Interest In A 12V Battery Upgrade Kit??

[LeftieBiker]

It may... The 56 is still a relatively narrow battery (6 1/8") whereas most of the batteries are approx 7". So a universal hold down may work. I ordered a few different hold downs to try out. I want to find the best fit. I also ordered some acid neutralizing absorbing mat since the tray isn't quite big enough.

I thought you wrote that it fit the tray fine. Never mind.

[pointlomadave]

Me personally, I ditched the factory lead acid 12V battery and put in a 2lb Li-Ion batttery. I've run them in all my cars/motorcycles for the last 7 years. They're only $99 on Amazon too. I just used foam bricks to get the battery to the proper mounting height for the tie down. Oh, and not entirely necessary but most people will appreciate having post adapters as the battery is set up for motorcycle terminal connection. U can buy those on Amazon for around $12 - $15.

www.amazon.com/YTZ14S-Z14S-Lithium-Seal ... B00DCXIJJG

[LeftieBiker]

Do your motorcycles run 10+ amps worth of accessories?

[pointlomadave]

Do your motorcycles run 10+ amps worth of accessories?

Dude, you're a dick! And a fu**ing know it all. You literally troll EVERYONE's posts on here.

I'll fill you in even tho u won't listen. I worked as a mechanic by trade with specialized training in electronics and did sales/tech support for a company that manufactured aftermarket charging systems. I took dozens of calls and emails DAILY from technicians and advised them on charging system functions and troubleshooting. I also run these lightweight Li-Ion batteries in the Leaf and many other cars with NO PROBLEMS.

I really hope no one reads your responses and takes them seriously.

[Joeynovak]

I looked at going with a smaller battery, and decided not to. The capacity rating (in Ahr) of the li-ion motorcycle batteries is pretty low (3 to 4?). Leave the head lights on for 15-20 min and your stuck. (Assuming the headlights draw 20amps or so.). And just the headlights is a kind of a light load.

Not saying the li-ion motorcycle battery is a bad idea. It's just not for me.

[JeffInCO]

I have a 2015 SV (took delivery in Oct 2014).

My original battery was mostly okay until about 2 weeks ago. I say "mostly" because I did have the issue where the upgraded 3G TCU would go quiet for weeks on end, although none of the other systems in the car were affected. As has been discussed in other threads, this could have been caused by marginal supply voltage at the TCU when the car is off. (I've successfully done the fuse-pull-reset of the TCU a few times.)

I took my Leaf into the local Nissan dealer for its 3-year checkup the last week of October 2017. As part of that checkup, they did a test on the 12V battery, which passed... but by the 1st week of November the 12V battery was completely kaput. I tried to charge it with an external 15A charger, and also with a battery tender. I could get the voltage up to about 13V after the charger was removed, but it would drop to <6V as soon as I put any load on it. My guess is that it was already on its last leg, and that the test performed by the dealer (which probably involved a high current load) was the straw that broke the camel's back.

Anyway, I decided to replace it with a Bosch AGM battery of the same size (51R) as the original battery. So far, so good... but only time will tell if the AGM lasts any longer (and maybe keeps the TCU happier) than a regular flooded lead acid battery.

Even though I decided against the Li-Ion option, I'd like to thank those that are willing to go out on a limb, then report their successes and failures back to the forum.

Jeff

[LeftieBiker]

No, I'm not a troll, or a dick. The fact that it's possible to run a low capacity battery doesn't make it a good idea for most people. As Joey noted, it's just too easy to use all that capacity in a few minutes. The Leaf seems to do better charging batteries with more capacity than the OEM, so the only reason to go with less is to save weight. Who needs to save weight more than they need to be able to run the headlights and blower for 15 minutes with the car in Acc mode if needed? A Leaf with a tiny lithium battery and a TCU "upgrade" would be a great way to waste hundreds of dollars.

[Nubo]

I looked at going with a smaller battery, and decided not to. The capacity rating (in Ahr) of the li-ion motorcycle batteries is pretty low (3 to 4?). Leave the head lights on for 15-20 min and your stuck. (Assuming the headlights draw 20amps or so.). And just the headlights is a kind of a light load.

Not saying the li-ion motorcycle battery is a bad idea. It's just not for me.

My thoughts as well. Most of the cheap Li 12V-replacement batteries have very low true Ahr capacity, if they even list it at all. They may be able to provide a short burst of starting current for a car, but the problem is modern cars draw current even when parked ("dark current"). LEAF even more so. After a few days of parking these low-capacity batteries will be fully drained. Imho in a Li replacement you need at least 20Ahr or so to be viable. And those don't seem to come cheap at all.

[powersurge]

The answer to this age old question of Leaf 12v batteries has 2 solutions... First, you do not need a L-ion battery, or AGM deep cycle. The 12v electrical system does not require any cold cranking power (like starting a big engine), so the stock one is adequate. If you want an upgrade, get the biggest that fits in the battery tray, or even get a bigger tray, and you can have a good, powerful, Lead Acid battery that can last 10 years, like most of my car batteries do.

Second, it is not the size or type of battery that is important. Dead Battery problems do not happen suddenly, but over time, when we are not looking. My 3 year old battery is in NEW condition. I know this because I have installed a digital volt meter that tells me the battery voltage at all times when I drive. You can get one reasonable, and install it in the cigarette lighter, or hard wire it. When you see the battery voltage start going down, then you can investigate what your car is doing....

[Nubo]

The answer to this age old question of Leaf 12v batteries has 2 solutions... First, you do not need a L-ion battery, or AGM deep cycle. The 12v does not require any cold cranking power to start a big engine, so the stock one is adequate. If you want an upgrade, get the biggest that fits in the battery tray, or even get a bigger tray, and you can have a good, powerful, Lead Acid batter that can last 10 years, like my car batteries do.

Second, it is not the size or type of battery that is important. Battery problems so not happen suddenly, buy over time when we are not looking. My 3 year old battery is in NEW condition. I know this because I have installed a digital volt meter that tells me the battery voltage at all times when I drive. You can get one reasonable, and install it in the cigarette lighter, or hard wire it. When you see the battery voltage start going down, then you can investigate what your car is doing....

Sure, you can intervene and spend time charging the battery separately from the vehicle, or disconnect it before parking for more than a day or two... Examining its voltage constantly; doing load tests... But if you just want to be able to drive without playing nursemaid to a 12V battery, a deep-cycle is a useful alternative.