[Cale]

I do not see where anyone else has reported on this so I will jump in with my experience. Needed to replace the battery in my '05 Elise. I saw that Battery Tender was offering a new line of Li batteries. I got model #BTL35A480C with 480 CCA for $249 from Stored Energy Products (SEPBatteries.com) through Amazon. It weighs something like 5 lbs. I called Battery Tender tech support and asked if I could use my Battery Tender Plus to charge the battery and they said no. I had to buy a Battery Tender Junior for $19. They said that they are coming out with a specific Li charger later in the spring.

Installation was perplexing me until I realized that the battery's motorcycle type terminals would connect directly to the cables from the Elise after I removed the large clamps that connect to battery posts (Duh). Used a large cable tie to secure it although I need to do something more secure.

Left it on the Jr. charger till it turned green and then took the car our for some errands. It was low 20's F here in Jersey and it started strongly every time. When I got home I plugged it back into the Jr. and the light was red which means that the car was not keeping it fully charged. These were 3 short 20' trips so I do not know how well the charging system of the Lotus will charge the battery. I guess as long as it will not destroy the battery I will be happy to take it home and throw it back on the charger.

I will see how it goes when this crappy winter is over and the car gets more use.

 

[drac]

I would be interested in some feedback how this went. Is the battery still alive and kicking?

 

[VBCurtis]

Bump. A 5lb battery sure sounds nice, and $250 is cheapish. Anyone have substantial experience with this?

 

[F1 SML8R]

Get a Shorai and their specific charger. Proven track record, same price point.

 

[Nessal]

That's a GOOD price! I will be in the market for a new battery soon and rather buy this instead of replacing my PC680 with the same thing.

 

[oldmansan]

Get a Shorai and their specific charger. Proven track record, same price point.

And more CCA.

I called Shorai to ask about details for a battery I could not find on their website. As I was about to end the call the representative asked about my Shorai battery. It was way beyond the battery warranty period but they decided to send me a reconditioned battery at no cost. I couldn't tell it wasn't new. Outstanding customer service and I wasn't looking for a "freebie". About $160 for the battery they sent.

San

 

[dma550]

Hmm I wonder if the battery tender junior going red is just part of it's "welcome back car" cycle. How long did it stay red for? If it's just under 5 minutes, it may not indicate any troubles, just might be a sampling cycle before going into maintenance mode.

 

[jasondew]

I've been using Alien Motion 8 & 12 cell in my track car for years. I've never had a problem starting the car. Admittedly I have no accessories remaining in the car.

 

[VBCurtis]

Get a Shorai and their specific charger. Proven track record, same price point.

Thanks! I'll look into it. :up:

 

[philethier]

Get a Shorai and their specific charger. Proven track record, same price point.

A Shorai engineer told me that a little Schumacher tender is OK. He said just don't ever use a charger with a "de-sulfate" cycle.

My Shorai charger started acting ignorant again mid-season, so I have been using just the little Schumacher with no problems at all.

 

[F1 SML8R]

Good to know, it's probably cheaper too. The Shorai charger was a bit pricey. Either way, great battery.

 

[philethier]

Good to know, it's probably cheaper too. The Shorai charger was a bit pricey. Either way, great battery.

I have the Shorai battery sized for a Honda Gold Wing in my Elise. No problems with the battery, but the Shorai charger has not been worth it.

 

[F1 SML8R]

I have the same one in my Evora. I just looked for the biggest one they had. Damn thing still only weighs 5 lbs.!

 

[bri3d]

I'm running a "Scorpion Stinger" battery which looks to share at least a charging instructions label if not a manufacturer with the Battery Tender one. 3.1lb, $230. SSTX20HQ-FP. Had it for a bit over a year now.

It works really well even in the cold and never struggles to start the car, but will only keep the security system armed for about 5 days. I just use a battery cutoff when the car is in the garage now, but my Battery Tender Junior seemed to work fine to keep it topped off.

It also has a Charge Status button on top which seems handy for some people considering so many "is my battery dead" threads!

