is there such a thing as too small a battery?

[tweak666]

due to my intercooler, i had to move my radiator overflow into the engine bay, taking up some of the battery space. To prevent having to relocate the battery, a guy at a shop suggested the braille battery, its like 11lbs. So, eventually I got the car running, but still had alot of electrical issues that i was working on. I've changed all the grounds except for the trans mount ground due to current issues. I know some discharge of the battery is normal, but if I leave the car more than 3-4 days without starting it, the battery drops to like 5V. I thought maybe there was a drain somewhere, but now I'm wondering if maybe the battery just isn't up to handling the task. Aside from the stock electrical components, i'm running a turbo timer, S-AFR, a boost controller, UEGO, boost gauge, a head unit and an amp. When the car is running, the voltage is right around 14V, 13.8 if the headlights and foglights are on. Any ideas? comments? I'm trying to find the next size up in the braille line just in case

 

[Nomad707]

do you have an alarm that uses the battery??

As far as a smaller battery.. a smaller battery will have less CCA (cold cranking amps) and if you don't have enough, it might not be able to start the car or will be hard to start. IIRC a good CCA to have for a supra is around 600CCA

And when the car is running, it usually runs off of the alternator and not the battery, where as starting / listening to music with car off, will of course use battery juice.. so it may be too small, and you also may be correct for a leak.

correct me if im mistaken.

 

[tweak666]

no, no alarm, but there may have been one prior. There was alot of messy wire work dont before i got the car.
the braille batteries go by PCA (pulse cranking amps) which i know nothing about, but it seems to work, sometime. i've driven over the course of a day, with it sitting for 3hrs between starts, and no problem. then other times, i have to charge the battery, drive for 30 minutes, turn it off, and the voltage is below 10. If i can just get past this last electrical problem, i'll be problem free

 

[Nomad707]

almost sounds like a massive drain OR your alternator, ironically, is intermittent and is about to go out. Go to a tire shop or something, they do alternator + battery tests for free usually

 

[ATL88Supra]

don't waste your time with small battery's relocate a full size battery to the hatch, Stop being lazy.

 

[Rennat]

my bet is that your sub and amp, plus everything else is draining your battery, and since it slowly discharges, and due to its size, it doesnt keep the voltage up very well.

not to mention our alternators dont handle a ton of electronics all that well. i make it a habit to turn down my music when its night time so i dont draw too much from my alternator.

 

[WhtMa71]

don't waste your time with small battery's relocate a full size battery to the hatch, Stop being lazy.

Every time you give advice I want to punch a baby...How is getting a smaller battery lazy?
If you're going to relocate a battery to the trunk you have to run a huge power wire and then run a ground wire all the way back up to the engine block if you want to do it right. Most people also have space limitations in the hatch; A spare tire,sub/amp, targa top..

You've got a drain somewhere...No matter how small the battery is it shouldn't discharge in a few days just sitting there. Make sure the connections are tight. You'll need to trace it and find where its draining from. Take the fuse out of the holder on the wire going to the amp first and see if it helps.

It is true that a smaller battery cannot support as many electronics and you also better hope your car starts on the first try every time. Make sure you don't listen to music with the engine off.

 

[foofers]

Some helpful info on alternators - in case it is your alternator that is failing
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/william.whittaker1/alt2.htm

 

[CyFi6]

Just do a parasitic drain test, all you need is an ammeter... Then do the same with everything off on the suspect components to see if they are drawing more than you want them to

 

[Rennat]

Every time you give advice I want to punch a baby...How is getting a smaller battery lazy?
If you're going to relocate a battery to the trunk you have to run a huge power wire and then run a ground wire all the way back up to the engine block if you want to do it right. Most people also have space limitations in the hatch; A spare tire,sub/amp, targa top..

You've got a drain somewhere...No matter how small the battery is it shouldn't discharge in a few days just sitting there. Make sure the connections are tight. You'll need to trace it and find where its draining from. Take the fuse out of the holder on the wire going to the amp first and see if it helps.

It is true that a smaller battery cannot support as many electronics and you also better hope your car starts on the first try every time. Make sure you don't listen to music with the engine off.

whats the definition of "huge"... cause you can go buy some 4 gauge wire for like $2/FT and it will gladly take the amps and current... especially seeing as how the stock wires are what... 8 gauge? maybe 6... lol

i do agree that the OP is a little lazy, and not so smart if its a daily driver... you want the biggest battery to fit your needs. and the optima red tops have 1000CCA... which is nuts! no idea about the one the OP is using...

 

[WhtMa71]

Well not huge but you get the idea.. But like I said too, maybe he doesn't have the room for a battery in the back. I don't think it's lazy at all to not want to run 2 wires through your car to the hatch for a battery.. I would agree that if he has a bunch of neat electrical toys then yes he needs good battery like the optima.

But the point is, the battery shouldn't just die sitting for 3 days with no strain on it...

