Beautiful autumnal sunshine meant vehicle selection for a short trip to Manchester was a no brainer. I unhooked the CTEK battery charger & jumped in the Mantis, only to find that the car would not start. How can that be, with a CTEK trickle charger & an Optima Yellow Top that is meant to be able to withstand years over-wintering out on the Russian Steppes?! (Well, you know what I mean!). Anyway, not wanting to miss out on the drive I jump started the car with the Noco GB70 starter & headed out. Alas, when I stopped for fuel (it happens!) the car wouldn’t start again, which is a worry after an 8 mile drive. Wringing the last juice out of the Noco, I bailed on my trip & went home. A shame on such a lovely day & the end of a few (relatively) trouble free months. Now I need to find someone to help identify the parasitic drain on the battery, & also figure out why the CTEK charger isn’t doing the trick. I hope the Optima battery is not screwed as it was not cheap… Yikes. Anyway, tucking the car away for a while I guess. Oh well.