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This will be my first New England winter with a T-bird and I'll mothball it from November until April. My concern is the battery. Is a smart trickle charger advisable...one that will go to a minimum charge when the battery is full.? Plug the charger through the lighter socket? Disconnect the battery and maintain it out of the car? Mitch
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If you are gonna mothball the car for that long a time I would suggest removing battery from car. If you leave it in the car you are still going to draw power which will require trickle charger. Not a fan of trickle charging for that length of time while in vehicle, to much can go wrong i.e.short circuiting. Bring battery in where it's warm and put a charge on it every so often....
P.S. this is a great time to drop the top and view all the leaves changing colors... Just dress warmlyWalter & Francine Goodenough (www.ourmainecooncat.com) -
Trickle charge will do fine, I connect directly to the battery. I have nine on trickle charges right now.02 Nieman Marcus-SS htp-f/sil. #165 - 21 states-DC
02 TB-TB htp-p/blue acc.-Nancy Gioia-28 states-DC
03 007-Coral htp-f/white acc. #468 7 states
03 WW-WW htp-p/red 8 states
04 VMG-VMG htp-p/white - 20 states-DC
04 Merlot- Merlot htp-sand- B. Grassnig-48 states-DC
04 TR-TR htp-blk 20 states-DC
04 LIB-LIB htp-p/white 16 states-DC
05 Cashmere htp-stone #408 21 states-DC
05 Dusk Rose-DR htp-cashmere seats - 48&DC
05 IG-IG htp-p/white #82 - 48&DCComment
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Just had to change the battery in our 66 a few weeks ago . It was a big 27 F Battery . In the meantime while waiting for a new battery , I used my old, original 2003 Battery, always on trickle charger, and it started the '66 up , no problem . When I checked the 27 F from the '66 , it was dated 2000 . So 20 year old battery that always had a trickle charger while in storage and located in the car . My '58 has a trickle charger as does the 2003 .Comment
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That’s also what I use. No problemsComment
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It is far wiser to connect a trickle charger directly to the battery than to connect through the lighter socket. By using the socket you are also using the wiring of the lighter circuit though not necessarily harmful to the car or any of its electrical systems that circuit is a slight draw on the charger.
Mike
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Brian Metzger had one on his wife's 007 ever since they got the car in 2003. Eventually she had to replace the battery but not until last year!Originally posted by 4LOWBIRDS+7 View PostsigpicComment
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Any particular brand trickle charger recommended or are they all pretty much the same? I'd bet most come from the same factory in the far east. MitchComment
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They are all not the same and I use maintenance charges on two vintage cars, a boat, a jet ski and lawn mower. "Battery Tender" is a notable brand and even has a waterproof offering... https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tende...s%2C188&sr=8-3
It won't cook your battery and you can leave it on for months... Its not good to remove a battery, long term, from modern cars with so much computerized/electronic components.. On the retro TBird, I use a cigarette lighter adapter for the charger, its a PITA to connect it directly to the battery and have the trunk popped open for the wires to exit, which means the trunk light is on the whole time.Comment
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I've used this for a few years now and have had good luck with it, you can even get an extension for it too!
It's not a 97 Sport, it just looks like one!
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The trunk light times out after a few minutes. I wired pigtails directly to the battery with a plug in the line making it easier to use. My tender is a CTEK.Originally posted by Frank Dreano View Post
https://smartercharger.comComment
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Like a lot of others who responded, for years I have had trickle chargers on 5 cars that I store all winter with no problems. Since I use all the cars in the summer, but alternate which one according to weather and whim, I usually use the chargers in the summer, too, if not using the car for a few days.
For the 2004 T-bird, the charger I use has a "pigtail" that attaches to the battery and snakes up at the edge of the wheel well cover. I do leave the trunk open whenever the charger is on because, 1 - you have to for the cord, and 2 - it could help vent any fumes if there are any that don't go out the vent tube (over thinking this, I know, but that's what I do).
As for the trunk light being on, I just removed the bulb. Didn't really need it anyhow since I don't think I have ever used this car at night.Comment
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