blackA6TX

I put in a DURALAST...Is anyone using this brand of battery??? When I swapped them last night, I didn't lose radio presets or Homelink remote stores.

CEB

...has nothing to do with not losing presets. Either the radio and homelink are designed to retain settings for a short while or you were awfully fast in changing the battery.

I've sometimes changed batteries with the engine running to keep all the settings.

urq20vt

As an Electronics Engineer that designs electronics modules for vehicles, I can say that removing the battery from a running vehicle is probably the most stressful thing that you can do to the electrical system, far worse than jump starting. While the electronics modules are designed to handle this, you can see 60+ volt spikes through the system when disconnecting/reconnecting the battery. I would liken this to bumping into wall at 5 mph to park, trusting that the 5 mph bumpers would keep any damage from occurring.

On older cars ('80s, early '90's), this can be a sure way to damage the electrical system. I saw a Jaguar get totalled as a result of this, as almost all of the ECUs is the car were damaged.

If you want to retain radio and other settings, just get or make one of the 9V battery adapters designed for the purpose. The $5 you spend is well worth it.

Sorry to rant; you just touched a nerve.

fan4F1

Ok I'll bite...9V battery adapters - more info please (get or make)!

CEB

...and I hope that I didn't give the impression that it was OK.

I've done it twice - each time the running car had a dead battery and the replacement battery had no charge - shutting off the engine would have left me stranded looking for a jump....

CEB

...plugs into the cigarette lighter and supplies enough juice to keep settings and the like...

urq20vt

I think that most auto parts stores, as well as Radio Shack, sell them for a few bucks.

Personally, I have never had the a need for one of those, as I haven't been lucky enough to have a warning before the batteries that I have needed to change died.

fan4F1

Thanks for both responses!!!

chairman

I have seen one at NTB that plugs into the wall and then into the lighter