Battery insultation

I'm surprised there isn't one there: My last 3 cars (Audi, Skoda, Seat) have all had them, as has the wife's Lupo. Thought about asking at the dealer?

I use a camping sleep mat, and some tightly corrugated cardboard, cut into sizes to suit. Dunno if I could quantify if it actually insulates, but it does seem to help.

Mines on a Landrover Discovery that's used off-road a lot so also needs security and stability, I figure the sandwich collapses somewhat and helps retain the battery without going stupidly tight on the clamp posts. I also think almost anything will help on the base, to keep it off the metal ... ;)

a fibreglass/reflective coat can only help, many cars have that as standard. I always try to get the biggest battery that can be persuaded to fit on my own cars, I have never bothered with wrapping the battery, but it does not get that cold here YMMV

A copy of the Daily Mail insults most things:-)

Must be worth a go, never know.

I don't think insulating is going to be much help. A battery that can't cope with our winters in normal use, is probably failing or there is a fault with the cars charging system. A very rough rule of thumb, is that a batteries cranking capacity is reduced by about 25% in temperatures below zero. Which, if the battery is in good condition, should still start the car.

When replacing a battery, I always go for the biggest capacity battery that will fit in the tray. The one I have fitted in my mid size car is a 96Ah,

I think ultimately thats the way to go, a bgger more powerful battery with more cca and higher rated Ah. Theres quote a bit of tray space, but I doubt if I go bigger the battery tray cover will fit, although with this enhancement there will be little need for it, not sure what it does actually.

I wonder if this would need to be declared as a mod to the insurance company ?

On Thu, 23 Dec 2010 21:19:07 +0000, Matthew.Ridges boggled us with:

I'll do it for free. Your battery's s**te.

Hehe I walked in to that one.

Even the manufacturers know that they specify batteries which are only just up to the job, on grounds of cost and space/weight saving. Last winter my daughter had a Citroen C2 which had a recurrent issue with the battery light coming on. After replacing alternator and coil pack at great (Citroen dealer) expense, the best that Citroen themselves could suggest was "fit a bigger battery". The car has now been passed on to my son, who has had no problems all summer. But as soon as the temperature dropped below zero, on came the battery light again! I'm convinced it's an ecu fault. But one he can live with, being a boy, he doesn't panic like daughter does!

In message , Matthew.Ridges writes

^^^^^ My advice is - don't pull any punches:

I think the battery tray will be plastic on a Golf IV.

Some heat in a battery is created by the chemical action of making electricity, but the largest amount of heat an under-bonnet battery gets is from the engine. Insulating it will reduce the amount of heat it picks up from the surrounding air, and may be counter-productive to your aims.

Chris

so do you think that the makers with insulating jackets are trying to keep the batteries cool, rather than maintain their temperature? a common one I see is the Vectra diesel which has an insulating jacket as standard.

Seems reasonable to me. The under bonnet temperatures reached by modern cars when stationary in traffic are hardly ideal for lead-acid batteries.

Chris

Just like all of the creaky interior :) ... slowly going in sane.

Yes, fit the largest available - usually the diesel spec. Use bubble-wrap for a cheap blanket.

Thus spake Mike G ( snipped-for-privacy@miktoolman.plus.com) unto the assembled multitudes:

I agree with this. Even with the best insulation, a battery will still eventually reach ambient temperature when the car is left overnight. A higher capacity battery may help, if there's space to fit it. I once fitted a Fiesta Mk1 with a battery meant for a Granada. Never had any problems, no matter how cold it was of a morning.