Should I replace the battery under the hood? Need opinions

[JarvisB 10+ year member]

I got an upcoming system that I have pieced everything together.. I have everything right now.. except for box which is on the way and battery if I do need one.. here is what I am unsure about: I have been wanting to run only one battery with my system if possible.

Here is my upcoming system

250A HO alternator

15" CD Omega

Kicker zx2500.1

pioneer 900BT (double din)

following equipment will be installed later:

component system(front) (undecided)

6x8 coaxials (rear) (undecided)

kicker zx650.4 (already in my hands)

I was hoping that my HO alternator would be very efficient so that way I can just run one battery and that is going to be the one under the hood.. so I was wondering if I should replace my stock battery with a better one so I dont have to worry about buying another battery to put in the back or I will have to do that no matter what?

I am a noob when it comes to batteries, so I m wondering if you would recommend anything to put under the hood.. or do i even need one?

I have thought about adding another battery in the back but I want to give it a try without an additional battery in the back.. then if I do need an additional battery, I ll buy one then.. My biggest reason for running one battery is that I hate having a battery in the back which is an eyesore IMO.. I am going to have a sealth install in the back without the battery this summer, but if I do need a battery in the back then it would not flow together with my idea

Click to read more...

 

[geowick07 10+ year member]

First off, sealth? At least 3 times in that post.

Now, on to the question. More than likely, with that kind of power, a good front battery and a good rear battery will be the best option. But, what I would do if cost is an issue, is replace the front battery with a good one (Optima, Deka, Kinetik, BatCap, etc.), and see how things go. Worst-case scenario, you may have to add a second battery in back.

And, I didn't see any mention of the Big 3. Definitely do that, too.

geo

 

[Savag3 10+ year member]

I got an upcoming system that I have pieced everything together.. I have everything right now.. except for box which is on the way and battery if I do need one.. here is what I am unsure about: I have been wanting to run only one battery with my system if possible.
Here is my upcoming system

250A HO alternator

15" CD Omega

Kicker zx2500.1

pioneer 900BT (double din)

following equipment will be installed later:

component system(front) (undecided)

6x8 coaxials (rear) (undecided)

kicker zx650.4 (already in my hands)

I was hoping that my HO alternator would be very efficient so that way I can just run one battery and that is going to be the one under the hood.. so I was wondering if I should replace my stock battery with a better one so I dont have to worry about buying another battery to put in the back or I will have to do that no matter what?

I am a noob when it comes to batteries, so I m wondering if you would recommend anything to put under the hood.. or do i even need one?

I have thought about adding another battery in the back but I want to give it a try without an additional battery in the back.. then if I do need an additional battery, I ll buy one then.. My biggest reason for running one battery is that I hate having a battery in the back which is an eyesore IMO.. I am going to have a sealth install in the back without the battery this summer, but if I do need a battery in the back then my sealth install wont be "sealth" anymore..

I would run at least two optima yellow tops or equivelant

 

[JarvisB 10+ year member]

I was planning to get a yellowtop but I thought I'd consult with you guys first..

Yes I am going to do the big 3

also if I ever do want to have 2 batteries then I am going to try to find a place under the hood to put second battery in.. I dont really have much of room to play around with in the back since the box is going to take up half of the cargo space already and I want to have some cargo space for storage if needed

 

[Johnny Law.Lulz 5,000+ posts]

You should forget about the rear coaxials but thats a different story

Defiantly the big 3, I think with the alt you might be able to get away with 1 battery but it would have to be bigger and better than a yellow top and all, i say see what the biggest battery you can fit with modifications then if you cant go big then 2 batteries would be best bet.

 

[JarvisB 10+ year member]

well what battery should I get rather than yellowtop?

I am new to buying batteries so I will need some help finding the right one..

I was told that the battery that has higher Ah rating will perform well as it will be able to store more electricity than most batteries?

what kind of specs should I be looking at?

 

[JarvisB 10+ year member]

I know a guy who owned a explorer before put 2 yellow tops D34/78 under the hood with a custom bracket..

Now I am thinking about doing what he did since yellowtop's price is lower than any of those higher end car audio batteries.. I can just buy two and try to custom make a tray and then run on 2 batteries.. I would need to learn how to wire up 2 batteries together

also if I was to get a higher end battery then how do I know the size of those batteries? I know that my explorer's size group is supposed to be 34..

 

[loopkiller 10+ year member]

I would go with the biggest AH AGM battery you can find. I would stay away from the Optima and Batcap brands. They have very low AH ratings. The brands with some of the best AH ratings are Kinetik, Odyssey, Deka, Stinger, and XS. Find the biggest one you can fit, then find the best deal, install it and I think you will be good. It would still be better to have dual batteries, with a matching one in the rear, but you can try out the single setup first and see how it performs.

 

[thegreatestpenn 5,000+ posts]

with an alt that big, all you'll need is the biggest batt u can get up front, and Powermaster is the brand of choice. good luck

 

[loopkiller 10+ year member]

with an alt that big, all you'll need is the biggest batt u can get up front, and Powermaster is the brand of choice. good luck

I was told by Scotty that PowerMaster does not make batteries anymore. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif

 

[JarvisB 10+ year member]

I would go with the biggest AH AGM battery you can find. I would stay away from the Optima and Batcap brands. They have very low AH ratings. The brands with some of the best AH ratings are Kinetik, Odyssey, Deka, Stinger, and XS. Find the biggest one you can fit, then find the best deal, install it and I think you will be good. It would still be better to have dual batteries, with a matching one in the rear, but you can try out the single setup first and see how it performs.

AH is the most important part of the battery? what does it do exactly?

and should I look at CCA as well?

out of all of those batteries brand you mentioned, which one would you choose? which one provides a lot for great price you know?

with an alt that big, all you'll need is the biggest batt u can get up front, and Powermaster is the brand of choice. good luck

I can try doing that.. I am hoping one big battery will do the job, otherwise I will just fabricate a tray that can hold 2 mid size batteries

I guess I will measure my battery area and see what size battery I can fit in there..

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

I would say a group 31 under the hood or 2 smaller matching batteries front and back.

Group 31's would be kinetik 2400, odyssey pc2150 and deka 9a31.

 

[loopkiller 10+ year member]

AH is the most important part of the battery? what does it do exactly?
and should I look at CCA as well?

out of all of those batteries brand you mentioned, which one would you choose? which one provides a lot for great price you know?

The AH rating is determined by a load test over a certain period of time. Most battery MFG use a 20 hour test (C/20). What the AH rate means is that the battery was able to provide a continuous amp output that is equal to the AH rating divided by 20. That will tell you what the battery can support if you planned on running something for 20 hours straight. So if a battery had a 100AH rating, it was able to supply 5A continuous for 20 hours before dropping to 10.5V.

 

[JarvisB 10+ year member]

thanks for the info..

I am talking to the guy who fabricated a tray for his explorer so he can fit in 2 batteries under the hood.. He is going to sell me his tray..

according to his measurements, I would be able to put 2 Kinetik HC1400s.. would that be good?

 

[JarvisB 10+ year member]

any input?