Shorai and other light weight batteries

[Richard Hybels]

A friend had a Shorai battery melt down in his FF. Another friend has run the identical battery since 2014 trouble free.
One expert I know says don’t run anything but Odyssey batteries. The Odyssey battery in my FF weighs 14.6 pounds.
I would like to shed some weight but trouble free.
Thanks tor your input and recommendations.

[marchsv]

In 2019 I attended a program for first responders in regards to EV fires. We were basically told get the people out and drag what left to a containable area and let it burn. When I came home the Shorai battery went to recycle.

[teamwisconsin]

Richard-
Not sure if this is for your Crossle or your Swift but in either case, the first place I always go to lose weight off a car is the floorpan. If the car has a stainless or steel floor, then 86 that thing for aluminum. The next area is bodywork. Removing years of paint off bodywork can do wonders for weight savings. In the case of your Crossle, a new body might be cheaper (since it's just 3 pieces) than grinding/repainting. And Crossle has a lovely variety of colors available in gelcoat and their gelcoat is so pretty you don't need to paint it. I don't know about getting new bodywork for a DB6 but there is usually a lot of repair work done on the tails of those cars so they tend to get hefty in a hurry...

All the Crossflow cars in my shop have to run ballast to make minimum weight, some more than others. My drivers are all around 185-200 lbs and we usually have to add 25+ lbs of ballast to make weight. My 45F has over 60 lbs in it with me at 175 to get to 1125.

Swing by and say hello sometime-

[Richard Hybels]

Thank you Ethan. I was thinking about the Swift mainly as it’s about due for a battery. I’m only 20 pounds over on it and a real cheap way to fix that is to eat less and drop another 20 like I did to even get back in it.
Since you are not endorsing Shorai etc. and Neil would have a cow if I went with it I’ll stay with the Odyssey.
I’ll be by with one more in an endless series of questions.

[scorp997]

Not sure which Odyssey you run in your car but they do offer several smaller sizes than the typical PC680. I ran a PC545 in my car with no issues or recharge on a weekend unless I cranked a lot. If you have a jump battery, a smaller battery than the 545 may even fit the bill

[Bob Posner]

A friend had a Shorai battery melt down in his FF. Another friend has run the identical battery since 2014 trouble free.
One expert I know says don’t run anything but Odyssey batteries. The Odyssey battery in my FF weighs 14.6 pounds.
I would like to shed some weight but trouble free.
Thanks tor your input and recommendations.

I have used Shorais in my vees and fords for for 10 or more years without issue. I replace after 5 years for no particular reason as I've never had a failure or an appearance of weakening. On occasion I've abused one to an over discharge warning when finally charging after a full weekend without a charge and they always have recovered.I do use a jumper for paddock starts only, and often don't bother with the jumper at all. Put the retired batteries in my motorcycles and the one in my Triumph has been in for 4 years after 5 years in a Titan. I should be a paid spokesperson for Shorai.

[Lyngengr]

One expert I know says don’t run anything but Odyssey batteries. The Odyssey battery in my FF weighs 14.6 pounds.
I would like to shed some weight but trouble free.
Thanks tor your input and recommendations.

I switched to an Antigravity ATX12-24 Lithium battery in 2019. The only problems I've had with it were due to bad alternators. I now check battery voltage after every session and put a warning light on my G-Dash for low voltage.

Antigravity does not recommend running the ATX12-24 in a dead load (no alternator) configuration, as it is really not designed to be deep cycled. I was running the Odyssey PC950, which weighs 22 lbs, the ATX12-24 weighs 4 lbs, fits in the space easily (actually smaller than PC950). It has no problem cranking and starting my Zetec, whereas the PC950 would occasionally not be able to start the car without a booster battery because the cranking voltage fell below 9 V. The ATX12-24 also holds a charge all winter, and I routinely crank the engine during the off-season to keep everything oiled up. Before the start of the season, I charge it (using a Lithium battery charger) and then don't worry about it, as long as the alternator is working. I have never had to charge it during the season.

[halcyon]

I have been running Antigravity batteries in all of my racecars and some street cars since they were a start-up. I have purchased ~10 different antigravity batteries. Zero issues with them.

[Lastminuteracin]

So what type of battery would be recommended for a Supervee with a total loss system?

[Lyngengr]

So what type of battery would be recommended for a Supervee with a total loss system?

I'm thinking that some kind of Lithium battery that is compatible with deep cycling is what you're looking for. I know there are 100 amp-hour RV Lithium deep-cycle batteries (I have 2 in my trailer), but those are far too heavy for racing use. I don't know if any of the RV battery companies make something smaller that would be useful in racing, but I would search those manufacturers.

You could call Antigravity and other Lithium battery manufacturers and ask them as well.

[Tom Fraelich]

I've used the Odyssey PC 680 for many years in my March Super Vee. Runs the ignition and a Bosch high pressure fuel pump for the mechanical injection. I did find I got much better results once I started to use the bespoke Odyssey charger. It fits nicely under the thigh panel in front of the seat.

Tom