So, as much as I might not want to admit that it's winter (in fact I'm even signed up for a Time Attack on the 17th) the "winterization" of my car continues unabated.
My battery (OEM 5+ years old) was finally reaching the end of it's life. The wife managed to drain it by listening to the radio & having the heated seats on... Something it'd previously withstood for hours. Also, the Defi's are wired into a power source that isn't interrupted when cranking (so if I feel like it, I can crank until it builds oil pressure before starting it after an oil change). However, since it got "cold" the gauges had started to do their sweep a second time as I cranked the engine. This suggested to me that the battery was dropping so low that the gauges thought they were off.
Solution, new red top Optima from Walmart.
They have 2 different group 35 batteries. One has the option to have posts on both the top, or the side but the +/- are reversed from what the Subaru needs. The other, fits like a glove. The wife even helped me swap it, not that she undid anything, or lifted anything but a second set of hands to wrangle cables is "handy".
So, the plan for next auto-x season is a Braille battery (or Deka, or other equivalent).
Winterization already done:
- winter wheels/tires on
- heavy duty battery in
Winterization to be done:
- Coilovers removed, stock suspension on
- Block heater extension cord, scraper and shovel in trunk
- winter rubber floor mats
- rallyarmor undertray on
- foglights uncovered
