Your fleet running reports

[Jobbo]

It is front engined I’m afraid.

[duncs500]

Early contender for purchase of the year.

[Matty]

Early contender for purchase of the year.

FELPOTY?

[Jobbo]

23” wheels* Matty - bling bling.


As noted by mik, that includes the tyres.

[integrale_evo]

Got a call earlier asking if I could pop past the sister in laws after work as her car wouldn’t start. They ( her, my mrs and nephew ) had jump leads but couldn’t work out where to connect them as the battery is in the boot.

Popped bonnet, found a red plastic cap with a + on it, connected jump leads, started and ran fine.

Will fit a new one tomorrow.

In the past 18 months that’s the X5, compact, step daughters polo, mrs’ merc and SILs 1 series I’ve had to do!

I need to melt the lead into blocks, could have a few quids worth by now

[Mito Man]

Got about 12 lead acid batteries just lying in a corner of the garden and don't know what to do with them

[V8Granite]

I remember talking to Paul Waite years ago and he said the happiest time was when he was having a drink and cutting the lawn on his ride on .

That’s a very cool purchase.

Dave!

[Matty]

Got about 12 lead acid batteries just lying in a corner of the garden and don't know what to do with them

Theory test asks the same

20240315_094826.jpg (204 KiB) Viewed 437 times

[Mito Man]

excellent.

[Beany]

But then how am I supposed to grow a battery tree?

[Carlos]

£10 each in scrap?

Your literally sitting on a money tree!

[integrale_evo]

There’s a kind chap on a local Facebook group who will come and take them away for free

[Mito Man]

I think they’re almost worthless at least near here. People offer to take them away for free where they presumably get paid a better rate than £1 at the metal recycling place.
One day there will be a massive lead shortage and I’ll be sitting on grey gold.

[Beany]

Just went to the E46 and it's battery is low (currently charging in the house), and it got me thinking.

M135i has stop/start.

Eventually it'll get to the stage where it's battery will need a charge or a jump - are there any considerations for stop/start cars when it comes to battery packs jump starters?

[Beany]

Also, car now ready to go to the guy who has been badgering me for months.

I texted him yesterday to tell him he was good to go the bank to get money. I left him a voicemail today to say I'm good to go whenever (the car drives so I was gonna deliver it, it's only the other side of town).

If I've heard nowt by tomorrow, I'm gonna make my neighbour an offer he can't refuse, and if he's got cold feet, my brother is interested in something to tinker with....

[Mito Man]

Figured out why the X5 boot wasn’t operating smoothly,

Right hand boot strut had snapped in half and only held together with the telescopic sheath. Surprised it’s lasted this long as the actual frame of it is made from a brittle crap plastic.
As for the cheap Aliexpress replacement pair - they look identical to the OEM ones down to the German text on them, they’re only missing the BMW badge, sound the same in operation too.

[jamcg]

Wouldn’t surprise me if they’re made in a factory in china, so they’re the same thing, just they’ve omitted the bmw printing and sold them on. it’s amazing how much Temu/ali express/shein etc stuff on Amazon for double the price

[Zonda_]

Just went to the E46 and it's battery is low (currently charging in the house), and it got me thinking.

M135i has stop/start.

Eventually it'll get to the stage where it's battery will need a charge or a jump - are there any considerations for stop/start cars when it comes to battery packs jump starters?

The only caution made when jump starting a car with start/stop in to not connect leads to the negative terminal. You connect to the positive and a suitable earth point on the body.

[Sundayjumper]

I've never understood that. Every car I've worked on, the earth lead is quite short and goes directly from battery to chassis. I don't understand what difference it makes.

I've always jump started directly battery-to-battery, because that's the equivalent to having a charged battery ?

[mik]

I've always jump started directly battery-to-battery, because that's the equivalent to having a charged battery ?

I’ve always done this too.

The argument I have seen a few times is this pretty much what is stated below

During jump-starting, we connect the boosting battery to ground rather than to the dead battery's - terminal for the simple reason that this provides a more direct return path to the good battery which is powering the dead car: the return current does not have to travel through the dead battery's minus terminal hookup cable and then to the jumper cable, but can go directly from the chassis ground to the jumper cable.

A more direct return path allows for better current flow and less voltage drop, like plugging a big appliance directly into an outlet, rather than via an extension cord.

My concern with that has always been that you are cranking the engine - which creates the biggest current draw that your battery normally deals with - the only part of the circuit designed to accept that current level is the battery terminal - if I use something else am I forcing huge current through a part of the system that would never normally encounter that ampage. And that concern makes my brain hurt.