Anti gravity battery discussion.

[WannabeST]

Alright everyone. So I went through a lot of the forum and found scattered info but was hoping to make a thread on anti gravity batteries.
My battery in my daily is slowly not holding a charge anymore and the cranking amps are down to the low 300s. So it’s time to upgrade. Looking at the antigravity ATX20. More cranking amps than factory and obviously way lighter.
I’ve seen some members on here post about issues with anti gravity batteries but they didn’t mention models.
In a mustang forum I’m in. Most users ran into issues with antigravity batteries that are non ATX line batteries. Anything in the ATX line up seemed to work just fine and last. Most of the users that did have issues was because of the restart feature being designed differently on other battery models and it did not communicate well with the mustangs smart charging. I’m aware the mustangs have smart charging which can be disabled by taking off a sensor (supposedly in tune too, but haven’t seen it done). Do our fiestas have smart charging in any way? And can anyone share their experience with an antigravity battery?

 

[2002whitegt]

I used the H6/Group48 version in my Focus RS and my Fiesta and had the same weird issues that you can read in the following thread:
https://www.fiestastforum.com/threa...-engine-revs-up-on-its-own.29681/#post-489149

It was the same exact battery that I moved from the RS to the ST, so not sure id I got a dud, but it did the same things on both cars from time to time, but enough to drive me nuts.

This is the battery in question:
https://antigravitybatteries.com/products/starter-batteries/automotive/ag-h6-rs/

Both cars went back to acting normal after putting in a stock battery.

 

[Dialcaliper]

The issue with “drop in” lithium batteries is that in order to get them to charge properly on a system designed for lead acid charging, the drop in lithium actually has its own charging electronics to protect the battery and regulate the charging current and also to “fake” the battery so it appears to the car’s charging circuit like a lead acid would.

I suspect that the electronics are not playing nice with our more modern car that has additional electronics to sustain the battery, limit the charging voltage and cut it off at low voltage in order to retain starting capability. We’ve got something called “Ford Adaptive Smart Charging” that’s also there to reduce alternator load and improve fuel economy. I believe it also limits the peak battery voltage to something like 80%

The Li-ion internal charging circuitry works fine with an old dumb 12V alternator system, but in newer cars you’ve now got two electronic systems fighting eachother to decide when and how to charge the battery, and it’s kind of crapshoot as to whether they will play nice or not.

If there is a setting to enable/disable, You might be able to solve the problem by using Forscan to disable the Ford BMS, but I haven’t investigated.

 

[WannabeST]

I ended up buying the ATX20HD battery. It's been in the car for about a month now. Zero issues. It's been on the car for about 4,500 miles so far (Just did a road trip) no weird charging issues or anything of that sort. The car actually takes a crank or 2 less to turn on and starts really smooth in poor weather. The battery is over 20 pounds lighter. I have yet to see any downsides with this purchase yet but will report back if I find any.

 

[Woods247]

I ended up buying the ATX20HD battery. It's been in the car for about a month now. Zero issues. It's been on the car for about 4,500 miles so far (Just did a road trip) no weird charging issues or anything of that sort. The car actually takes a crank or 2 less to turn on and starts really smooth in poor weather. The battery is over 20 pounds lighter. I have yet to see any downsides with this purchase yet but will report back if I find any.

Would you please post a pic of it installed? Thanks!

 

[WannabeST]

Would you please post a pic of it installed? Thanks!

It's very loosely installed. I need to make a longer ground cable and also need an actual bracket to hold it in place for the track. So far the battery stays in place even during canyon drives and during my 3,000 mile road trip. Battery is also a 28 pound weight reduction compared to the 31 pound pig of the stock battery.
(microfiber was down there for cleaning dirt, did not stay in the car)
I don't plan on relocating the battery since this car is just a budget just for fun car for me. But if anyone has any good battery mount options/ solutions I am all ears.

 

[cidsamuth]

Holy cow, 28lbs is a lot. This just got moved to my bucket list.

I have mine in the spare tire well with a cut off switch at the center console (track dedicated). Frankly, it was a huge PITA, but moving the weight to the back is always good in this car.

Of course, making it 3 lbs instead off 31 lbs is probably better

 

[WannabeST]

Holy cow, 28lbs is a lot. This just got moved to my bucket list.

I have mine in the spare tire well with a cut off switch at the center console (track dedicated). Frankly, it was a huge PITA, but moving the weight to the back is always good in this car.

Of course, making it 3 lbs instead off 31 lbs is probably better

These batteries are so light. They have batteries in the 1-2 pound range but I figured this model was best for me with the restart feature and more cranking amps than oem. I think if I moved the battery to the trunk I would easily add more weight in wires than the battery lol

 

[cidsamuth]

I think if I moved the battery to the trunk I would easily add more weight in wires than the battery lol

Agreed. With the 30 lb battery, it was about putting the weight in a better location, even if it meant adding the weight of the wiring. The kill switch is a bonus.

With a 3 lb battery? There would be no reason to move it. In an alternative universe where I started with the light battery, I'd probably just run the kill switch to the original battery location.