 

[LiveToDrive]

Look here young Battery Adventurer...I've been using a 3 lb Lion battery for over a year now. For 13 months I used a run of the mill "Battery Tender" (not the Jr) and it worked fine. Then one day I didn't plug my car into the tender for 1 week and ever since then the battery wouldn't come back up to full voltage.

So, I've just ordered a new Lion (Ballistic Evo2 16), but this time I'm going to use the correct Lion Ballistic Charger ($99 amazon) on it. Hopefully it lasts more than a year this time, but they warranty the battery 100% if it doesn't.

 

[Glen]

Battery Chargers

I see a lot of comments in this thread about battery chargers. A charger for a lead acid battery will run at different voltages than one designed for a lithium ion battery. Even different lithium ion chemistries need different voltages. Here's a sample chart showing the different voltages for LiFePO4 and lead acid:

Per Cell...
           Type  LiFePO4         Pb
      Nominal V    3.30V          2.00V
  Peak charge V    3.60V          2.45V
      Storage V    3.30V           NA
Min discharge V    2.00V          1.75V
Y
For cells in series (a battery) as indicated...
           Type  LiFePO4 (4S)    Pb (6S)
      Nominal V   13.20V         12.00V
  Peak charge V   14.40V         14.70V
      Storage V   13.20V           NA
Min discharge V    8.00V         10.50V

Many battery chemistries - including lithium ion and lead acid - do well with a charger that starts out with constant current then switches to constant voltage as the battery approaches peak voltage. Using a lead acid charger on a LiFePO4 battery will result in applying too much voltage as the battery approaches a full charge, and then overcharging the battery as the charger tries to get the battery to the higher lead acid peak voltage. Additionally, some lead acid chargers will employ anti-sulfation routines that can damage the LiFePO4 battery, or they may employ a float charge regime (typically about 13.5V for lead acid) that will not fully charge the battery.

The best way to charge a LiFePO4 battery and ensure it's optimum life is to use a purpose-built charger. Some battery manufacturers offer a companion charger for their batteries. I occasionally have to charge the Chimera LiFePO4 battery in my Elise outside the vehicle after long periods of storage (or if I make a mistake and leave a load on it). When this happens, I use an iCharger 306B powered by a Mean Well SE-600-24 power supply. My Chimera LiFePO4 battery is a 4S2P, where each cell is 8 Ah, for a total of 16 Ah. A 2C charge rate is conservative for this type of cell (they appear to be rated at a 10C charge rate - very high). My charger will output a maximum of 30A, so it takes a little over a half hour to fully charge the battery from minimum voltage.

The charger and power supply I mentioned above were acquired to charge LiPo batteries for my RC helicopters and airplanes. They are about a $300 combination, so that's probably too much for someone who just wants to charge a car battery. But whatever charger you acquire, make sure it is application specific to ensure the greatest battery life and the least number of fires (an easy-to-achieve consequence of improperly charging lithium ion batteries, even LiFePO4).

Glen

 

[F1 SML8R]

Agreed Glen, that's the reason I went with the Shorai specific charger. Although some have had problems with them, mine seems to work perfectly with my Shorai battery.

 

[oldmansan]

So, I've just ordered a new Lion (Ballistic Evo2 16), but this time I'm going to use the correct Lion Ballistic Charger ($99 amazon) on it. Hopefully it lasts more than a year this time, but they warranty the battery 100% if it doesn't.

The Ballistic batteries get terrible reviews.

Agreed Glen, that's the reason I went with the Shorai specific charger. Although some have had problems with them, mine seems to work perfectly with my Shorai battery.

Their charger gets poor reviews. I was told by Shorai that the Deltran Battery Tender is fine for charging, but to pull it off after the battery is at full charge.

San

 

[Almighty]

I've been using Alien Motion 8 & 12 cell in my track car for years. I've never had a problem starting the car. Admittedly I have no accessories remaining in the car.

I've had an Alienmotion battery in my car for about a year now. It has been rock solid. I balance charge it once, but never had any problems with it. I also have ALL of the normal accessories.

 

[Glen]

I was told by Shorai that the Deltran Battery Tender is fine for charging, but to pull it off after the battery is at full charge.

How do you determine a full charge when you are applying the wrong voltage?

Glen