But it's only the radio!!

[Toploader]

So for years when vehicles all had point ignitions "we' were told that one had to turn the ign key CCW to listen to the radio if the car was not to be started........reason being that turning the key CW would energize the distributor and in so doing burn the contact points. Another reason was that only the radio circuit would be in place so as to not run down the battery.

Follow me?...........great

Now advance to the era where point ignitions are Jurassic and electronic ones are the name of the game. The same warning would apprear in the owners manual about listening to the radio with the key in the CCW position.....so as to not run down the battery.

Now living in NYC one has to move his street parked vehicle to make way for the street cleaning machines......so we all sit and wait........sometimes the cleaner never comes .....but one still has to sit for the 90 minutes or get a ticket of 175.00 and a potential tow......250.00 added to the 175.00............now many times I just sit in the car waiting with the radio on and the key in the CCW position, natch. How much draw could just the radio have?

Well yesterday the machine did come around.........and when I went to start the car....the dreaded "click click click":-(
Listening to that radio over the period of about one month ran the battery down!!

Now I had started the car during the month to actually move the car around.........and I never believed that listening to the radio 8 times in a month would run down the battery.

Lesson learned the hard way:-(

[gadget73]

When the battery gets old, you get less amp-hours, so its less hours at whatever amp draw to run it flat. Thats how I used to know when mine was fried. If I couldn't vacuum the interior of the car without it being dead by the time I was done, so was the battery. Usually that was 30 minutes or so with the doors open.

[Toploader]

I agree with you.....but that battery is only two years old....the top of the line Interstate 60 month mega....also, after AAA gave me a boost and the car was left running, later in the day I went to start it and it spun over like crazy and started in like under five seconds

When the battery gets old, you get less amp-hours, so its less hours at whatever amp draw to run it flat. Thats how I used to know when mine was fried. If I couldn't vacuum the interior of the car without it being dead by the time I was done, so was the battery. Usually that was 30 minutes or so with the doors open.

[jaywish]

A short drive to the other side of the street is not enough to recharge the battery.

Take a ride "upstate" every now and then. I can recommend a good diner or sushi joint.

[His Royal Ghostliness]

In my experience batteries that do not get frequent discharge-charge cycles will die shortly after the 3 years mark. Had it twice in a row, both time expensive batteries, different manufacturers same thing, within a month of the 3 year period from the sticker date on the case both batts were dead. 2 years is close enough to 3 years where I would expect to start seeing some signs of trouble.

[Chuck Norris]

I've sold car batteries for seven years. At every retailer I have worked at, once a battery has been on the shelf with no charge/discharge cycles for a year, we could only sell it as a "used" or "reconditioned" battery. They absolutely lose their ability to hold a charge from sitting around. I have no idea why, but it is absolutely true from my experience.

[Tiggie]

I think quite a bit more energizes when acc is on on these newer cars than on our old point machines. And the radio itself needs more power too.

I had a 64.5 mustang as a young whippersnapper and learned to field drive it in. It had the stock AM radio which I fit an FM converter to and a single 6x9 speaker in the back. I would listen to it for hours. Never had a battery go down. This was on a GENERATOR equipped car that drove through a field on occasion! I'm 29 in body and mind, and 59 everything else.

[Toploader]

Jay again I agree!!.....today I will be 'motorvating' out to Suffolk County...........later in the month I will be in New Paltz....I am a diner "rat"...give me the heads up!

A short drive to the other side of the street is not enough to recharge the battery.

Take a ride "upstate" every now and then. I can recommend a good diner or sushi joint.

[Toploader]

Is that why the Interstate guy comes around my buds shop and rotates his stock?

I've sold car batteries for seven years. At every retailer I have worked at, once a battery has been on the shelf with no charge/discharge cycles for a year, we could only sell it as a "used" or "reconditioned" battery. They absolutely lose their ability to hold a charge from sitting around. I have no idea why, but it is absolutely true from my experience.

[Toploader]

Tigg, how I remember FM converters....my brother had one in his '68 Catalina!! Now I am close to 70, but I do remember with fond memories the radio "reverb" craze!!......I even had one in the first '63 Studebaker I purchased....it was nothing more than a giant spring in a box as I remember....loved the effect....love to find one now and put in to the Avanti:-_)

I think quite a bit more energizes when acc is on on these newer cars than on our old point machines. And the radio itself needs more power too.

I had a 64.5 mustang as a young whippersnapper and learned to field drive it in. It had the stock AM radio which I fit an FM converter to and a single 6x9 speaker in the back. I would listen to it for hours. Never had a battery go down. This was on a GENERATOR equipped car that drove through a field on occasion! I'm 29 in body and mind, and 59 everything else.

[GM_Guy]

To answer your question, besides the points, the problem was also burning out the coil from being constantly energized, and that still holds true for electronic ignition, the coil that is.
As for running your radio without the car running, don't do it for more than 15 minutes. If you have a 3G, fire up and let it idle for 10-15. Better yet, goto the thrift store and buy an old discman, or other battery operated radio device for those times you insist on sitting in the car and unable to tolerate the peace and quiet. =-)

Alex.

[Toploader]

What is a 3G??

To answer your question, besides the points, the problem was also burning out the coil from being constantly energized, and that still holds true for electronic ignition, the coil that is.
As for running your radio without the car running, don't do it for more than 15 minutes. If you have a 3G, fire up and let it idle for 10-15. Better yet, goto the thrift store and buy an old discman, or other battery operated radio device for those times you insist on sitting in the car and unable to tolerate the peace and quiet. =-)

Alex.

[sly]

3G alternator.

[jaywish]

the next generation of alternator. Yours is most probably a 2G. The 3G output is commonly double the 2g thought there are several variations.

[Chuck Norris]

Is that why the Interstate guy comes around my buds shop and rotates his stock?

Quite! Keep the oldest to the front, check how they are holding their charge, clear out the duds. Rinse and repeat.