Battery spec's?

[Will]

Hi guys, im currently looking for a battery for the marea (2litre hlx) ive looked at various places and they have specs such as 'cold cranking' and 'power'. Also 'reserve power' and 'bench charge'. Could someone just explain what these mean please

Cheers in advance

 

[Carroll]

I would'nt bother too much, as long it's rated better (higher) than around 45 Ah - and fits OK with the correct type of terminals, there should be no probs.

As yours, (like mine) has Climate Control, the usual recommendation would be for a slightly heavier-duty one, (say about 50-55Ah) but I've personally found the new 44Ah battery I fitted nearly 2 years ago to cope just fine, with no issues even in -5C. winter temps.

It's a GM44-T7 with a black case and built-in hydrometer I bought for £31 inc. VAT from the local Va*xhall parts dept. I've found these GM batteries to be very good on other cars and they're much cheaper than the Hellfrauds/KwikTwits equivilent.

Indeed, the original-fit FIAT Marelli battery it replaced was rated only 48Ah, which surpised me a little at the time.

 

[Will]

Im gonna be running quite a lot of audio though, this make any difference?

 

[Carroll]

Yeah, it could do, if your ICE amp/s are mega power drainers and you were knocking the cr*p out of the battery, combined with lots of short journeys and no long-runs to keep it charged.

I know many peeps on here will say that only an expensive yellow-top, (the maker's name escapes me) is good enough long-term if you're running serious ICE - but I would question shelling-out for more battery than you really need - and the slightly smaller battery has the advantage of weighing less.

After all, any battery works at it's best much the same way as a human body - i.e. if it is given lots of charge,(food) balanced with lots of work to do,(exercise)

Aside from which, even if you did manage to kn*cker the battery within 2 years, (unlikely) they'd give you a new one free anyway...