MK5 Golf GTI

All Things Mk5 => Mk5 General Area => Topic started by: sub39h on December 01, 2012, 06:05:29 pm

Title: Lightweight battery
Post by: sub39h on December 01, 2012, 06:05:29 pm
Hi guys,

Today battery just died whilst mortygttdi was changing my CECM. It's 7 years old anyway, so was due a change. I wasn't expecting an instantaneous catastrophic failure tho. Wouldn't even jump start. (Thankfully Darren had a spare to keep me mobile until I can sort a new battery!)

Anyway, as always I'm swapping for a better solution. I searched and came across Tfsi_Mike's thread on his Braille. I am looking for something like this, suitable for daily use and with good longevity but also a bit lighter. Anywhere else I should be looking or is the Braille definitely the one to go for?

Cheers!
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: Tfsi_Mike on December 01, 2012, 06:13:32 pm

Jamie Littleford "Jammie Dodger" has a slightly bigger version of mine that I would imagine is more sensible for daily

Check Linden Batteries website as we ought to have 10% for forum members as per my review  :happy2: :happy2:
HtH
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: sub39h on December 01, 2012, 06:31:46 pm
i thought yours was billed as the "daily" battery?
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: Tfsi_Mike on December 01, 2012, 07:55:46 pm
i thought yours was billed as the "daily" battery?

It will be but I haven't used the car as a daily really. It's been in storage for for 6 months.  :ashamed:

How often do you use your car?
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: sub39h on December 01, 2012, 08:05:41 pm
i thought yours was billed as the "daily" battery?

It will be but I haven't used the car as a daily really. It's been in storage for for 6 months.  :ashamed:

How often do you use your car?

theoretically it is a daily, but i've moved to London and the car lives with my parents in Leeds. it does get driven at least once a week, and when i'm back every 2 or 3 weeks i like to go for a good ol' drive to get my fix. somehow the Tube isn't as much fun  :fighting:
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: Tfsi_Mike on December 01, 2012, 08:10:28 pm

I know mine went 5days in the German winter and turned over no issues.

I have a CTEK battery maintenance charger and could leave it on charge over night as I parked the car right next to the house. Have a drive or garage at the parents?
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: sub39h on December 01, 2012, 08:14:16 pm
car's on the drive, and access to a garage should the need arise
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: Tfsi_Mike on December 01, 2012, 08:16:24 pm
car's on the drive, and access to a garage should the need arise

So worst comes to worst if it's going to be unused for long periods could be left on maintenance charge
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: sub39h on December 01, 2012, 08:37:47 pm
from your experience would you expect that the Braille battery will need this on a frequent basis?
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: Tfsi_Mike on December 01, 2012, 08:44:28 pm
from your experience would you expect that the Braille battery will need this on a frequent basis?

There are loads of variants. I would be happy leaving mine over a week. Beyond that I'm not too sure
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: sub39h on December 01, 2012, 08:50:38 pm
okie smokie... will have to have a think, as an OE equivalent battery is peanuts with a ECP discount code and i won't have to worry about my mum getting stranded while driving my car (not that she ever does, but sod's law and all that)
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: Tfsi_Mike on December 01, 2012, 08:53:53 pm
okie smokie... will have to have a think, as an OE equivalent battery is peanuts with a ECP discount code and i won't have to worry about my mum getting stranded while driving my car (not that she ever does, but sod's law and all that)

It would never just go flat in the day after a drive tbh.  Just struggle to start after 6 or so days I reckon
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: gazon69 on December 01, 2012, 09:01:00 pm
I too am interested in one of these. Do you have a link or whereabouts to get them from. Thanks Gaz
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: sub39h on December 01, 2012, 09:04:20 pm
http://lindenbatteries.co.uk/braille-batteries/

this link is from Mike's review linked below. call them up for a potential 10% discount?

http://www.mk5golfgti.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,32599.0.html
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: gazon69 on December 01, 2012, 09:14:12 pm
Cheers for that subergh.
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: sub39h on December 01, 2012, 09:16:51 pm
 :happy2:

(PS there's no R in my name - my forum name is a clue to the spelling  :wink:)
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: Aaroncupra on December 01, 2012, 10:43:07 pm

