Car Batteries: Advice please :)

[finlay666]

Any ideas on decent brands (and how to find the original spec of my current one in the dark)

Battery went flat today in a rather awkward situation (in the queue of traffic before a big accident) and had to wait a few hours for recovery, declined the overpriced one they had (£75 for a battery with a 1 year guarantee) and looked online

2 makes I can get tomorrow... Bosch and Exide, both about the same price (£75 for one with 4 year warranty) and both have similar output. So....

1. Does the amp/hours (ah) have any impact aside from total stored power?
2. What does the difference in cold cracking amp impact on?
3. (as an accumulation) which brand is better?

[Zak33]

Both good brands

Bosch for me

amp hour.. .. get the same as it's had from new.

I have NO IDEA what Cold Cracking Amp means.....!!!

[SHare]

As far as I'm aware the higher ampage and cold cranking the better, particularly the cold cranking though if you find similarly rated batteries. I recently had to replace the battery in my car, and Alfa 147 which was throwing up intermittent ABS issues and the new Bosch battery I got seems to have sorted it. I can only imagine the old battery was underpowered and struggled when the cold\wet weather came.

I believe the cold cranking rating is how much power is instantly available when you crank the engine, I'm sure someone will have an exact explanation though.

[Jasp]

Personally I'd go for a Bosch as I prefer them over Exide but its personal preference really, are they lead, calcium or silver? the Bosch silver ones are about as good as they get but cost a arm and leg. The industry is moving to calcium these days as they provide more cold start amps and generally last longer hence why they carry a longer guarantee.

The amp hour and cold crack ratings are generally higher is better, a battery with 440 cold crank amps will be able to turn the starter motor easier then a 330 one, the higher capacity ones are generally required for cars with more cylinders or bigger engines eg a larger starter is required for a 2.8 diesel then a 1.6 petrol so draws far more amps out the battery. The battery's fitted to my aunts 2.8 frontera are 750amps and 74 a/h and cost the best part of £120

I'm assuming the AA man tester the alternator while he was at it to ensure it was pumping out the correct voltage?

[Zak33]

oh.. cold CRANKING.....

I thought it was an ICE comment I'd not heard.

Honestly.. with a Bosch you just buy the one that match's the AH from factory standard. Let them worry about the technology.. they just work.

[peterb]

Cold Cranking Current is the maximum current the battery will deliver - essentially cold cranking puts an almost dead short on the battery (if anyone is interested, I can go into electric motor theory ) so a higher cold cranking current means that the battery has a lower internal resistance so the voltge drop is lower, so that ignition and engine management systems still function correctly while the battery is under extreme load. Diesel engines tend to require batteries with higher cold cranking capability than a petrol engine of equivalent cubic capacity and power output, because the compression ratio is higher.

Exide is part of the Chloride group - who are weel known for commercial traction and stand-by battery applications. Bosch is also a well known premium brand battery. Whichever brand you go for, make sure you keep any warranty certificate in a safe place!

[Sputnik]

and how to find the original spec of my current one in the dark

Just use a battery catalogue online and it will tell you which Battery you need for your car. As for Brand of battery, Exide are very good - I have one that is 11 years old and still fine.

[finlay666]

Personally I'd go for a Bosch as I prefer them over Exide but its personal preference really, are they lead, calcium or silver? the Bosch silver ones are about as good as they get but cost a arm and leg. The industry is moving to calcium these days as they provide more cold start amps and generally last longer hence why they carry a longer guarantee.

The amp hour and cold crack ratings are generally higher is better, a battery with 440 cold crank amps will be able to turn the starter motor easier then a 330 one, the higher capacity ones are generally required for cars with more cylinders or bigger engines eg a larger starter is required for a 2.8 diesel then a 1.6 petrol so draws far more amps out the battery. The battery's fitted to my aunts 2.8 frontera are 750amps and 74 a/h and cost the best part of £120

I'm assuming the AA man tester the alternator while he was at it to ensure it was pumping out the correct voltage?

I have no idea... the place I can get one range from £65 to £85 (the 2 I'm looking at are £75) It's the Bosch Silver S4 clicky
or the Exide premium clicky

The RAC guy tested the battery with the engine off, then tested the voltage going out with the engine running and plugged it into some sort of battery health monitor to test the life of it

[listy]

2. What does the difference in cold cracking amp impact on?

Cold cranking amperes (CCA) is the amount of current a battery can provide at 0 °F (−18 °C). The rating is defined as the current a lead-acid battery at that temperature can deliver for 30 seconds and maintain at least 1.2 volts per cell (7.2 volts for a 12-volt battery). It is a more demanding test than those at higher temperatures.

quote from wikipedia

[dave87]

As long as the Bosch is the same capacity or greater than your current battery Fin, grab that.

If it is a smaller capacity, then grab the Exide or a bigger Bosch battery. CCA shouldn't be too much of an issue on a 1.8 4pot (albeit Turbo charged) but would be on a bigger petrol/diesel.

[GoNz0]

get the s4, better construction, less chance of lead falling into the bottom, its the lead paste breaking off that eventually shorts the battery out internally

[wazi]

if you have a vauxhall dealership nearby , join the trade club , you can save 50% off GO batteries
also MOTAQUIP ( peugeot )
are very good also

[1stRaven]

I've always had the Bosch Silvers in my car. Just fitted an S6 to my car 2 weeks ago.

[finlay666]

As long as the Bosch is the same capacity or greater than your current battery Fin, grab that.

Will get one first thing tomorrow before I get to work... hopefully I will get in without any massive car crashes due to black ice blocking my path in....

[mycarsavw]

When you've got the bonnet open and you're replacing the battery, make sure the drain bungs are clear

[Butcher]

I have a bosch silver having had to replace it recently. Interestingly when I had the RAC out bosch silvers was all they had in the van, no sign of any no name 1 year guarantee batteries.