Need ways to start a car with a dead battery.- 92 Civic Auto.

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

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

I don't think that a) you will spin the engine fast enough to start it
or b) that if the battery is dead you will be able to generate enough
juice while doing as you suggest to power up the engine electronics,
fuel pump, etc. You *certainly* won't with the alternator belt removed.

If this is of real concern to you, I would get one of those "booster
packs" and keep it in the trunk; alternately, get one of those gizmos
that straps to the battery that will cut the power to the vehicle when
the battery is significantly (but not fully) discharged - the idea is
that there should be enough juice left for one good crank after you
reset the thing.

nate

--
replace "fly" with "com" to reply.
http://home.comcast.net/~njnagel

On Tue, 14 Feb 2006 06:22:53 -0500, Nate Nagel > wrote:


>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

>I don't think that a) you will spin the engine fast enough to start it
>or b) that if the battery is dead you will be able to generate enough
>juice while doing as you suggest to power up the engine electronics,
>fuel pump, etc. You *certainly* won't with the alternator belt removed.

>If this is of real concern to you, I would get one of those "booster
>packs" and keep it in the trunk; alternately, get one of those gizmos
>that straps to the battery that will cut the power to the vehicle when
>the battery is significantly (but not fully) discharged - the idea is
>that there should be enough juice left for one good crank after you
>reset the thing.

Better yet, how about if you quit running the battery down? I had a period
of time where I'd frequently let my lights run down the battery when it
rained. I'd have the headlights on in the rain and then forget to turn the
lights off. My solution then was to put a relay in series with the headlight
switch that switched them off with the ignition.

AZ Nomad wrote:

> On Tue, 14 Feb 2006 06:22:53 -0500, Nate Nagel > wrote:
>
> >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
>
> >I don't think that a) you will spin the engine fast enough to start it
> >or b) that if the battery is dead you will be able to generate enough
> >juice while doing as you suggest to power up the engine electronics,
> >fuel pump, etc. You *certainly* won't with the alternator belt removed.
>
> >If this is of real concern to you, I would get one of those "booster
> >packs" and keep it in the trunk; alternately, get one of those gizmos
> >that straps to the battery that will cut the power to the vehicle when
> >the battery is significantly (but not fully) discharged - the idea is
> >that there should be enough juice left for one good crank after you
> >reset the thing.
>
> Better yet, how about if you quit running the battery down? I had a period
> of time where I'd frequently let my lights run down the battery when it
> rained. I'd have the headlights on in the rain and then forget to turn the
> lights off. My solution then was to put a relay in series with the headlight
> switch that switched them off with the ignition.

Many modern cars do this anyway.

Graham

Pooh Bear wrote:
[headlamp reminder chime]
> Many modern cars do this anyway.

The '84 Prelude I used to drive had this feature. I wonder why a '92
Civic wouldn't.

Arif Khokar wrote:

> Pooh Bear wrote:
> [headlamp reminder chime]
> > Many modern cars do this anyway.
>
> The '84 Prelude I used to drive had this feature. I wonder why a '92
> Civic wouldn't.

It's a puzzle.

Graham

In article >,
Nate Nagel > wrote:
>Sam Nickaby wrote:
[...]
>> 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?
>
>I don't think that a) you will spin the engine fast enough to start it
>or b) that if the battery is dead you will be able to generate enough
>juice while doing as you suggest to power up the engine electronics,
>fuel pump, etc. You *certainly* won't with the alternator belt removed.

If the battery is sufficiently dead you won't be able to spin the
alternator fast enough to get it to self-energize. Even if it were a
manual and you were roll-starting it. If it's not that dead, then
even if you start the car (and unless your name is Herakles you
won't), what good will it do you? You'll have a near-dead battery
which isn't being charged (because you disconnected the alternator
pulley), and the car will most likely die soon after.
--
There's no such thing as a free lunch, but certain accounting practices can
result in a fully-depreciated one.

In article > ,
"Sam Nickaby" > wrote:


> 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.

Pretty much zero. You (and any three other guys you want to grab at
random and consider together) simply ain't got enough "ooomph" in your
whole body to put enough charge on a car sized battery to "git 'er
started" that way without spending days or weeks (maybe even months) in
the attempt. It'd depend on alternator, I imagine, but I'd expect that
having the stator coils energized during the time it took you rewind the
rope after each pull would burn more juice than you produced with the
pull. Of course, that assumes you could even pull it over at all against
the load the battery presents.

> If not, can somebody think of a clever idea
> to start an automatic?

First clever idea: Don't do bonehead things like leaving the lights on
at the beach (Yeah, I know, we all have brain-farts now and then) or
just plain idiotically STUPID things like letting frat-boys use your
*CAR* as a *BOOM-BOX*. (for this one, I put on my best "Red Foreman"
voice and say "Serves you right, dumbass!" with absolutely no attempt at
being humorous) Notice that I used two different words there? A car is
transportation. A boom-box is a music producing device. Learn and
understand the difference, apply that undersanding, and you'll never
have such a problem again - at least not from that source - Guess it
can't rule out a brain-fart at the beach, huh?

Failing that, get a AAA card. I have yet to even hear RUMORS about a car
with a battery so dead that a AAA card can't get it started, or to home
or the shop. Remember Visa's "ATM fix EVERYTHING!" ad campaign a few
years back? Well, when it comes to stranded cars, it ain't ATM that
fixes everything - It's *AAA*

--
Don Bruder - - If your "From:" address isn't on my whitelist,
or the subject of the message doesn't contain the exact text "PopperAndShadow"
somewhere, any message sent to this address will go in the garbage without my
ever knowing it arrived. Sorry... <http://www.sonic.net/~dakidd> for more info

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.

Simple.

Don't use electrics when the engine isn't running !

> 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.

Zero.

> If not, can somebody think of a clever idea
> to start an automatic?

No. You *can* push start a manual transmission car though.

Just don't drain the battery.

Graham

Sam Nickaby, > was motivated to say this in
rec.autos.driving on Tue, 14 Feb 2006 10:50:49 GMT:
> 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.

Slim and none. From your proposal, you would turn the alternator 200
times (20 pulls * 10 revolutions per pull). Most cars (once the engine
got running) would take about a couple of hours to charge a battery
(IIRC) if charged that way (maybe less for a partial charge to just
start the vehicle the next time). I don't know about your car, but mine
idles at about 800 to 1000 revolutions per *minute* so as such, I doubt
your plan would work.

> If not, can somebody think of a clever idea
> to start an automatic?

Couple of ideas: either a) a membership in AAA or similar auto club or
b) get a booster pack (or even a spare battery if you want to go to the
expense) from the parts store and keep that in the trunk for the next
time you have a dead battery...