Hey dudes/dudetts my little 500 twinair needs a stop/start battery and my 'o' my is it a minefield looking for one as there is so many of the little blighters with many varied price tags. Its a 2012 0.9 turbo can anyone suggest a trusty store or site that does a mid range value for money battery for my little baby? Please and thank you [emoji4]

You need a correct AGM stop start battery

They are not cheap and generally anything under a 100 is unlikely to be a stop start battery.
I needed one in a hurry and no one - motor factors, halfords, euro car parts had one for me to walk away with.
I bought one from Fiat in the end....


https://www.batteriesontheweb.co.uk/shop/agm-start-stop-batteries/fiat-500-start-stop-2008-onward-027-agm-lucas-battery/

www.varta-automotive.co.uk


https://www.batterymegastore.co.uk/

Tyron71 said:

Hey dudes/dudetts my little 500 twinair needs a stop/start battery and my 'o' my is it a minefield looking for one as there is so many of the little blighters with many varied price tags.

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I'd agree. Also Fiat may very possibly have changed both specifications and suppliers during the production run of the 500 (it's been a long time now). The biggest differences are between those cars fitted with S/S (that'll be all of them post 2010, and a very small number before that) and those without it. S/S batteries generally cost twice as much as those for non-S/S models, and last only half as long.

p6baseunit said:

You need a correct AGM stop start battery

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AGM batteries are not fitted as standard (unless Fiat have changed the spec recently); OEM S/S batteries use EFB technology, not AGM. An AGM might very possibly be better, but Fiat in their cheapness don't fit them from new.

An original specification (12V 63Ah 450A) EFB S/S battery for the 500 bought from a discounters will be around the £100 mark; the ones you see advertised for 500's at £50-£60 are suitable only for non S/S models and will not be durable in S/S applications.

More details about the original fit batteries here.

Times and batteries do change and your car may have left the factory with something different. OEM batteries will generally have a Fiat part number on them and a google search of that should find the specification pretty quickly.

I buy EFB ones regularly from carparts4less despite my recent grief with them (still unresolved) they are usually the cheapest.

jrkitching said:

AGM batteries are not fitted as standard (unless Fiat have changed the spec recently); OEM S/S batteries use EFB technology, not AGM. An AGM might very possibly be better, but Fiat in their cheapness don't fit them from new.

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I had 2 Mopar AGM batteries from Fiat last year.

p6baseunit said:

I had 2 Mopar AGM batteries from Fiat last year.

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Interesting. Were these fitted into new cars supplied by the factory, or replacement batteries sold by a franchised dealer? Do they also have Fiat branding or Fiat part numbers?

If Fiat have changed the specification of the batteries being fitted to new cars, this could be useful to anyone contemplating battery replacement.

Given the 500 S/S system's known sensitivity to battery performance, I'd give serious consideration to fitting a 'better than OEM spec" battery at replacement time.

I'd expect Fiat will use a number of different suppliers for OEM batteries. If anyone with a known genuine factory fit battery could post their battery details, particularly the Fiat part numbers, together with the type of engine they have, it would help us all work out what's been used, where and when.

At replacement time, garages will likely sell whatever they have in stock (or can get quickly) that physically fits and is as close as possible to OEM specs.

Some less scrupulous traders have been known to fit non S/S batteries to S/S cars ; something to be aware of if you're in the market for a secondhand 500.

Generally you get what you pay for, and if you see a £50 battery being advertised as suitable for S/S use, it's probably too good to be true.

Both Varta Blue and Silver Dynamic (AGM) are Start/Stop ready.
Impossible to find a better battery.

During last cold months, our new bought 2016 Alfa Giulietta 1,4 Turbo MultiAir 170HP had some starting problems, due to the original, factory fitted battery was low in charge.
Car has TCT gearbox (6-speed automatic), and shifts as soon as possible to the highest gear, with VERY low rpm's, so the alternator isn't capable to charge the battery enough on short trips.
(The Start/Stop system is always, manualy switched off, I don't like the start/stop behavior at all...)
Very annoying...considering it's an almost new car.
If this happens again next winter, I ditch the Mopar battery, and will buy a Varta Silver Dynamic, which I trust a whole lot more to do a far better job..

Peter Pick-Up said:

During last cold months, our new bought 2016 Alfa Giulietta 1,4 Turbo MultiAir 170HP had some starting problems, due to the original, factory fitted battery was low in charge.
Car has TCT gearbox (6-speed automatic), and shifts as soon as possible to the highest gear, with VERY low rpm's, so the alternator isn't capable to charge the battery enough on short trips.
(The Start/Stop system is always, manualy switched off, I don't like the start/stop behavior at all...)
Very annoying...considering it's an almost new car.
If this happens again next winter, I ditch the Mopar battery, and will buy a Varta Silver Dynamic, which I trust a whole lot more to do a far better job..

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Most alternators produce about 80% output at just over 1000 rpm but even a good battery will struggle with stop start under short driving, that said that the ss should disable if conditions are not ideal?

jrkitching said:

Some less scrupulous traders have been known to fit non S/S batteries to S/S cars ; something to be aware of if you're in the market for a secondhand 500.

