A110 winter storage - tips?

[timbo999]

Little bit of a thread resurrection...

I am thinking of buying an A110 for high days, holiday etc, so my question is how long can the car sit idle before the battery presents problems due to low charge?

My Elise would last almost exactly 2 weeks before it was problematic.

I will probably sort a battery conditioner, but it would be nice not have to connect it up every time I garage the car.

Thanks Tim.

[xondat]

I've had no problem with 3 weeks, however that was only twice. ~2 weeks several times has been fine too.

[LE62NDE]

For those who would prefer not to jack up their car (or may not have room), there are tyresavers: there are loads available, so perhaps worth a google.

[Portti]

I would assume that it would be better to not have the handbrake on when leaving the car for winter storage. The handbrake seems to turn itself automatically on when parking the car and I've not tried to turn the handbrake off until now.

However when following the instructions on the Alpine user manual (see below) the handbrake still stays on. What is the correct procedure for leaving the transmission to park and handbrake off?

"To park the vehicle without applying the electronic parking brake (if there is a risk of freezing, for example):
– stop the engine by pressing the engine Start/Stop button 1;
– check that the N switch indicator light comes on in red and that the P indi- cator light for the parking position is displayed on the instrument panel;
– depress the brake pedal then re- lease the electronic parking brake manually."

Edited by Portti on Wednesday 28th September 17:18

[Miserablegit]

Foot on brake
Press N twice to move to park
Push handbrake button down to ensure handbrake off and, at same time as holding it down turn ignition off
There will be beeping when you open the door and a warning “apply parking brake” or something similar. Then you know the handbrake is off

[Miserablegit]

Foot on brake
Press N twice to move to park
Push handbrake button down to ensure handbrake off and, at same time as holding it down turn ignition off
There will be beeping when you open the door and a warning “apply parking brake” or something similar. Then you know the handbrake is off

[Portti]

Thanks Miserablegit! I will try this procedure. Does this mean that the engine should still be running when starting the first step? So first step = Foot on brake while engine running.

Quite interesting that the user manual gives incorrect information.

Miserablegit said:

Foot on brake
Press N twice to move to park
Push handbrake button down to ensure handbrake off and, at same time as holding it down turn ignition off
There will be beeping when you open the door and a warning “apply parking brake” or something similar. Then you know the handbrake is off

[Miserablegit]

Portti said:

Yes- I drive to my parking space, foot on brake, NN then hold parking brake down and turn engine off

[Hoofty]

The engine doesn't need to be running - you could also do it via this method:

- Get in, press start without foot on brake to turn ignition on
- Put foot on brake, push down to turn handbrake off
- Remove foot from brake, press start again to turn ignition off

The handbook procedure is not incorrect - you can also turn the handbrake off before switching the engine off, as per Git's post.

Nick

[Portti]

I tested the option which Miserablegit and the one which Hoofty suggested and also retested what the user manual says.

Results:

- Hoofty option = success, I can get the handbrake off this way.
- Miserablegit option = no success, the problem comes at a stage when I press N twice. It doesn't move to Park position by doing that. It only goes to Neutral position. I have engine still running and I have foot on brake.
- User manual option = no success. I still can't get the handbrake off following the instructions on the user manual.

I wonder what I'm doing wrong when following Miserablegit's instructions or user manual instructions. Or could there be something different on 2022 car versus previous versions.

Well, anyway now I have one procedure which allows me to have the handbrake off and that is the most important thing for me.

[essexstu]

Portti said:

I tested the option which Miserablegit and the one which Hoofty suggested and also retested what the user manual says.

Results:

- Hoofty option = success, I can get the handbrake off this way.
- Miserablegit option = no success, the problem comes at a stage when I press N twice. It doesn't move to Park position by doing that. It only goes to Neutral position. I have engine still running and I have foot on brake.
- User manual option = no success. I still can't get the handbrake off following the instructions on the user manual.

I wonder what I'm doing wrong when following Miserablegit's instructions or user manual instructions. Or could there be something different on 2022 car versus previous versions.

Well, anyway now I have one procedure which allows me to have the handbrake off and that is the most important thing for me.

I hold the N button down to apply the handbrake so try that....

[Sporky]

On my 2019 Pure I have to hold N to get Park. Double-pressing N does nothing. So maybe it's a year thing.

[Dezzer115]

Sporky said:

On my 2019 Pure I have to hold N to get Park. Double-pressing N does nothing. So maybe it's a year thing.

On my July 2019 Pure....
Bring car to a halt, foot still on brake with doors closed, depress the brake toggle switch, turn off engine.
Always defaults to Park, 'Apply brake + beep' sounds when door is opened.

It was exactly the same on my Oct 2018 Pure.
I have never tried any other combinations when parking.

[Sporky]

Interesting - if I don't hold N it stays in neutral - if I also hold the handbrake button down when turning everything off I can quite easily push the car along by hand.

[Miserablegit]

My apologies for giving incorrect info:

I’ve just been out to the car and if I press N twice it does, indeed, only go into Neutral and not park. I do have to hold N down to get into park.

I either misremembered or there has been a software update - I probably misremembered.

Handbrake procedure works though - push button down and hold as you switch car off.

[Portti]

The long press/holding down N button seems to do the trick. Thanks everybody for this info and no worries Miserablegit, now the info is correct and all is good.

To confirm, this procedure allows the car to be left on Park with handbrake off:

- Put foot on brake pedal while engine still running while car is stationary
- Press and hold N button to move gear into P position. Make sure P is shown on the cars main instrument panel
- Push handbrake button down and keep it down and push start/stop button simultaneously to turn engine off
- Release handbrake button and lift foot from brake pedal

[worldwidewebs]

Portti said:

The long press/holding down N button seems to do the trick. Thanks everybody for this info and no worries Miserablegit, now the info is correct and all is good.

To confirm, this procedure allows the car to be left on Park with handbrake off:

- Put foot on brake pedal while engine still running while car is stationary
- Press and hold N button to move gear into P position. Make sure P is shown on the cars main instrument panel
- Push handbrake button down and keep it down and push start/stop button simultaneously to turn engine off
- Release handbrake button and lift foot from brake pedal

Does the following not achieve the same thing?:
- Car stationary with engine running, foot on brake pedal
- Press the stop/start button at the same time as pressing the handbrake button down


And if wishing to release the parking brake, assuming the car is already in Park (as above):
- Get in car and close the door
- Press stop/start to turn on ignition
- Press brake pedal and N button at same time to release parking brake

[GiantCardboardPlato]

Please everyone do remember to check any bonfires you’ve built for hibernating a110s before you light them.

[Portti]

Now my A110 is in winter storage. The car is plugged into CTEK charger, extra pressure on the tyres and handbrake off. Plan is to take it back on road in April 2023. Hopefully it will start and run without problems then.

[Miserablegit]

As it’s being stored in a garage I’d be tempted to lower the windows a bit as well to allow some airflow into the interior.
I had an issue many years ago with an old car stored in a garage where the interior became damp from condensation and became mouldy…