Club 80-90 Forums

I know many of you use your vans daily but for those that don't do you use a battery isolater switch ? can any one tell me the pro's and con's of using one ? Many thanks

Flibbertigibbet wrote:I know many of you use your vans daily but for those that don't do you use a battery isolater switch ? can any one tell me the pro's and con's of using one ? Many thanks

We used to have one on one of the 2cvs. It didn't make me want to fit 'em to the others.

Short version - It doesn't do anything that you can't do in a minute with a spanner removing the earth lead.

pros
battery discharge minimalised, but NOT ERRADICATED
antitheft advantages

cons
memory issues with electrical items
risk of failure - carry a spare!
added risk of electrical complications due to lack of use( contacts corroding in the isolator itself)
spoon population stops growing.

Seem to remember a Westy owner posting here, who noticed smoke rising from under the dash, within minutes his Westy was written off due to it catching fire and he and his family stood by helplessly as it was engulfed in flames. As Mocki points out, there are pro's and cons but a battery isolator switch may have helped by isolating the battery rapidly at the first sign of an electrical short circuit. I think its advisable to have one fitted for both starter and leisure batteries. There are types now available that fit directly onto the battery terminal and no wiring mods are needed.