MX5 batteries

[Locutus]

Sorry to say, but I think it is false economy.

supercharge gold are about $100 each, with 3 yr warranty. panasonics are triple this price.

so for ~$300 you can get a panasonic and hope it lasts (iiirc, some people have experienced service life of less than 5 years)
or for ~$300 you get 9yrs of guaranteed service life, albeit with the annoyance of 2 extra battery changes

mania stocks the panasonics at $340 a pop.

[MxJadeMonkey]

Call Mania, see if they have any second hand factory ones.

They get them out of the import cars, I got a genuine Mazda Japan NB8A one for like $195 I think from memory, cheap and has been working well now for three years and it comes with all the right attachments.

$195 from memory, could have been a little off that price.

[philz]

which battery is recommended for the mx5? according to supercharge site the MF40B20DF is suitable for the mx5, but people in this thread are using the MF43? any reason for this.

[Steampunk]

which battery is recommended for the mx5? according to supercharge site the MF40B20DF is suitable for the mx5, but people in this thread are using the MF43? any reason for this.

Do what I do; ignore part numbers initially, measure the dimensions of your current battery, visit your local stockist of the battery you want, measure it for fitment.

[pugsly]

Has anyone used a Century NS60LS battery? My local Beaurepaires seem to think it will do the job, and the price is reasonable. Given the odd size and the vent pipes for the battery this is turning out to be harder task that I would like.

[philz]

Pugsly:
You need a battery that is sealed, I don't believe any of the century batteries are except for deep cycle.

You can get supercharge batteries at Autobarn



thanks 1red5, I'll look into that, but MF43 seems to be the go.

[Locutus]

which battery is recommended for the mx5? according to supercharge site the MF40B20DF is suitable for the mx5, but people in this thread are using the MF43? any reason for this.

it was a while ago, but iirc the little booklet at the shop listed both, although the website lists the former.
the shop i purchased from had both in stock. the MF43 is slightly larger but had more CCA for the same or similar $, so thats that one i bought.

[Benny]

I've said this before, and I'll say it again.

The standard battery for NA's and NB's is so good, and so long lasting, why would you hunt around for something else just to save a few $$$?

The battery in my SP is the same one I bought the car with, new, over 7 years ago, and it has been fully discharged and left like that for days on end, then charged up and it's still going really strong, even with these cold mornings we're having.

Sure, to replace it is a couple to a few hundred $$, but considering that they can last up to 15 or so years, why would you bother finding another type of battery, with the problems of fitting and venting etc., when the OEM is so good at what it does.
It's like buying a gasket kit when you're re-building the engine.
Sure, you can buy aftermarket sets for somewhat less money, but in the end, the factory gasket kit does the job well, and every piece is a perfect fit, and causes you so much less grief.

IMHO, stick with the standard OEM battery.
You'll sleep better at night for it.

[Lokiel]

Has anyone tried the Stinger SPV35 battery in an MX-5? (see http://www.modified.com/tech/0403_sccp_ ... to_04.html)

It's supposed to be similar to the Odyssey pc680 except that it's $215 instead of $325 (Brisbane Battery Traders prices).

I'm tossing up between the Stinger and the Supercharge Gold mf40b20df ($120 from Brisbane Battery Traders).

FYI: My car tends to get used only on weekends and the battery requires recharging a lot these days. I do have an aftermarket Mongoose alarm and stereo so I suspct that these are the culprits - and because my battery is still the original (2004 SE). I also intend to pick up a CTEK XS 800 too since batteries with higher CCA tend to die quicker if they constantly go flat.

[MavMX5]

which Supercharge battery is recommended for the mx5? according to supercharge site the MF40B20DF is suitable for the mx5, but people in this thread are using the MF43? any reason for this.

I'd also like to hear views on this question. The Supercharge site recommends the MF40B20DF for the MX5 1989-on.

Here is a side by side comparison. The MF43 is listed under "Popular Automotive", the MF40B20DF under "Japanese Automotive"

VOLTS - CCA@-18C - RC@25C - L,W,H,TH (mm) - WETWGT - ASSEMBLY - TERMINALTYPE - FEATURES - WARRANTY

Popular Automotive
MF43
12 - 360 - 60 - 235 - 135 - 170 - 195 - 11.46 - H - DFP - CT,CV,HE,FDH,LG,EL,FL - 36

Japanese Automotive
MF40B20DF
12 - 380 - 60 - 195 - 128 - 202 - 228 - 10.85 - H - DFP - CT,CV,FDH,HE,LG - 36

http://www.supercharge.com.au/products_specs_gold.php

**********

Has anyone tried the Stinger SPV35 battery in an MX-5? (see http://www.modified.com/tech/0403_sccp_ ... to_04.html)

It's supposed to be similar to the Odyssey pc680 except that it's $215 instead of $325 (Brisbane Battery Traders prices).

I'm tossing up between the Stinger and the Supercharge Gold mf40b20df ($120 from Brisbane Battery Traders).

FYI: My car tends to get used only on weekends and the battery requires recharging a lot these days. I do have an aftermarket Mongoose alarm and stereo so I suspct that these are the culprits - and because my battery is still the original (2004 SE). I also intend to pick up a CTEK XS 800 too since batteries with higher CCA tend to die quicker if they constantly go flat.

You are exactly in my position re car usage and battery choices (and I've got a CTEK Multi XS 3600 to boot ).

The Stinger SPV35 you linked seems to be the same (or very similar) to the other battery I was looking at, the Fullriver SPV35 - http://www.fullriver.com/products/admin ... /SPV35.pdf

They can be picked up for around $180'ish and are an AGM battery.

