slicky rick

has anybody actually used these lightweight batteries? Questions that come into mind are do they last long. are they strong enough for our use on the 997's? do they actually give you something in the seat of your pants, knowing that it reduces weight by about 15 lbs and at less than $500. Thats cheaper than adding a carbon fiber hood with less weight advantage... any experiences
looking at the braille batteries being sold by suncoast

kosmo

i wouldnt use it in cold weather climates

Marine Blue

I have also heard that they have problems when temperatures dip below 40 Fahrenheit, maybe someone here can confirm. I know Porsche now includes a standard battery if you order the car with a lightweight battery.

I thought the weight savings is closer to 25 Lbs which is significant. I plan on installing one when my stock battery dies.

BostonDuce

Two different possibilities:

1. Lithium battery like the Porsche Tequipment one for $3000. Not to be used below freezing temps. When ordered with the car, you get a standard lead/acid battery for cold conditions.

2. AGM battery (Odyessy, Braille approx. $200) where you can buy a smaller (and lighter) footprint battery by giving up rating. Works fine in the cold but you loose some reserve capacity/CCA over the standard battery since you need to reduce the size of the AGM battery to realize weight savings.

BD

überschnell

There's really not much trouble with using lithium batteries in the cold. They don't respond well at first, but this is easily remedied. As counterintuitive as it seems, turning on a load like the headlights or radio for a minute to "get the juices flowing" will warm the battery enough to crank the car with ease.

Weight reduction depends on the weight of the battery you have now. Generally that's 40-60 lbs, so figure a 35-55 lb savings with a 5 lb battery.

Generally, they will last thousands of cycles, which should be at least the same amount of time as a normal lead acid battery. A 5 lb lithium battery will crank the 997 about as well as any 50 lb lead acid alternative, as long as it's from a quality manufacturer that uses cells with a low resistance. *cough*

utkinpol

only people I saw using them are racers in race cars. and battery is not a first item in weight reduction list. for a street car that still has full interior i would not bother.

each stock seat weights about of 60lb. replace them with carbon shells which are under 20lbs. drop stock mufflers for bypass or sport cans. strip frunk. remove rear seats.
after that you can get optima battery may be to save 15-20lbs more. all that matters if you run AX or time trials and want to strip weight a bit. for regular DEs not sure why to bother.

real difference would be to drop 400-500 lbs from car weight but it requires a lot of work.

allegretto

Not all "weight" is the same. Battery is a very good way to shed weight. Reduces mass way up high. Too bad it's not removing weight from the rear, but better than nothing. 4-500 lbs would help a lot, but smaller differences, especially from certain areas can make significant differences.

When i had my Spyder I bought this; http://www.braillebattery.com/index.php/batteries/480r/

Now it's in my GTS. 9.8 lbs vs. 50+. Cranks like a buzzsaw. Though I could feel it in my Spyder, GTS not-so-much but I haven't yet pushed the GTS as hard as the Spyder. Saves as much as any exhaust and from a far more strategic location.

Not worried about cold weather... car will be undercover

utkinpol

braille are very expensive. Odyssey PC680 is imho much more reasonable.

überschnell

Well said!
It's hard to compare two products like that, though. The Odyssey is an AGM battery with diminished capacity. The lithium packs perform like a full-size, full-weight battery...but they have very little of either.

Mike in CA

I'd love to have one of the lithium pack batteries, especially the Porsche model, as freezing weather starting is a near non-issue where I live. I'm just trying to come up with a good story to sell my wife on why I need to spend $3K on a car battery. Got any good ideas?

ADias

A compromise could be an Optima battery with nice Rennline brackets.

Another option could be this 11.5lb Braille battery:



It's hard to justify a $1900 Braille or a $3000 Li-Ion from Porsche.

JW911

You asked about seat of the pants. That answer is simple. Does your car feel faster when you have 3/4 of a tank of gas than it does when the tank is full?

You will never in a million years be able to detect a difference. The only way dropping 15 pounds will make any difference is if you do it many times over with different areas to cut weight, and it all adds up to 100+ pounds. Anything less and you are just fooling yourself.

jgoga

Hmmmmmm. How come Suncoast has the Braille battery for $159?
http://www.suncoastparts.com/product//B14115.html
Daily Use - 11.5 lb Lightweight Battery

John

Fin Fever

I have been flirting with the Voltphreaks Li-ion battery
vph 750 $1299
it has electronics which make it look like a lead acid battery from the car's side, also a low voltage cut-off

Item Specifications
Model Number VPH750
Nominal voltage 12.8 volts
Cranking Amps (CA) 650 amps
Cold Cranking Amps (CCA) 260 amps
reserve capacity (RC) 30 minutes
Capacity 16 Ah
terminal type SAE post, M6 male, M6 female (click for images)
working temperature -22°F to 140°F (max 170°F)
dimensions 8.3 x 5 x 3" (not including terminals)
weight 5.5 pounds

Mike in CA

It's not the Braille lithium battery which explains the reasonable price, but at only 11.5 pounds if it works well, who cares if it's Li-ion or not?