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      11-24-2021, 12:53 PM   #1
AndyW
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Race battery

So what are the recommendations and issues I should consider? Stock battery is going out on the 135, figure now is the time to make the decision.
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      11-26-2021, 06:36 AM   #2
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From what I recall reading, it's just to make sure that you register the battery correctly and that all of the lightweight battery options are less than the lowest setting in the registration setup.

That being said, HPA makes a lightweight tray for Braille and they advertise saving 30lbs with the 21lb Braille battery and their tray. For $440, not bad. https://www.hpashop.com/HPA-Battery-...-and-mount.htm

The Antigravity batteries are really interesting, but so expensive they're kinda out of the running for me.

I'll follow along, I'm thinking of doing one for next autocross season... It's easier for the car to lose 30lbs than it is for me!!
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      11-26-2021, 02:43 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mad_hatter View Post
From what I recall reading, it's just to make sure that you register the battery correctly and that all of the lightweight battery options are less than the lowest setting in the registration setup.

That being said, HPA makes a lightweight tray for Braille and they advertise saving 30lbs with the 21lb Braille battery and their tray. For $440, not bad. https://www.hpashop.com/HPA-Battery-...-and-mount.htm

The Antigravity batteries are really interesting, but so expensive they're kinda out of the running for me.

I'll follow along, I'm thinking of doing one for next autocross season... It's easier for the car to lose 30lbs than it is for me!!
Well, the ATX-30's are 15% off this weekend so it makes the price differential less painful. And they are only 7ish lbs.

I hear you on the car losing weight easier than the driver...lol.
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      11-27-2021, 10:33 AM   #4
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Definitely would be interested in your experience if you go with the ATX-30, would you run it all the time or just in the warmer months/track season?
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      11-27-2021, 11:26 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by spidertri View Post
Definitely would be interested in your experience if you go with the ATX-30, would you run it all the time or just in the warmer months/track season?
All the time. I'd put it on a trickle charger in the winter months tho.
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      11-29-2021, 08:52 AM   #6
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I just run an H4. There are only holes in the battery tray for H6, 7, and 8 but I made a little metal piece that has holes drilled and tapped for H5 and H4, then just use the OEM mounting bracket and everything else. It's substantially lighter, fits basically like OEM and I've had no issues with it starting or anything.

That said, I do have far less electronic load in the car than stock and I don't drive it in the winter so your mileage may vary.
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      11-29-2021, 06:05 PM   #7
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I ran the ATX-20HD for a year, but recently it has stopped working. I can jump the car, and it runs, but as soon as I shut it off, the battery turns off.

Going to send it back. Maybe the 30 is more appropriate? For most of the year, I could leave it connected for several weeks, and it would start the car no problem. If the battery is very cold, you can turn the lights on, for about 10 seconds - that warms it up enough to start. At least until recently!
One thing I'm confused about is:
You need to use a Lithium charger for it. But, apparently it's OK to use the factory charging system which is expecting an AGM. I don't get that part.

-Joe
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      12-03-2021, 06:50 AM   #8
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I've seen too many friends have issues with these lightweight batteries to consider using one. In my E36 M3 race car, I went with an AGM replacement on the smaller side of the stock spec and never worried about the battery again. Yes it's an easy way to shed 30-40 lbs but having that extra weight in the rear of the car can actually be helpful for weigh distribution. Unless you're chasing super low weight for some sort of unlimited TT/race class, I wouldn't bother. Spend the extra money on more seat time, it's a better investment in your lap times.
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      12-15-2021, 12:14 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by joeo View Post
I ran the ATX-20HD for a year, but recently it has stopped working. I can jump the car, and it runs, but as soon as I shut it off, the battery turns off.

Going to send it back. Maybe the 30 is more appropriate? For most of the year, I could leave it connected for several weeks, and it would start the car no problem. If the battery is very cold, you can turn the lights on, for about 10 seconds - that warms it up enough to start. At least until recently!
One thing I'm confused about is:
You need to use a Lithium charger for it. But, apparently it's OK to use the factory charging system which is expecting an AGM. I don't get that part.

