Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing Cold Weather and Battery observations and advice

Probably during the same cold spell, my 23-month-old lead acid battery was OK turning the engine over, but no luck starting - this happened twice, in spite of taking the battery out & bench-charging and cleaning the posts and applying a good coat of petroleum jelly to the posts and terminals in between, just to make sure.

When I bought my 1997 +4 a little over 18mths ago, I decided to keep an automatic battery conditioner connected 24/7, as I didn’t fancy being caught short if there was a good “Morganeering” day........

I knew that the battery had been replaced some 6 weeks before I bought my car, so, hoping to get a replacement if it had a 2-year warranty (🤔), I contacted BHM who had supplied it, and, long story short, after getting advice from their helpful team, I ended up topping up the cells with de-ionised water and adding 2 battery reconditioning tablets to each cell, & no problems since.

The tablets are Granville ‘BAT-AID” tablets (available at most ‘popular’ motoring stores and from online web stores at about £4 for 12 tablets) and, for me, worked a treat.

Hope that helps 🤗.

Bat-aids have been around a long time and I'm a certified user.

But you need access to the cells and many modern batteries are sealed unfortunately.

A six month old motobatt gel battery in my motoguzzi sport has just "died" freezer weather conditions of minus 7 degs in my shed have killed it.
stick to old fashioned lead acid batteries.
cheaper

I have to say that I was surprised when I found that mine was a lead-acid battery. (Then again, the battery IS hidden away inside the bodywork by the rear axle🤔). I can’t remember when I last had a car with one - probably my old Series 2 SWB Landrover back in the day!

Every car I've had has had lead acid battery apart from the hybrids main lithium pack.

The only one that has dropped its charge like jumping off a cliff has been the Morgan.

All my mogs have been sealed cells. My Merc was lead acid but the Polo is sealed cells.

The sealed cell (gell) ones seem to just die whereas lead acid gives you a bit of warning.

cteks and optimates aren't perfect and some mechanics talk of them failing and killing batteries. this and the fact that some batteries just seem to die early.
Anyway, I've no proof of how/why conditioners may do harm but now I put them on a timer. for maintenance only 2 hrs a day keeps the charge up otherwise you have a different problem. I also use just .8 amp conditioners, again, plenty enough for maintenance.

O T he upside to my dilemma is the suppliers have accepted the battery is well within the warranty
so FOC battery being sent out to me as I type this.
so whoever buys my motoguzzi sport gets a brand spanking new battery