Does anyone have any experience with the Fullriver SPV35 or the Supercharge Gold MF40B20DF in an original MX5?

Cheers

[Old Dude]

I have the Federal 8AMU1R battery in my NB8B, which is an AGM battery and fits perfectly, it also has the two vent pipes on it.
Now Battery World Southport just qouted me $ 225.00 for a new one, I hear a lot of talk about low fume, sealed batteries etc, from my understanding No battery is totally sealed, even if it says sealed battery, I understand that Calcium release less fumes, and AGM are supposedly better, (which is what the OEM is).

My question is if the vent tubes are not needed why did Mazda fit them, especially when the battery they fitted as original was an AGM as is a low fume battery
Cheers
Dale

[MavMX5]

I had a Federal AGM 8AMU1R supplied & fitted by Battery World Collingwood.

It started to show troubling signs after only 8 months and was completely incapable of holding charge after 12 months.

Battery World Collingwood did everything they could to wriggle out of, fob & avoid the obvious conclusion that the battery was faulty.

One of the worst consumer experiences I've endured.

[smmax]

Hi Old Dude,

AGM is a (better) class of VRLA battery, VRLA meaning Value Regulated Lead Acid. In AGM design, the "acid" is more of a paste and held in a Glass fibre mat between the plates. The VRLA and AGM monikers don't tell you the full story, its real trick is that it is a recombinant battery, meaning that the gas (H and O) is recombined within the cell to reform water. Hence, no water lost. No other cell type does this as well as AGMs. All "wet" cells, including the Calcium type will ventboth on cahrge and discharge. In an open engine bay with mass air flow that's ok. In a sealed boot? Not for me. Mazda's engineers decided that even with an AGM battery, that only vents when there is trouble and at additional cost, to put vent tube to the outside as a standard precaution. They did so much good work on the design of the car I'm not going to second guess them.

The vent tube is a safety feature and it only used when the battery is mistreated by the charge circuit (over voltage failure) or a near short circuit. In normal use circumstances the hydrogen and oxygen is just turn back into water in the paste. The valve is strictly a safety feature in case the rate of hydrogen evolution becomes dangerously high.

Over the years I have read most of the battery discussions on this and the other MX5 forums. There are many "views" on what type of replacement battery will "do".

In boils down to money and nature of the ownership of the car.

If you have a "keeper", to die with, garage king like me (he's male) you'll buy another AGM just has Mazda intended for all of the features. Its a no brainer.
If you are just keeping the car "for a while" you'll wound the vehicle for the next owner by fitting a non-recombinant Battery based on price and the fact that you wont have the car long enough to get the value back if you buy the genuine Panasonic.

My ten year original Panasonic is reading 95% charge state capable because I manage it as a part of the servicing duties of owning such a keeper car. It was only 80% odd when I got him four years ago. I expect it to be still good to go at 15 years of age.

More info on a good way to manage your battery life is at http://mx5cartalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=55&t=33738

old Steve

[Old Dude]

Thanks smmax
That makes a lot of sense. My car is a keeper so I will replace it with an AGM Battery when its time.

My car gets used once or twice a week for local runs, and sometimes is loathed to start, it hadn't been dríven for two weeks and it was dead this week so I put it on a supercheap charger 12v 2600mA output 4AMP RMS, and its been OK since. The battery was in the car when I bought it about 18months ago and if its a bit lazy I take it for an hours run and its normally Ok for a while after.

What would be the best way to maintain it, If its best not to put it on a charger, I don't have a jump starter battery pack ( I did but it died) what about those tiny glovebox ones?

It makes decisions much easier when you have all the info.
Thanks Steve

Cheers
Dale

[smmax]

Hi Dale,

The absolute best way to maintain it is to drive it around corners as often as possible for as long as it takes to get the full grin effect or empty the tank! (I'm famous in the house for taking 3 hrs to actually get milk.)
But you already knew that.

If you can't drive it, A proper charger is the way to go. It must be for AGM, not just GEL or SLA, but actually for AGM.
AGMs hate heat and anything over 14.8 Volts.
Most cheap chargers go over 14.8 ~ very bad and are not temperature compensated.
And permanent trickle charge when "full" will cause water lost which you can't replace. ~ bad

So a charger which will cut-off at 14.8 and stay off is the simplest one that should be considered.
A four stage processor control with a AGM setting would be the best by far, but $$$$$

Thats why I used the "Battery pack" I had already as it has a AGM battery in it and has an inbuilt charger regulator that cuts off at the right (temperature compensated) voltage. The price of these is comparable to a AGM Charger anyway and offers the advantage that it floats the contained cell across the car battery after the cut-off is reached. This shares the dark current load helping the car battery to stay in a fuller state longer.

The key thing for the long term is don't let it sit at less than full charge for any period of time.

When the battery is at less then 100% charge some of the lead is in solution and that is when sulphate crystals get to form. At 100% charge, no lead in solution, no free lead, no sulphation and no dentrites. So no lost of plate face area due to sulphation and no short circuits as the dentrites cant grow. Result = Battery lasts for years.
Even batteries designed for Deep cycling have warning about not discharging below 50% or so.

Lastest mod to my setup is a 20w Solar panel that feeds the Battery Pack and each day restarts with the sun and tops up both batteries, reaches the trigger voltage and stops.

I'm happy my pansonic is better now then when I got it. Time for a drive Old Dude, you know you want to!

Hope this helps