Vic Rola

Question. Does anyone have leads on battery replacement for the early 911's ? Mine is a '72 E.

Would prefer going to side posts rather than top as original.

Any help would be appreciated. Have tried Interstate, Deka, Die Hard, and Exide.

Aaron Pfadt

Here is a post I wrote about this about several years ago. It still holds true and I can now add that the single Miata battery starts the car reliably even when it is cold out. I don't daily drive the car and am still using the same battery.

I have a picture of it at home that I can post if you would like to see it.

BTW, the Miata battery is a top post design.

good luck,
Aaron

from 4/29/1999:
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I recently went through the decision tree that you are in and decided to put in a single Miata battery. The installation is simple because the battery fits in the stock box in the conventional direction, allowing the use of the original cable and ground strap. The only concern is that the battery is so shallow that it had to be spaced out from the back of the box to keep the terminals from contacting the upper lip of the box. 1 - 6" long piece of 2x4 accomplished that. The stock retaining strap can also be used. Another advantage is that the Miata battery comes with vent hoses off of the breathers, and I teed the two lines together and drilled a small hole in the back of the box to route the vent line out of the car, no corrosive acid in the box : )

The only thing that remains to be seen is whether the system starts the car reliably. Unfortunately my car's been up on stands in the garage since the installation with a variety of other problems. Obviously, you could add a second battery if the electrical performance wasn't good enough, but then the cost advantage might go away.

The Miata battery is only available through Mazda (some stores such as Pep Boys and Murrays can get them, but they still say Mazda on them) I paid about $70 for mine and it came with the vent tubes.

Good luck,
Aaron
'73 S

JackOlsen

I use a Stinger SP800, which is 5” H x 6-9/16” W x 6-7/8” D and weighs 24.9 pounds, which is 12 less than the popular Optima weighs, and far less than the weight of two stock batteries. It has a 10-12 year life expectancy, and 800 cold cranking amps. I think you can get them for $172, which -- admittedly -- is a lot for a battery.

<img src="http://www.pelicanparts.com/ultimate/image_uploads/1Stinger.jpg" alt=" - " />

JackOlsen

And for lighter still, look at the dry cell batteries at <a href="http://www.elephantracing.com" target="_blank">Elephant Racing</a>.

wevoid

The Miata battery is also available from WestCo in a sealed Gel cell style for around $80.
It is a direct replacement for the Miata unit and you can enjoy all the advantages of Gel cell without the expense of Optima.
This battery weighs 23.5 on our scales.

regards

Hayden

wevoid

The Miata battery is also available from WestCo in a sealed Gel cell style for around $80.
It is a direct replacement for the Miata unit and you can enjoy all the advantages of Gel cell without the expense of Optima.
This battery weighs 23.5 on our scales.

regards

Hayden

NTI 911E

Just replaced the batteries on my '73 E with factory replacements from Performance Products (www.peformanceproducts.com). They were $83/each.

Vic Rola

Thanks to all who replied to my question on the early batteries! The older cars are still the best!

Vic Rola