12V Battery Upgrade

[sgt4hed]

I have started this thread because I have seen so many comments about how crappy the 12V battery is so I am looking into viable upgrades ranging from bigger lead acid batteries to Li-Fe or Li-Ion to save a bit of weight in the process. We can also use this thread to discuss options on how to keep the 12V battery in tip top condition whether that be a smart trickle charger if the car isn't going to be used for a while etc.

 

[BarryH]

When you look at the use case for a 12-volt battery in an EV car, a Li-Ion doesn't seem like a good idea as a replacement tech for Lead-Acid. I'd only consider replacing the OME Lead-Acid with a Li-Fe since the Li-Fe chemistry likes to be charged and held at 100% which the car's charging circuitry will be trying to do. Also, the EV doesn't make the high current demands on its 12-Volt battery which an ICE vehicle needs to crank the engine. Li-Fe would be lighter than Lead-Acid and have a longer service life of up to 20 to 25 years.

Personally, though I've not experienced any issues with my OME Lead-Acid these past 26 months although just in case I do carry a £20 Li-Ion Jump-Start power pack charged to 60% so that I wouldn't need to wait for the AA to attend in the unlikely event of discharging my 12-volt battery below the SOC to boot up the ZS's electronics.

I will watch this thread with interest. Lots of options on Amazon Amazon.co.uk : lifepo4 battery

 

[N2STY]

If someone would like to measure the hight of the original battery and the size of the battery tray I have loads of batterys in my workshop I can probably match up with a battery code for easy ordering

 

[hmadsen]

Hi

Just did some measurements

The original battery is :

Length : 24 cm
Width : 17 cm
Height : 19 cm

I took a picture, the battery is pushed up against the one side of the battery tray, and in the other end (bottom of the picture) there is a bracket.

The bracket can be moved to the other bolthole, and the distance between these 2 bolt holes is 3½ cm

So the largest battery you could fit seems to be 27,5 * 17 cm

I think the height could be a cm or 2 higher, provided the battery connectors would reach.

PS. The reason the battery looks dirty, is because they gave the car a light coating of anti-corrosion, and this has been sprayed onto the battery as well for some reason

 

[Ozzie1989]

From what people were saying these were small batteries, that's bigger than I was expecting

 

[hmadsen]

From what people were saying these were small batteries, that's bigger than I was expecting

Yeah i dont know what people have been driving before, this battery is, in size and rated amps, as large as anything i have had in any of my cars (Except my last diesel with Stop/Start, it was 80A)

The only figure "missing" is the CCA, but this figure seems a bit irrelevant as an EV does not need to "Cold Crank".

 

[N2STY]

Yeah i dont know what people have been driving before, this battery is, in size and rated amps, as large as anything i have had in any of my cars (Except my last diesel with Stop/Start, it was 80A)

The only figure "missing" is the CCA, but this figure seems a bit irrelevant as an EV does not need to "Cold Crank".

In your picture it says cca 570

 

[biffo]

I did a search for the non-EV ZS, dimensions looks the same - could be same battery tray and even battery in the EV?

REG: Sl71vyj - Battery Search Result

Search our vast array of batteries here!

www.tayna.co.uk

 

[N2STY]

Sounds like a 096 battery will fit fine

 

[hmadsen]

In your picture it says cca 570

I'll be heading off to specsavers

 

[hmadsen]

I did a search for the non-EV ZS, dimensions looks the same - could be same battery tray and even battery in the EV?

REG: Sl71vyj - Battery Search Result

Search our vast array of batteries here!

www.tayna.co.uk

I dont see why not, i would not think the EV has a heavier load on the battery (Not least, it does not need to crank) so i would expect a similar size battery to the EHS would be sufficient.

Only posibility, is the aircon/climate control. On the EHS it might be driven off of the engine with a belt, while the EV runs it, using an electric motor.

 

[N2STY]

 

[BarryH]

I dont see why not, i would not think the EV has a heavier load on the battery (Not least, it does not need to crank) so i would expect a similar size battery to the EHS would be sufficient.

Only posibility, is the aircon/climate control. On the EHS it might be driven off of the engine with a belt, while the EV runs it, using an electric motor.

But the AC has a small motor and is intermittent and there is a DC : DC converter feeding the 12 Volt battery all the while the car is in its READY mode, so it ought not to drain for days. Earlier this week I sat waiting for my daughter for over an hour parked up with radio and AC running (it was sunny and mid-day), fan-speed 2. The range dropped less than a mile. So I'd calculate with say 160 ish miles range this time of year you could run the AC for 7 days non-stop and the 12-volt battery would still be fully charged. The heater, on the other hand, runs the resistive heater element directly off the HV traction battery I believe and has a bigger impact on the traction battery range while the heater fan is 12 volt and is powered again via the DC : DC Converter topping up the 12-volt battery.

 

[hmadsen]

But the AC has a small motor and is intermittent and there is a DC : DC converter feeding the 12 Volt battery all the while the car is in its READY mode, so it ought not to drain for days. Earlier this week I sat waiting for my daughter for over an hour parked up with radio and AC running (it was sunny and mid-day), fan-speed 2. The range dropped less than a mile. So I'd calculate with say 160 ish miles range this time of year you could run the AC for 7 days non-stop and the 12-volt battery would still be fully charged. The heater, on the other hand, runs the resistive heater element directly off the HV traction battery I believe and has a bigger impact on the traction battery range while the heater fan is 12 volt and is powered again via the DC : DC Converter topping up the 12-volt battery.

Yeah, i would not expect the AC to drain the battery, im just saying that the AC (And the heating element, which will probably draw a lot more) are the only high load users in the car.

In a normal petrol or diesel car, the starter motor can suck a LOT of power in a few seconds.

 

[Ealing Guy]

I was commenting on another thread but thought you might like to know that I swapped mine for an 096 battery and it fitted fine moving the holder and bolt to the other hole shown in hmadsen's photo. If you are thinking about trying a taller battery the negative lead is quite short but the size 096 battery is the same height so fairly easy to swap. I say fairly because there was also a thin cable between the positive and negative that made things slightly tricky but not impossible when moving the battery connectors around.

 

[N2STY]

It's nice to know 096 fits in the real world and not just in my mind thank you

 

[Ealing Guy]

Photo here of the 096 battery, voltage in Ready mode.

 

[BarryH]

I was commenting on another thread but thought you might like to know that I swapped mine for an 096 battery and it fitted fine moving the holder and bolt to the other hole shown in hmadsen's photo. If you are thinking about trying a taller battery the negative lead is quite short but the size 096 battery is the same height so fairly easy to swap. I say fairly because there was also a thin cable between the positive and negative that made things slightly tricky but not impossible when moving the battery connectors around.

And how is it performing? what are the Positives of making the swap and any Downsides other than the expense?

 

[Ealing Guy]

Hi, I hadn't used the car much until this week, so couldn't respond earlier. No other downsides so far. With the new battery I haven't had any more 'low battery please start' warnings even after I left the dashcam on (motion detect only) for a couple of days so I feel a bit more confident there won't be an issue. Also I have a 12V to mains inverter for emergencies so can hook that up to the car without worrying too.

 

[Alex89]

in the dashboard it says 8v -16v. Can the car take 16v battery?