Mount an Uninterruptible Power supply in the trunk, and give access to the
12volt connections inside. Charge it off the electrical system, using a
reverse current diode. When you get into a pinch, bypass the diode, and
start your car. It also provides full time 110 volt ac for your laptop,
coolers, or TV.

Al


"Sir Lex" > wrote in message
...
> Sam Nickaby wrote:
>> I have been thinking of a good way to prevent stranding
>> myself from a dead battery. It happened twice. Once at a
>> beach from leaving my lights on. The other was at a college
>> campus which the stereo and the dome light ran down the
>> battery. Unlike the beach, the college campus have lots of
>> helpful students with beat up cars that have jumper cables.
>> Now, I have a new idea. Once my battery runs dry, I
>> remove my alternator belt and wrap a rope around the
>> alternator pulley. I then pull the rope so it'll turn 10
>> revolutions per pull. I keep doing this for about 20 times.
>>
>> What is the possibility that this will supply enough charge
>> to start the car. If not, can somebody think of a clever idea
>> to start an automatic?
>>
>> Thanks
>>
>
> You would have more chance of winning the lottery... without buying a
> ticket. :-)
>
> If you're that concerned about it, as other's have said, investigate
> buying a booster pack. Another more expensive option is to have a dual
> battery system setup, giving the starter motor it's own battery... though
> that would be the first time I'd ever heard of such a setup in a honda
> civic. :-)
>
> <http://www.tjmproducts.com.au/dual_batteries.html>
>
> There's the kill switch option, which if installed properly should cut
> power to everything in the car. This also acts as an immobilizer, until
> your potential thief finds the switch (though I cant vouch for the
> intelligence of all car thieves.) The downside to that is if you have a
> security coded radio you'd have to put in the code every time you start
> the car.
>
> Of course by far the easiest and cheapest option is not to run significant
> amounts of electrics when your motor isn't running.
>
> How long did you have your stereo and cabin light on for when they ran
> down the battery? You should've been able to have the stereo going and
> your cabin light on for a few hours without any problems. If it was a
> relatively short period of time, you may need to look at purchasing a new
> battery. Typical battery life in a car is 3 - 4 years.
>
> SL.