I have the TR-B1100  Tomioka Racing Battery, the reason I went for it over the braille B14115 was it had a two year warranty,

I have had the battery for about 14 months, you would probably get about 4 odd days out of it if the car hasnt been drove, you can give it a charge tho and its spot on again,

My car has started to have trouble starting over this past while tho, the battery must be on its way out, glad I took the tomioka with the two year warranty,

I got my battery of Linden batteries, the guy there is called Paul, sound fella, I have contacted them about mine so im waiting to see what they say,
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: Hurdy on December 02, 2012, 06:03:26 am
I too have a Tomioka battery. 6.8kg, so a decent weight saving. :happy2:
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: sub39h on December 02, 2012, 10:57:21 am
but the Braille is 5.2kg, and is a "daily" battery rather than a "racing" battery - plus it may well be left for more than 4 days at a time so if aaron's review is anything to go by it wouldn't be suitable for my intended usage
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: SteveP on December 02, 2012, 11:07:01 am
My varley red top can go 2 weeks plus without the car being run with no issues. IIRC it's 7kg.
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: sub39h on December 02, 2012, 11:09:29 am
My varley red top can go 2 weeks plus without the car being run with no issues. IIRC it's 7kg.

do you have a supplier mate?
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: SteveP on December 02, 2012, 11:10:34 am
I got mine from Demon Tweeks, and it's the Red Top 25

[pdf]http://www.varleyredtop.com/pdf/1_vrt25.pdf[/pdf]
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: Tfsi_Mike on December 02, 2012, 11:27:07 am
I got mine from Demon Tweeks, and it's the Red Top 25

[pdf]http://www.varleyredtop.com/pdf/1_vrt25.pdf[/pdf]

Mine

Length: 5.8"
Width: 3.3"
Height: 5.9

My battery tray for the Tomika / Braille is 6mm short in width of being able to fit that varley in
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: Aaroncupra on December 02, 2012, 11:29:42 am

This is the braille battery spec,


B14115 - Braille No-Weight Daily Use Battery (11.5lb)
Specifications:
Weight: 11.5 lb or 5.2kg
Length: 5.8"
Width: 3.3"
Height: 5.9
PCA: 700
Voltage: 12
CCA: 360
AH: 15
Warranty: 1 Year Free Replacement

 
The battery that started the revolution – The B14115 is the most popular lightweight automotive specific battery on the market today! With a weight of only 11.5 pounds and plenty of power to start V-8 engines, see why racers and car designers demand this battery.

Braille Lightweight Battery, model B14115. Designed for daily and race use in most vehicle applications. With over 900 Pulse Cranking Amps and weighing under 11.5 pounds this battery will provide the power needed for most production vehicles and save between 20 - 50 pounds over a stock battery.

Technological features:
- Factory Sealed Valve Regulated Design Eliminates damage from Acid Spills
- Environmentally SafeHigh Density Oxide. This enables Braille to produce a "High-Cycling" lightweight battery
- Heat Sealed Top Battery Cover Eliminates Electrolyte leakage
- Absorbed Demineralized Electrolyte Improves service life and off-season storage
- Heavy Duty Automotive PostsResist Damage from Vibration of Heavy Use
- Easy installation
- Calcium Full Frame Power Path Grids Provide Highest Cranking Amp to Weight Ratio
- Lowest Self-Discharge Rate 

This is the TR spec,

TR-B1100 - Tomioka Racing Battery 11.5 lbs / 5.45 Kg
By far the most popular battery among sports compact owners. At under 12 lbs, TR-B1100 has great all around performance for small displacement motors.TR Battery utilizes Absorbed Glass Mat (AGM) technology which increases specific power and ride quality and environmental safety. The design allows the battery to be mounted in a variety of positions and to accept automotive terminals vertically and horizontally. Included with each TR Battery are quality brass SAE terminals, designed to distribute the electrical load battery for high amperage, high stress use of racing and audio applications.

