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after market Batteries

Bozz

Go Kart Champion
I do not own a Deka but I can say, their 47 and 48 are shown as fitting our cars in the Deka Online Catalog. So I don't think the 48 would be too large. The Group 48 Deka AGM has a Reserve Capacity of 120 which is the Golf R spec. The Group 47's are more like 100 RC.
 

TimS

Go Kart Newbie
You have to leave off the insulation sleeve with the 48, but it fits the battery box fine. I'll snap a pic later this afternoon.
 

Bozz

Go Kart Champion
47 it is. The thing that was concerning me is the OEM varta had 72Ah, versus 60Ah for the Deka.

This was my concern as well. This was discussed in the past, and the Ah rating is related to the Reserve Capacity that I mentioned earlier in this thread. I am not expert enough with batteries to know the exact relationship...

The consensus in the old discussion seemed to be that the Golf R's accessories -- like the electric coolant pump running a few minutes after the car is off - would not be enough drain to harm the battery, even with the lower RC/Ah rating.

Then again, the VW engineers spec'ed 120/72 for a reason I'm sure. We can hope they were just being cautious.
 

JetTurbo

geezer
I use an O'Reily's Group 48 Super Start Platinum AGM battery in my 2012 Golf R. 70 AH, 120 RC, 760 CCA.
Its length and width are pretty much exactly the same as the oe Varta.
No issues with the insulation sleeve, fits the same as oe.
The O'Reily's Group 48 battery is slightly different in height, but not enough to make any difference at all.
Battery box, insulation sleeve, and battery cover all fit without issue.





I seem to be hard on batteries.
The oe Varta battery died in about 2 years at 60k miles.
I expect an AGM battery to last longer than an oe battery.
I installed the O'Reilly battery in the Fall of 2014 and it seemed fine.
However, in Fall of 2016 (just short of 2 years, ≈50k miles),
it starting giving me trouble, forcing me to jump start.
Took it with my original receipt to the same store I bought it from to be tested.
They did not bother to test it, they just swapped it out for a new one, no questions asked.
So while it gave me some hassle what seems to be too soon,
it did not cost me anything to have it replaced.
Ultimately, even if the replacement fails just as fast,
I will end up with 4 years of use for the original $$ outlay.
4 years is what I typically expect from a battery.
anything after that is bonus too me.

As for the comments about getting by with lower rated batteries,
as long as you are in ideal conditions, should not be much of an issue.
Just keep in mind, if you deal with extreme cold, it may be an issue.
The reserve capacity rating is the time (in minutes) that a lead-acid battery at 80 °F (27 °C)
will continuously deliver 25 amperes before its voltage drops below 10.5 volts.
Assuming that rating is 120 minutes,
at 32 degrees F, typical capacity is reducted by 35 percent (78 min);
at zero degrees F, it is reduced by 60 percent (48 min);
and at minus 20 degrees F, it is reduced by better than 80 percent (24 min).

I occasionally have to park outside overnight
(at hotels) in Michigan and Canada in January / February.
For me, that is the least convenient time for a battery to come up short.
i.e. I am unwilling to risk any significant under-rating
so as to avoid the worse case scenario.
And with the first and the current O'Reily's Group 48 batteries,
have had no issues in those cold conditions.
 

Bozz

Go Kart Champion
And with the first and the current O'Reily's Group 48 batteries,
have had no issues in those cold conditions.

Your O'Reilly's battery is also made by East Penn / Deka...another plus

Thanks for posting about it
 

B6JoeS4

Ready to race!
Bumping this. The group 48 AGM batteries all seem to be the exact same one made by East Penn. They all have failure issues so I would avoid them if you can. Here is the Duralast version they tested....they also tested the DieHard. Same result
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/...short-in-consumer-reports-life-test/index.htm

Looks like JetTurbo's experience lines up with the test results. The East Penn 48 AGM battery is no good.

I ended up going with a Costco Interstate group 48. $110 and it has 42 month free replacement, hard to beat that.
 

TimS

Go Kart Newbie
Bumping this. The group 48 AGM batteries all seem to be the exact same one made by East Penn. They all have failure issues so I would avoid them if you can. Here is the Duralast version they tested....they also tested the DieHard. Same result
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/...short-in-consumer-reports-life-test/index.htm

Looks like JetTurbo's experience lines up with the test results. The East Penn 48 AGM battery is no good.

The Die Hard and Duralast brands are manufactured by Johnson Controls. There's nothing wrong with East Penn batteries.
 
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