 

[Woods247]

It's very loosely installed. I need to make a longer ground cable and also need an actual bracket to hold it in place for the track. So far the battery stays in place even during canyon drives and during my 3,000 mile road trip. Battery is also a 28 pound weight reduction compared to the 31 pound pig of the stock battery.
(microfiber was down there for cleaning dirt, did not stay in the car)
I don't plan on relocating the battery since this car is just a budget just for fun car for me. But if anyone has any good battery mount options/ solutions I am all ears.
View attachment 56713
View attachment 56714

Wonder if it'll fit in the Mele box?? I think I have one. I will check dimensions if I do.

 

[kevinatfms]

Buy a block of foam from Amazon(search yoga bricks) and shape it for the battery tray/battery. Its how i used to do it when i rallycrossed my old Hyundai and used a PC680. It also gives some "cushion" to the very expensive battery.

Will cost you all of $6.

 

[WannabeST]

Buy a block of foam from Amazon(search yoga bricks) and shape it for the battery tray/battery. Its how i used to do it when i rallycrossed my old Hyundai and used a PC680. It also gives some "cushion" to the very expensive battery.

Will cost you all of $6.

I've never thought of this. I'll try it out

 

[kevinatfms]

I've never thought of this. I'll try it out

I occasionally have some non-idiotic ideas.

 

[WannabeST]

I ended up buying the ATX20HD battery. It's been in the car for about a month now. Zero issues. It's been on the car for about 4,500 miles so far (Just did a road trip) no weird charging issues or anything of that sort. The car actually takes a crank or 2 less to turn on and starts really smooth in poor weather. The battery is over 20 pounds lighter. I have yet to see any downsides with this purchase yet but will report back if I find any.

UPDATE: slightly over 6 months of the ATX20 in my car. No issues to report back. I ended up just putting some foam blocks under to make it fit with the stock bracket, but it has always barely passed tech on track so will need to change that soon.
otherwise, after lots of hot laps there seems to be no effects with heat.
I've taken this car up to big bear and Wrightwood in the snow to go snowboarding. No cold start issues after sitting for a whole day in as low as 10-20 degrees Fahrenheit. This car doesn't usually sit long since it is also my daily. But my motorcycle has sat for up to 3 weeks with an antigravity and started fine. My mustang easily does E85 cold starts after 2 weeks of sitting also. My whole fleet is antigravity batteries now. I will update this thread if I get any problems or just randomly remember to update. Hope this helps someone in their research

 

[Fiestig]

I have had an OG release ATX-20 Restart (well before the HD was released) and although it is always on a maintainer, I would never drive far with it. It will manage a race day or a day goofing around over Car Week, but you will absolutely hit the restart before the day is out.

I have run a PC680MJ Extreme as a daily as of late, but will be going back to a daily Antigravity this summer. I have talked to Antigravity at SEMA and they were shocked that my OG ATX-20 still worked...lol. I may be testing a group size. We'll see. But overall, I love Antigravity Batteries and the HD is surely a good one.

 

[Alkoran]

Anybody tried the noco lithium batteries? They are quite cheap.

 

[ronniec687]

It's very loosely installed. I need to make a longer ground cable and also need an actual bracket to hold it in place for the track. So far the battery stays in place even during canyon drives and during my 3,000 mile road trip. Battery is also a 28 pound weight reduction compared to the 31 pound pig of the stock battery.
(microfiber was down there for cleaning dirt, did not stay in the car)
I don't plan on relocating the battery since this car is just a budget just for fun car for me. But if anyone has any good battery mount options/ solutions I am all ears.
View attachment 56713
View attachment 56714

Which terminal adapters did you use to get this to work? Also you have now inspired me to get this battery and try to design a battery box and battery hold down that mounts to all or some of the factory battery box mounting locations. It will be a while but I will be collaborating with a friend of mine who has a 3D printer. I already made a battery hold down but its much to big for this small battery.

 

[WannabeST]

Which terminal adapters did you use to get this to work? Also you have now inspired me to get this battery and try to design a battery box and battery hold down that mounts to all or some of the factory battery box mounting locations. It will be a while but I will be collaborating with a friend of mine who has a 3D printer. I already made a battery hold down but its much to big for this small battery.

I used the ones that antigravity offers on their site:
https://antigravitybatteries.com/pr...ttery/cables-parts/car-terminal-adapters-sae/

 

[WannabeST]

I'm considering trying to mount the battery somewhere lower in the engine bay, maybe closer to the front of the car for lower CG and more forward weight for grip. But I'm debating if the effort is even worth it to relocate 3 pounds lol

 

[ronniec687]

I'm considering trying to mount the battery somewhere lower in the engine bay, maybe closer to the front of the car for lower CG and more forward weight for grip. But I'm debating if the effort is even worth it to relocate 3 pounds lol

If it was oem battery weight then yes I think it would possibly make a noticeable difference finding a lower mounting point but yea 3lbs I'm not sure would make a noticeable difference( could drop 3 lbs in the am after a big dinner the night before lol).