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Old 7th January 2021, 13:19   #2
SD1too
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Rover 75 2.5 Connoisseur Auto (1999) Dealer launch model.

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Quote:
Originally Posted by victorgte View Post
One point that cropped up ... was that the cigarette lighter plug-in type will not work if the ignition is off and the cigarette lighter is then no longer live. True?
That depends upon how the car manufacturer decided to wire it. In the case of the 75/ZT I believe that this was changed at some point during production but it's easy to find out!

The most important thing to bear in mind is that only cars which are used frequently for long journeys will have their batteries at a full state of charge. For most of us, the reality of life is that the battery will be partially discharged. This is particularly true of the 75/ZT whose communication systems draw a constant current from the battery at all times, and this is quite significant each time the car is unlocked.

Solar powered devices are not very good at charging a battery because this requires a current of up to 3 amps. They may however be able to maintain a fully charged battery because that process demands very little current. Their output does of course depend upon available light and that is in short supply in the winter when you'll need the maintenance ability the most.

Simon
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