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RE: Battery Blanket
Mine never came with the blanket, so I guess I got lucky :)
Do yourself a favor and lose the factory battery. When I replaced mine with
an Optima Redtop, I felt a huge difference both during startup and when the
engine was running. I don't have to worry about corrosion either because the
Optima is completely sealed.
Kevin Ng
97 GLX Windsor Blue
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Bill Schleusner [SMTP:b-schleusner@ti.com]
> Sent: Friday, October 02, 1998 11:31 AM
> To: Jetta GLX mailing list; gti mail list
> Subject: Battery Blanket
>
> What's everyone's opinion regarding the battery blanket?
>
> Went out to my car last night after work and found a huge puddle of fluid
> under my the left front bumper. I immediately go WTF! and think that my
> oil
> cooler has sprung a leak. Upon closer examination I determine it's power
> steering fluid. The reservoir is completely empty, again WTF!
>
> To make a long story short it seems the battery had overheated and battery
> acid had burned three small holes in the reservoir. Fortunately my dealer
> stays open 'til midnight and replaced both the reservoir and I got a new
> battery! He said that factory batteries are made by Guhl/Gould(sp?) and
> don't hold up very well in Texas heat so he replaced it with an Excide (5
> year warranty), which is labeled Autobahn.
>
> We discussed the wisdom of placing a plastic reservoir next to battery
> acid
> and also the battery blanket. He said that in his opinion the battery
> blanket actually contributes to this problem. The gasses from the battery
> are trapped in the blanket and then pool at the bottom and start to eat
> away
> everything. The theory on the blanket is that it protects the battery
> from
> excessive heat in the engine compartment. His theory is that once the
> battery gets hot, the blanket retains heat, much like a baked potato in
> aluminum foil. I casually asked how much a new blanket was and he thought
> they ran ~ $100, Ouch!
>
> Just thought I would throw this out to the group for two reasons:
>
> - Does everyone still have their blankets on their batteries?
>
> - Learn from my experience, wouldn't hurt to check your
> battery/tray/power
> steering reservoir, especially if you live in the South.
>
> Later,
>
> BTW, please don't start the thread regarding "break-in" oil again or I'll
> scream.
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> Bill Schleusner 97GLX
> b-schleusner@ti.com
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~