"tiny" battery question...

[RazoE]

Hey guys, I was thinking of switching to a super small battery (Genesis Compact), seeing as I only have a basic stereo system, and I don't run anything extra in my car, just the head/fog/taillights and interior gauges...

considering a stock battery is 40+ lbs, and a "tiny" one is 13lbs or so, it can make a nice little difference, combined with the CF hood I'm getting, especially in an N/A..

what I'm wondering is, would it be fine, to run one of these small batteries in a daily driver? Would my alternator charge it? Do they need external chargers? Are they really as powerful (even stronger) than stock?

Also "they don't do good in extreme heat or cold" doesn't bother me, I live in Los Angeles, where temps never dip past 50 and rarely go over 85...

Any input guys?

 

[CRE]

Looks like yet another breed of AGM battery.

As for its servicability, I really don't know if I'd recommend it for a daily driver. Drain it once and it'll most likely never hold a decent charge again, and in this case it doesn't have the overhead to make up for the difference. You kill a regular car battery and it looses most of its capacity (it'll charge to around 40-50%). With a larger battery you'll still have enough room to start the car in most conditions (not reliably though). With a much lower capacity battery you're screwed.

I'm curious how this battery would deal with the amount of cycling it'll be going through as well.

 

[RazoE]

yeah, it's relatively cheap, at $90 (my Optima redtop ran about $80 or so, but the second I put it in my Supra, it died completely and wouldn't hold a charge; it was fine in my 240sx, so who knows), so price isn't a GIGANTIC factor...

 

[IJ.]

Auto or Manual car?

 

[RazoE]

manual...


i wouldnt touch an auto

 

[IJ.]

Go for it only "issue" I could see is not enough CCA but you can always bump start it if it won't crank when it's low.

 

[RazoE]

cca?

cold crank amps?

im guessing that's what that means..

another question is , if it DOES drain, you think it'd be safe to jump start it? or would it blow like Mt. St. Helens?

 

[IJ.]

You sunk my Battleship

 

[CRE]

The problem is how often he may end up low. Just guessing here, but I suspect you'd probably end up replacing it annually at least. Charging it regularly is probably going to be a must.

Oh, and with such a low reserve, you should take some steps to reduce your parasitic loss.

 

[RazoE]

im just wondering what'd drain it so much, im running basically a stock stereo system, and stock (electrical, atleast) everything else...

 

[IJ.]

While the motor is running you're using the Alternator and NOT the battery so if the drain is less than the Alt's capacity no reason it'll go flat.

 

[RazoE]

alright, I'm going for it, seeing as I don't run any huge strains on my battery..

that, and if I ever decide to switch back and my original is drained, i have a replacement-warranty from Autozone.

I'm getting it soon from PDM racing..

http://www.pdm-racing.com/specials/specials.html

 

[MRSUPRA]

Go for it. The weight loss on the front end is significant. I weighed my stock battery and the my Odyssy on the same scale. The stock battery weighed 40pounds while the Odyssey weighed 15 pounds.

I have been using my odyssey for about 2 years and its still going strong. It has died on me a few times in the winter because of me letting it sit too long in the cold, but it should hold a charge for every day use. A small batteries biggest enemy is definantly the cold. I reccomend getting one of those solar chargers that they sell in boating stores.

 

[hottscennessey]

A floatcharger from Harbor freight.. a great $9 investment if you don't drive daily.

 

[MRSUPRA]

What's a float charger?

 

[hottscennessey]

It's not a solar powered charger, but it keeps a small ammount of current flowing through the battery to keep it from losing its charge, and extending its life.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=42292

 

[armyastro]

something i found... varies i guess.. hawker is a good battery though.. we use them on our tanks and trucks in the army.


Accessory amps drawn


Engine control system 3.5

Heater 10

Air conditioner 15-20

Stock car stereo 5-20

CB radio 3-5

Cigarette lighter 10-15

Wipers 5

Power windows 10-20

Horn 5-10

Starter 100-300

Winch 100-400

Add-on lights (sets of 2) 10-15
small driving lights


large lights (per set of 2) 15-30

High-beam headlights 12-15

Low-beam headlights 7-10

 

[xarewhyayen]

A guy i went to school with had one of those really small batteries in his turbo, it has plenty of CCA and he had it for like a year or so without any problems.

 

[CRE]

I'd definitely pickup a decent charger.

It's easier than most people think to consume more power than the alternator can supply, or at least enough that you're not replacing what you've used in starting the car and feeding the electronics while the car was off. Also, people tend to not realize how long it takes to charge a battery.

I'm not saying it won't work or it'll be dead all the time. I really don't know, I'm just recommending you keep a close eye on it.

Let us know how it works out.