those of you with "battery tenders" could you post a link of which one/what kind you have?? is this a good one? http://www.pacificbattery.com/12100.html

 

anybody?

 

If i were to get a battery I would get the Optima batteries they're really good if you have a nice stereo in that Evo.

 

+1
Definatly a good idea, takes a little bit of rewiring but definatly seems like a good idea, plus you can always put it in a polished aluminem box for looks

then again the kill switch in the trunk isn't exactly attractive. I've heard good things about the mini batteries too, so I guess it depends on the use of your Evo.

 

Did you store it on the floor?

You probaly did, thats why the charge disapated. Now i will explain, if you leave the battery on the floor for an Extended period of tiem 1 or 2 days it will start to loose charge, mainly because the Earth is negativly charged, and you batteries positevly charger, and there is only a thin little peice of plastic between them. If left on the floor for a long enough time it will loose its charge completley. I tested it myself. I took two interstate batteries, both the same model and size and Cranking amps. I put one on a peice of wood on the floor, the other i put on the concrete floor. Each day i check the amparage and votage at the terminals on each battery, It took 7 days and the one direcltly left on the floor was'n strong enough to start most cars. It couldn't output 500cca. So you can leave you battery on the floor for a few hours but if its going to stay there for 2 or 3 days simply put a peice of wood under it. I can only imagine that a smaller battery would loose its charge faster.

 

My car is a daily driver and I don't compete in sanctioned racing events, so this is why I moved my Battery to the trunk.

1) I had too much weight over the front axle, my Tanabe GF210 springs used to bottom out under extreme conditions. Now they don't (keep in mind that I have an 05 RS with the extra weight of the ACD/LSD) so the lack of battery weight makes the front springs much stiffer. Also note that I am not talking about the static weight of the battery. Sitting still, my springs barely notice the difference, but under compression at high speed the benefits are huge (holding a battery vs. catching a battery).

2) The extra weight in the rear does help balance the car out in terms of handling. The battery is over the rear axle (see pic). Now the car seems to rotate easier (less weight in the front, more in the rear). I don't have my spare in the trunk so the back end was light to begin with. The shift in weight is noticeable by the butt dyno.

3) Heat is the killer to all batteries. In the trunk, there is no heat source.


I know there are issues with venting, dangers of shorting out, and the weight of the additional wire. I addressed them by doing the following.

1) Venting... come on how much hydrogen gas are we talking about here. The interior vents to the trunk, the trunk vents to rear quarter panel. I have a back seat that separates the two. End of story. Maybe one day I will buy an enclosed box and run a vent tube... maybe

2) Shorting... I put a main fuse right next to the positive terminal on the battery (see pic). This way if the battery get loose or someone drills into the positive wire (runs through the interior of the car above the rocker panel), the fuse will blow.

3) Weight of the additional wire... who has jumper cables in their trunk? If you do that is more than twice the weight of the wire that I used. i know this because I bought a quality set of 4ga jumper cables and used only the positive wire.


Moving the battery was fun. Just make sure the negative cable is as short as possible, and the battery is adequately secured to the car. My volt meter still reads over 14v, and the car cranks up just as fast as before. I don't have the problems we all read about on the forums with an undersized battery, and the extra space in the engine bay is nice.

Questions, suggestions, or positive comments are always welcomed...

 

Putting a battery on the ground and having it discharge is a thing of the past. I have had a normal battery on my garage floor for 2 years and put it in a car and there was no problems.

 

IMO no, mini batteries are not a waste of money. Saved weight, can run straighter uicp and more room to work.

Sounds like you need to switch to the Odyssey 680, had no troubles for 2 years w/ mine on my DSM

 

i wanna get the odyssey but i am afraid that it wont hold up with my sound system....

 

i probably wouldnt recommend if you're running an amp and subs (although if you research and get some specs, im sure there are some that can handle it) ...anybody else with some imput on what battery tender they have??

 

http://www.brailleauto.com/ProductCa...=2&idproduct=1

I have one of these in my Honda Del Sol. I've either disconnected or hooked up a battery tender when its sitting for periods of time and have had no problems. I believe using these batteries is a great way to drop significant pounds from the front of the car for a reasonable cost.

 

can you direct me towards the battery tender you have?

 

ok, so if you are running an amp and sub, then whats a better battery? I will probably relocate it to the trunk and get a vented box and such, but I am stuck between Optima and Odyssey. I havent used either so whats your all's input?

 

if your gonna run a sytem (subs & amps) then relocate the battery to the trunk and get an Optima....

 

Update since it was soo cold here in MN this weekend. I have the BR mini battery kit on my car.

Got home at about 6pm on Friday and the evo sat all weekend. Never broke -5 F over the entire weekend, with lows dipping down to -13 F on Friday night, -15 F on Saturday night, and -18 on Sunday night. It was a bit windy, so I'm not even sure what the wind chill was.

Monday morning, the mini battery cranked her right over and she started right up!

ps--It was -16 F when I asked it to crank over!