-Joe
Yeah these small batteries just don't last with frequent cranks and deep discharges. This is really a mod for people that don't daily the car. Leave it on a trickle charge when not in use. I have had an anti-gravity 4lb LI battery in my car for about 2 years now and it's still great, but, the car just sits in the garage on a charger 24/7. Previously, the PC925 (brand name 20lb agm) lasted about 2 years... and a generic 20lb agm battery I had before that (DEKA 30L) only last about a year.

The LI batteries are even worse since <40f and the cold cranking amps really suffer.
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      12-15-2021, 07:57 PM   #10
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I was able to leave it in the garage for 2 maybe even 3 weeks and it started fine. Car is only used for track; not a daily.
I'm not convinced that the battery management handles the factory charging system correctly.

What charger are you using?
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      12-15-2021, 10:22 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by joeo View Post
I was able to leave it in the garage for 2 maybe even 3 weeks and it started fine. Car is only used for track; not a daily.
I'm not convinced that the battery management handles the factory charging system correctly.

What charger are you using?
I haven't put it in the car yet because the car is at my shop getting an LSD and a lightweight flywheel installed. I ordered this one: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
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      12-17-2021, 08:23 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by joeo View Post
I was able to leave it in the garage for 2 maybe even 3 weeks and it started fine. Car is only used for track; not a daily.
I'm not convinced that the battery management handles the factory charging system correctly.

What charger are you using?
I think it has more to do with cranking a large engine with a tiny 4lb Li battery. That deep discharge upon cranking reduces the battery life. I say this because like above I mentioned the 20lb AGM batteries for which the car was coded correctly (30ah or maybe 40ah?) AGM charging profile. When you are using a battery that is 1/10 to 1/15 the size of the stock battery you kind of have to lower your expectations on how long it's going to last... at least that is what I have rationalized the issue to be.

Maybe it is a charging issue but with how little I drive the car I doubt ~2-3,000 miles per year of alternator output would kill the battery life especially in the case of the 20lb AGM batteries that were coded correctly. It's the deep discharges. I believe the PCM attached to these LI batteries will clip the charging voltage if it goes too high protecting the battery... and the charge current not matching will affect how long the battery takes to re-charge not so much the battery life... source: https://relionbattery.com/blog/charg...hium-batteries

Li charging profile and charger is ideal but I don't think it impacts the battery life as much as lead acid/agm profiles for the reasons mentioned in the article. Li doesn't care if it is at 50% capacity. Lead acid/agm does and needs to be recharged before being discharged again. Li does care about being discharged deeply and rapidly though (cranking).

If you go for anti-gravity, DO NOT get the "restart" battery. It is useless for a car. You'll have to crawl through your trunk to press the restart button and then pray the battery even has enough capacity left to crank the car. anti-gravity now recommends their "HD" battery for car applications. HD specifically targets improvements to support cranking a car (power/capacity). The atx20-HD is what I would go for but it does cost a few dollars more than the RS version.

Last edited by bbnks2; 12-17-2021 at 08:37 AM..
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      12-18-2021, 05:41 PM   #13
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Yeah - the ATX20-HD is the version I had. Latest 1 year. I sent it back; will see if they warranty it.
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      12-25-2021, 08:56 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by joeo View Post
Yeah - the ATX20-HD is the version I had. Latest 1 year. I sent it back; will see if they warranty it.
I also had issues with the ATX20HD... switched to the ATX30 and it's been running great for ~8 months without noticeable degradation of output.

Obviously needs to be on a charger at all times if you're not driving it > 1-2 times a week.

I have the OEM spec Antigravity 40ah battery in a street car and it's been great for 1.5yrs, I've even let that car sit for 10+ days without issue.
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      01-12-2022, 08:19 PM   #15
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a must to keep these on trickle chargers, helps a bit but by no means a silver bullet
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      01-23-2022, 04:21 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gldnhr View Post
a must to keep these on trickle chargers, helps a bit but by no means a silver bullet
Yeah the lipo4 specific trickle charger seemed to help a lot.
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      01-28-2022, 07:40 PM   #17
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FYI - antigravity did send me a new ATX20-HD. We'll see how long it lasts!

-Joe
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