problem is bonnet and boot lamps, if they stick on once closed you don't know. I am sure they could make a timed switch for both if they really wanted to.

A number of cars will do exactly that - if you leave an interior light on, or the boot open for an amount of time, or the radio switched on, etc. the car will turn them off either after a pre-set time or when the battery voltage reaches a certain level.

I found this particularly annoying if you were trying to work on something in the dark as usually the only way to reset it was to start the car and then stop it again which used even more battery power!

 

[JohnW2]

I found this particularly annoying if you were trying to work on something in the dark as usually the only way to reset it was to start the car and then stop it again which used even more battery power!

I've experienced that with some cars but, when it's done on the basis of time, it has only been necessary to switch the 'ignition' on and the off again, without starting the engine.

However, if the light/radio/whatever has been switched by some control system because the battery voltage has fallen too low, you would need to start the engine (and probably leave it running!).

Kind Regards, John