Features:
- Leak-Proof Pressurized System design is engineered for safety and long life.
- Sealed, Valve-Regulated, Maintenance-Free Design eliminates damage from acid spills and corrosion, environmentally safe. 100% recyclable.
- Heat-Sealed cover eliminates electrolyte leakage and improves reliability.
- Molded Top & Side Connection terminal design provides ease of installation, increased strength and durability.
- Stainless Steel terminal threads to keep the terminals intact under vibration
- Low discharge rate during storage
- 2 Years Warranty

Specifications
Model Number TR-B1100
Length 5.9 inches / 150mm
Width 3.5 inches / 89mm
Height 5.8 inches / 148mm
Weight 12 lbs / 5.45 Kg
Voltage 12V
Full Charged 13.8V
CCA 325 Amp
Capacity 14 Amp/Hour @ 10AH Rating


The four days is worst case guys, you could probably get longer out of it, I dont really think its an issue anyway as you can just stick the charger on if its starting to sound a bit slow on turnover, you are getting a nice weight saving here, I could feel the difference + if your driving your car it shouldnt be an issue,

The braille does look like it could be slightly better option if your car is sitting about, but then I would question why anybody would want one of them if there car was sitting about all the time and they wernt prepared to charge it up,
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: sub39h on December 02, 2012, 12:29:53 pm
i don't mind charging it, but as mentioned in one of the posts above i don't live with the car anymore. the car sits on my parents' drive in Yorkshire whilst i attend uni in London. if i had it i'd be prepared to charge it, but if i had it it wouldn't be sat about  :driver:

thing is now that it's basically being used as a shopping trolley by my parents/sister can i justify fitting a lightweight battery. i'm all for weight saving, but aside from on the V5 and paying for major servicing costs it's not really "my" car anymore :sad1:
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: Aaroncupra on December 02, 2012, 02:34:00 pm


Looking at your mod's I would get it anyway  :signLOL:, but dont be listening to me  :evilgrin:

On a serious note, I probably wouldnt bother then as im sure the parents/sister wouldnt be to happy if the car wouldnt start while they were out shopping   :sad1:

TFSI Mike said he was going to try this one below out   :P

TR-B600 - Tomioka Racing Battery 6 lbs/2.9 Kg
TR-B600 is the lightest battery in TR Battery line-up and only £108 exc VAT. TR Battery utilizes Absorbed Glass Mat (AGM) technology which increases specific power, ride quality and environmental safety. The design allows the battery to be mounted in a variety of positions and to accept automotive terminals vertically and horizontally. Included with each TR Battery are high quality brass SAE terminals, designed to distribute the electrical load in and out of the battery for high amperage, high stress use of racing and audio applications.

Features:
- Leak-Proof Pressurized System design is engineered for safety and long life.
- Sealed, Valve-Regulated, Maintenance-Free Design eliminates damage from acid spills and corrosion, environmentally safe. 100% recyclable.
- Heat-Sealed cover eliminates electrolyte leakage and improves reliability.
- Molded Top & Side Connection terminal design provides ease of installation, increased strength and durability.
- Stainless Steel terminal threads to keep the terminals intact under vibration
- Low discharge rate during storage
- 2 Years Warranty

Specifications
Length 5.9 Inches / 150mm
Length 5.9 Inches / 150mm
Width 3.5 inches / 99mm
Height 4.2 inches / 107mm
Weight 6.4 Lbs / 2.9 Kg  :signLOL:
Voltage 12v
Full Charged 13.8v
CCA 210 Amps
Capacity 8 Amps/Hour @ 10AH Rating 
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: vRSAlex on December 02, 2012, 03:36:30 pm
My varley red top can go 2 weeks plus without the car being run with no issues. IIRC it's 7kg.

do you have a supplier mate?

Try MSAR too.   That's who I buy them from.

If you have a few quid to spare then look at the lithium batteries.
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: sub39h on December 02, 2012, 06:24:06 pm
My varley red top can go 2 weeks plus without the car being run with no issues. IIRC it's 7kg.

do you have a supplier mate?

Try MSAR too.   That's who I buy them from.

If you have a few quid to spare then look at the lithium batteries.

will do sir  :happy2:
Title: Re: Lightweight battery
Post by: Aaroncupra on December 18, 2012, 11:10:15 am


Just to update this,

I spoke to Paul from Linden batteries about my battery having issues and they couldnt have been more helpful, they are sending a replacement out,

I asked Paul had they many issues with batteries having problems and he said...... we have never had a battery go wrong like this after a year. I suspect it doesn't happen often otherwise Tomioka wouldnt offer a two year warranty

 :happy2: