6 replies to this topic

[Racer_Pete]

Hi all I've just built a 1310 hopefully producing around 120bhp, 296 Cam, race head, twin hs4s, maniflow inlet, exhaust ect ect.. It is in a Morris ital van that is currently undergoing a dramatic weight loss program. I have removed 70kg so far but now on to the 'expensive stuff' the 1310 is running a compression ratio of 12.5>1 so not that high, I have a high torque starter fitted too, but my question is what type of battery do the race/hard core road boys use that is reliable and will actually work on a daily basis, the van is going to be used on niceish days (heater removed) and Santa pod trashing meets. I have looked at the Odyssey pc680 battery which looks to be a good all rounder, but still weighs a hefty 7kg. Thanks, pete

[Earwax]

hi racer pete

 

the lithium motorcycle batteries are an excellent choice.

 

here is a link to the ones i know of , but i am in ozzztralia, so do your own research.

 

http://www.ssbpowers...32/default.aspx

 

the one i use has about 450 CCA and has kicked over my mini at minus 6 degrees(celsius) using 25 / 50 weight oil,,,, it fits under my passenger seat and weighs about 1 kg.  ( the odyssey before that was 7kg in the rear.. so i installed it to ensure i didn't need to go on a diet myself..you never ever ever blame the driver for poor driving or being too heavy if you can spend money on some go fast parts!!!! joking of cause but often true))( Good job on your car weight loss by the way)  

 

there are better and slightly smaller battery  versions out now, they are rated for about 2000 cycles and i have been impressed with their holding state ( keeping charge for 3 months whilst idle.) ( however they do need a lithium type charger eg ctek   and i would recommend trickle charge in between outings anyway) mine has done duty for 3 seasons of racing so far and is still in tip top shape  BUT i dont use it as a daily. I also recommend wiring it up to an anderson plug and then you can use a jump starter pack to assist where and if necessary  ( eg bringing up oil pressure before first start)

 

They do not like shorting out even for an instant.....i killed one when connecting to my kill switch ( ironic huh)

 

To be honest , unless only a racer i would stick with an odyssey... tried and true and a good all rounder

[ings]

I have my Odyssey pc680 3 years now. and i had never problems with this battery. i would not change this reliability with another battery.

[Swift_General]

Lithium based batteries (there are a few types) are a significant advance on older battery chemistry. Lead acid batteries in comparison, quite frankly, have very poor capacity in relation to their size and weight and peak current ability (I have a 15.2V battery rated at an instantaneous peak current at over 700A yet weighs little more than a pound and will sit in the palm of my hand). There are certain peculiarities with them however which you need to be aware of. Firstly they don't like to remain fully charged (they will take it, but their service life is reduced). One of my chargers has a specific 'storage' mode to charge or discharge the battery so it's around half full. Of course in a car the battery would generally be maintained fully charged. They require a particular type of charge as alluded to above - I don't think that dropping one straight into a mini would work and would need additional circuitry to enable the battery to be maintained - particularly as a battery with multiple cells really needs to be 'balance charged. Also their peak charge voltage is temperature dependant. Fully charge a battery at 20 degrees then drop the temperature to 10 degrees and it will be overcharged. The consequences of getting it wrong are significant (have a look on youtube!). The other thing is they require regular inspection for damage and evidence of them 'puffing' which is a sign they are on the way out, and any ingress of moisture to the battery, either during manufacture or in the hands of the user will ultimately kill the battery. Internal resistance of the individual cells of a battery needs to me monitored ideally as this gives a good idea of the state of health of the cells. All of this, plus their additional cost is why I suspect lead acid batteries continued to be used. Clearly from the above comments they can be used with success, so I am not trying to put you off as they are an exciting, but still developing technology, bit you just need to be aware of the issues around them.

[Racer_Pete]

Thanks for the replies, weighed the original battery and it only weighed 10.5kg so it doesn't really seem feasible to change for the odysessy battery just yet for a saving of about 3.5kg, but from what you guys have said I still will eventually go for one but think I can use the money better by getting a 4 gallon alloy fuel tank instead

[jonny f]

Ive been using a li-ion one for a few years now.

Would recommend it.

Just bought the cheapest YTX-14 off eBay I could find. Only 900g :).

[Pete649]

Another vote for Odyssey batteries.