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Back in 2014, after I'd struggled with the original-fit battery for twelve months of the S/S either not working at all or operating for only seconds, the FIAT dealer finally relented and fitted a new battery. In my ignorance at the time I didn't know the Supercharge MF-55H battery they fitted was not an S/S rated unit. However, the S/S worked perfectly for three years until it started to perform somewhat erratically late last year and I replaced it with a LN2-60EFB : Delkor 12V 560cca 60Ah (DIN53LH) EFB

A Varta battery was not an option in this country.
You may recall the long discussion I initiated at;
https://www.fiatforum.com/500/455287-battery-specs.html while trying to nail down the exact battery specs. My thanks once again to Robert G8RPI for his advice.

If the FIAT dealer doesn't fit the correct battery, who can we trust? And yes, the question is rhetorical...

John202020 said:

Most alternators produce about 80% output at just over 1000 rpm but even a good battery will struggle with stop start under short driving, that said that the ss should disable if conditions are not ideal?

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S/S is PERMANENT switched of in my car from the day we bought it, I don't like this nervous engine behavior...

I loved our SS 500TA.
Bought her just before her 1st MOT and the SS was shot, so after a bit of head scratching and conversation on here, I splashed out and bought a new battery.

The ONLY way to keep a SS battery in tiptop condition is to keep it charged. Every single time we came home, I would connect up to the battery charger.

Perfect
Permanently
SS worked faultlessly.

Read my story.
https://www.fiatforum.com/500/416006-stop-start-story.html?416006=#post3998414

Best wishes,
Mick.

Early 2016 we rented a brandnew, white Chevrolet Malibu in Orlando, Florida, great looking car!
But when we drove of, everytime we came to a stop at a traffic light, the engine cuts out, so I manualy started it over and over again...
After a few times, I decided to take it back to the rental station, to exchange it for another car, because there was something wrong...
Suddenly I realised it was equiped with a start/stop system.
Horrible.....:yuck:

So a few months later back home we bought a brandnew Alfa Giulietta with S/S system.
I was so glad it has a small button to switch this system of, and it has been of since day one.
I tried it once, just to be sure it worked, it did... but again, for me, this behavior is just plain horrible...:shakehead:

Tyron71 said:

Hey dudes/dudetts my little 500 twinair needs a stop/start battery and my 'o' my is it a minefield looking for one as there is so many of the little blighters with many varied price tags. Its a 2012 0.9 turbo can anyone suggest a trusty store or site that does a mid range value for money battery for my little baby? Please and thank you [emoji4]

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Thanks for your advice guys its all very helpful [emoji16][emoji106]

Peter Pick-Up said:

I tried it once, just to be sure it worked, it did... but again, for me, this behavior is just plain horrible...:shakehead:

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That's the problem, you tried it once.

I found it disconcerting and worrying at first (after I'd fitted a new battery, so it worked properly). However, after a few weeks, I never even noticed it stopping and restarting.

The advantage of SS is peacefulness. Why have the engine rumbling and rattling away at traffic lights and junctions? Just stop, set the handbrake, select neutral ................. and peace!

Just the dip of the clutch pedal, put it in gear, release the handbrake, and off you go.

Complete second nature and you never notice anything. The only thing you would ever notice, is if it didn't work, or if you drive a car without it - weird!

Mick.

Mick F said:

I found it disconcerting and worrying at first. However, after a few weeks, I never even noticed it stopping and restarting.

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That's a good summary, Mick.

And thanks for hanging around; it's good to see you again. You don't need to own a Fiat to come here; you just need to think like a Fiat owner .

I'm also starting (pardon the pun) to notice this now in other cars as a pedestrian.

Having a car stopped in stationary traffic with the engine running is so last century.

One thing that is on my wish list, though, is a manual override button on the steering wheel that'll disable it for just this stop, for those occcasions when I know I'll be moving again in a second or two.

In fairness I should also say the main benefits are environmental, not economic. Like most things which provide an environmental benefit, having S/S will likely cost you money, not save it, over the life of the car. But it'll also improve your own immediate environment when you're stopped at the lights.

If you have it on a new car, you might as well use it; you've paid at least £300 for it to be there, whether by choice or otherwise.

Mick F said:

That's the problem what problem?



set the handbrake common mistake, it's an emergency brake NOT a handbrake...

Just the dip of the clutch pedal, put it in gear, Car is automatic...



Mick.

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:shrug:

Here, we disagree.
When stopped, you should and must set the handbrake no matter what gearbox type you have.

This has three benefits:

One, the car is positively stopped.
Two, your brake lights are not upsetting the car occupants/cyclists/motorcyclists etc behind you.
Three, you can relax, rather than keeping your foot on the brake.

Highway code rule 114.
114
You MUST NOT
use any lights in a way which would dazzle or cause discomfort to other road users, including pedestrians, cyclists and horse riders
use front or rear fog lights unless visibility is seriously reduced. You MUST switch them off when visibility improves to avoid dazzling other road users (see Rule 226).
In stationary queues of traffic, drivers should apply the parking brake and, once the following traffic has stopped, take their foot off the footbrake to deactivate the vehicle brake lights. This will minimise glare to road users behind until the traffic moves again.
Law RVLR reg 27

Mick.

I NEVER use the emergency brake in real life.
Just move the lever once in a while to keep it functioning, and park in P, or first gear if it's manual.
I keep my foot on the brake pedal, cause it WANT the brakelights to stay on, to allert not so allert drivers behind me...

Oh, one more thing; in Holland we don't have those stupid traffic laws like the UK does..( seems like East Germany decades ago....)