 

[tweak666]

whats the definition of "huge"... cause you can go buy some 4 gauge wire for like $2/FT and it will gladly take the amps and current... especially seeing as how the stock wires are what... 8 gauge? maybe 6... lol

i do agree that the OP is a little lazy, and not so smart if its a daily driver... you want the biggest battery to fit your needs. and the optima red tops have 1000CCA... which is nuts! no idea about the one the OP is using...

the plan was to go as light as possible, and hopefully autocross/TT/drift, hence the braille battery 11lbs vs others weighing b/t 30-40 lbs off the nose. I'll try the drain test next time i get some day off, is there a write-up or how to? i read to put a test light on a ground and battery neg, and pull fuses one at a time till the light goes out. Is that correct?

 

[shaeff]

I use a Deka ext30L in my M3. It's a half weight battery @ 22lbs. Starts the car every time, no problem at all. 10.5:1 compression ratio. (higher than a 7mgte)

 

[NashMan]

just so you know you can ground a batteir any were in the hatch

some people take it over bord and run an extra ground to the block witch is not needed in most case's

remmber our comp ratio is not 10 plus nore it hard to trun over

the only other time were you whould run 2 wires is one from your alt to kill switch to batteri the main battery feed ot fuse box

Well not huge but you get the idea.. But like I said too, maybe he doesn't have the room for a battery in the back. I don't think it's lazy at all to not want to run 2 wires through your car to the hatch for a battery.. I would agree that if he has a bunch of neat electrical toys then yes he needs good battery like the optima.

But the point is, the battery shouldn't just die sitting for 3 days with no strain on it...

on another note if you have a stario installed cheak to see if the yellow wire (power) and red (ign) are tide together

if so remmber to turn you deck off or re wire it right

other then that finding draw can be very time consuming all you need in muilty meater

 

[Poodles]

Couple facts:
- Stock setup has a drain...we have a factory alarm.

- Tiny batteries are made for motorcycles, not for old cars that might not start, or with a stereo system.

- Relocation of a battery is dumb on several levels. Namely because we're a hack back car and the trunk isn't seperated from the cabin (toxic fumes). You won't pass tech at a drag strip without a box with a proper vent, and a cutoff switch.

Get a smaller overflow tank off another car or go custom (when you disconnect the line to the sensor for the birdcage light it defaults to not being on), and put a real battery back in (I suggest Optimas because they don't leak nearly as easily because of their design).

 

[MA70witBoost]

Couple facts:
- Stock setup has a drain...we have a factory alarm.

- Tiny batteries are made for motorcycles, not for old cars that might not start, or with a stereo system.

- Relocation of a battery is dumb on several levels. Namely because we're a hack back car and the trunk isn't seperated from the cabin (toxic fumes). You won't pass tech at a drag strip without a box with a proper vent, and a cutoff switch.
Get a smaller overflow tank off another car or go custom (when you disconnect the line to the sensor for the birdcage light it defaults to not being on), and put a real battery back in (I suggest Optimas because they don't leak nearly as easily because of their design).

Damn! Beat me to it! Yeah, if you have a/c in your supra (meaning you'll be driving it with the window's up) you dont want to relocate the battery. The battery produces toxic fumes as it recharges. Bad idea. :3d_frown:

 

[Poodles]

Yep, unless you use a PROPERLY externally vented box (and not one of those cheap marine boxes from wal-mart that aren't sealed), it's not a smart thing to do.

Running a Miata battery (which IS 100% sealed IIRC) will work, but you still need an external kill switch for track duty.

 

[bmoss85]

cant you use something similiar to an optima battery? they dont need to vent do they?

 

[NashMan]

i think one of the yellow tops has vent tube in the batteri it's self

think it is called the d3 or some thing don't remmber

plus a yellow top wonte vent badly in less some thing is wroung aka you are boiling your batteri and some thgin els is to blame

should you run vent tube yes. will you die if you don't or become sick no


plus runing rescurt in you car is like one of the worest things you can ever do to your self all wasy bring in clean air form out side

in less you car is oil stink muchine

cant you use something similiar to an optima battery? they dont need to vent do they?

 

[ATL88Supra]

Every time you give advice I want to punch a baby...How is getting a smaller battery lazy?
If you're going to relocate a battery to the trunk you have to run a huge power wire and then run a ground wire all the way back up to the engine block if you want to do it right. Most people also have space limitations in the hatch; A spare tire,sub/amp, targa top..

You've got a drain somewhere...No matter how small the battery is it shouldn't discharge in a few days just sitting there. Make sure the connections are tight. You'll need to trace it and find where its draining from. Take the fuse out of the holder on the wire going to the amp first and see if it helps.

It is true that a smaller battery cannot support as many electronics and you also better hope your car starts on the first try every time. Make sure you don't listen to music with the engine off.

why is it lazy? cause i said so, from my standpoint it is stupid and i tell all my buddys the same thing and guess what? they always have dead battery's. to me its common sence. and it should be for OP. and for the record every time you post god kills a kitten.