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May. 18th, 2006 10:48 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
brrmWell, that was an eventful evening. Coming back from Brighton last weekend, the MG's[1] alternator light had been on dimly, indicating a slight discharge of the battery. In a get-home-before-it-gets-dark mood, I ploughed on, leaving the headlights off as late as I dared.
On inspection at home, the fanbelt turned out to be really quite slack (oops!), so I fixed that, and got matt-who-has-no-LJ to help me push-start it so I could go for a drive to charge the battery up.
Around 10 minutes into our drive, when doing a 3-point turn, the car conked out, battery 100% dead. Probably because it hadn't charged enough before I had to put the lights on. While we were faffing around trying to push-start it again, a local resident (who happened to be another classic car buff - a Triumph Spitfire owner) came out and asked if we needed a hand. He had jumper leads, so we got it going again with those. But accidentally putting the headlights on instead of sidelights (pulled the switch out one stop too far, d'oh!) killed the engine again.
We made the decision to tow the car back - only a couple of miles - as the light was rapidly fading. Being towed behind a large pickup truck though narrow streets with parked cars is an ... interesting experience.
Amusing incident of the evening has to be as we passed an unmarked police car parked on Woodstock Rd. I can't think what he thought wrong with a car being towed in the (24h) bus lane with no lights in near-darkness, but he flashed his blue lights at us. Didn't give chase, though - I think classic cars work quite well in the benefit-of-the-doubt stakes sometimes - and we only had 100yds to go to my house.
Joe Lucas[2], Prince of Darkness, has a lot to answer for...
So, tomorrow, I 'borrow' a battery charger from work. Yes, we have such a thing - the pump that stops the basement flooding has battery backup provided by an ordinary car battery, and a charger to keep that topped up.
[1] My parents' MG - lent to me to do the Brooklands-Brighton Regency Run, as mine is still not back from being repaired.
[2] As in Lucas electrics, bane of old British cars.
On inspection at home, the fanbelt turned out to be really quite slack (oops!), so I fixed that, and got matt-who-has-no-LJ to help me push-start it so I could go for a drive to charge the battery up.
Around 10 minutes into our drive, when doing a 3-point turn, the car conked out, battery 100% dead. Probably because it hadn't charged enough before I had to put the lights on. While we were faffing around trying to push-start it again, a local resident (who happened to be another classic car buff - a Triumph Spitfire owner) came out and asked if we needed a hand. He had jumper leads, so we got it going again with those. But accidentally putting the headlights on instead of sidelights (pulled the switch out one stop too far, d'oh!) killed the engine again.
We made the decision to tow the car back - only a couple of miles - as the light was rapidly fading. Being towed behind a large pickup truck though narrow streets with parked cars is an ... interesting experience.
Amusing incident of the evening has to be as we passed an unmarked police car parked on Woodstock Rd. I can't think what he thought wrong with a car being towed in the (24h) bus lane with no lights in near-darkness, but he flashed his blue lights at us. Didn't give chase, though - I think classic cars work quite well in the benefit-of-the-doubt stakes sometimes - and we only had 100yds to go to my house.
Joe Lucas[2], Prince of Darkness, has a lot to answer for...
So, tomorrow, I 'borrow' a battery charger from work. Yes, we have such a thing - the pump that stops the basement flooding has battery backup provided by an ordinary car battery, and a charger to keep that topped up.
[1] My parents' MG - lent to me to do the Brooklands-Brighton Regency Run, as mine is still not back from being repaired.
[2] As in Lucas electrics, bane of old British cars.
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(no subject)
Date: 2006-05-18 11:20 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2006-05-19 08:43 am (UTC)