Lightweight Lithium car batteries

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Kern Dog

Kern Dog

Build your car to handle.
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I'm thinking about replacing the battery in my car with one of these lightweight Lithium batteries.
First off, these are SAFER than the lithium batteries of the past! The models that I am looking at are constructed with Lithium titanate, a component far more stable and safe than any other lithium type in the past. They will not ignite when crushed or punctured.
I've had a trunk mounted battery in a car since 2013, this was done due to the popular trend to move the weight rearward as well as to remove clutter from the engine bay.
Now with these lightweight batteries, having a battery in the trunk is almost pointless. The weight of the cables and wiring from the front to the battery will probably equal the weight of this Lithium battery.
Last year, I did a Vintage A/C installation for a friend. He had one of these:

XS lith 2.png


The size was comparable to a stock battery but this dude really spun over the engine quick!
Mopar Action magazine and Rick Ehrenberg did an article on these a couple of years back. These spun their engine over at something like 330 rpms compared to the 250 that they got with the stock battery.
The weight though....I'm talking 7 lbs! The battery in my Charger:

NAPA 1 - Copy.JPG


There are a variety of "group" numbers, many have a different height, width and length.

XS lith 1.png


XS lith 3.png


There are a few things that I'm curious about.
* Jump starting: Are there any dangers to jump starting a car with these batteries?
* Alternator charging: If the battery is low and the car gets jump started, what hazards may result in the charging cycle?
I love the idea of the weight savings and faster cranking.
One unusual thing that I learned is that these batteries maintain a steady power level even as the charge is dropping.
This is in contrast to a standard lead/acid or even an AGM battery where as voltage drops off, battery performance follows, the engine spins slower, the lights are dimmer, etc. The Lithium just works until it doesn't.
Who has tried one of these?
 
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They are safer than ion due a different anode material but still lithium and worse than lead acid for the environment in production and recycling. They should be recycled at a place that accepts ev batteries. They also need to be insulated if placed in the engine bay and better charging control than a lead acid. If you are willing to comply with all the instructions and not throw it in the dump after it dies, go for it. Jump starting should be the same. CCA could be tested the same as lead acid but mfg's don't because they have not been able to compete with lead acid. They all do their own testing and usually fluff the numbers for sales just like electric cooling fans, but apparently this mfg does not. We will never really know....

https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0857/5339/7524/files/XV_Lithium-Instructions.pdf?v=1709757252
 
Steer away, the fire danger is just too high, not to mention that ridiculous price.
Rural King sells a 1000 CCA battery for $100...bargain of the year!
 
I have been interested in the LiFePo4 batteries. I emailed them a few days ago about use in my drag car. I have a 66 pound 31 series now. Saving some weight would be great and the price is good but I'm not sure that it'd survive and function. I think it can't supply more than 100 amps at a time. Not sure. I like the XS series as well. I have a 180 amp Powermaster alternator in the car now to supply 70 amps at idle while waiting in the staging lanes with fans,waterpump,ignition,fuel pump and other loads are on.Expensive but cheaper than 800 bucks for glass bumpers! Which i already bought... .watching.
 
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Saving weight in my street car, nah. If I want to save some weight, I'll just tell my girlfriend to stay home! Or not fill it up with gas, or run it a qt low on oil. I don't like those new batteries just yet.
 
i was wanting to buy a couple of these type of batterys for my boat equivalent to Bus size but like you i can't seem to find any solid info on them and have to many un answered questions to move forward .
 
I've been running a $120 220 CCA scooter lithium battery in my 17 HP lawn tractor that calls for a $90 350 CCA lead acid battery.

This is season three.

Unlike the lead acid batteries, this undersized lithium battery doesn't need to sit on the charger for two hours before I mow the first time at the beginning of the season.
 
I've been running antigravity lithium batteries in the racecar and also in my modern Street car for about 6 years. No issues.
 
Scampin said:
I've been running antigravity lithium batteries in the racecar and also in my modern Street car for about 6 years. No issues.
Click to expand...
Those batteries are almost twice the cost of the LiFePO4 batteries that I was looking at. Thanks anyways!
 
66Valiant528 said:
Do the cars have alternators? What AH do you use?
Click to expand...
Most do not, but depends on the car/motor setup. We use the Batteries Plus X2’s, they have 200, 400 and 800. Think we use the 200, in the small open wheel cars. Also have other “racing” batteries like Varley, Odyssey, Brile, and others. We’ve been using the x2 for about 3 years now. Being they run the car for about 25 minutes, we charge between sessions. Not a problem yet.
 
Thank you. I've got a drag only car that gets trailered and generally isn't running for more than 15 to 20 minutes at a time.
 
Kern Dog said:
Fire hazard....fact ore fiction?




The cranking amps comparison since they are rated differently than conventional batteries:

Lithium Cranking Amps and LiFePO4 CCA Guide - Power Sonic

More:

Click to expand...


partsmonsta said:
Steer away, the fire danger is just too high, not to mention that ridiculous price.
Rural King sells a 1000 CCA battery for $100...bargain of the year!
Click to expand...

I see this response from some people that refuse to see or consider anything but what they remember about lithium batteries of the past.
Times change, technology evolves.
The “Titanate” after the word Lithium is not the same as the Lithium Ion.
The videos above show that the batteries can be smashed, cut, punctured and split open and they don’t catch fire.
Yeah… it might seem silly to chase incremental weight reduction in what is entirely a street car but if I have to replace something, I’m trying to seek out a way to shed weight. The fact that these crank the engine over about 1/3 faster is pretty cool too.
 
MV8 said:
They are safer than ion due a different anode material but still lithium and worse than lead acid for the environment in production and recycling. They should be recycled at a place that accepts ev batteries. They also need to be insulated if placed in the engine bay and better charging control than a lead acid. If you are willing to comply with all the instructions and not throw it in the dump after it dies, go for it. Jump starting should be the same. CCA could be tested the same as lead acid but mfg's don't because they have not been able to compete with lead acid. They all do their own testing and usually fluff the numbers for sales just like electric cooling fans, but apparently this mfg does not. We will never really know....

https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0857/5339/7524/files/XV_Lithium-Instructions.pdf?v=1709757252
Click to expand...

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1739939631216.png


1739939801890.png
 
Kern Dog said:
New batteries run around $190+ around here so this is about double.
Hey...I have no kids and could die tomorrow so why not spend the cash?
Click to expand...
I can certainly agree with that. I am in no way suggesting anything else. I always buy NAPA batteries. I signed up for their Email sale alerts, and I get 25% off of my batteries.
 
The NAPA battery in my red Charger is in the trunk. It isn't that old but it won't charge over 12.4 volts. It drops to 12.2 in a week or so.

Btry 1.jpg


At 12.4 it is already at 80%, when it drops to 12.2 it is at 60%.
A buddy has had his 68 Dart here for 3 weeks and his Interstate tested at 12.66 today. It is almost 5 years old, easily double what my NAPA battery is.
 
I'm seriously considering something similar. Since my car is limited use and I have two nice emergency jump packs it is hard to justify buying a 40+lb battery. This is almost the weight savings of one aluminum head. Unfortunately I have no direct experience with these modern battery compositions other than the jump packs. Those have been amazing, a tiny handheld pack has enough juice to jump my Dakota with no change in charge level, and I have a slightly bigger one (still probably less than a pound with the jumper cable style clamps) and have used it to crank a honda engine for about 10 minutes and it also barely moved the charge level. my main concern is price with these but I'll go to either a smaller motorcycle style battery or one of these soon.
 
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