Battery Vehicle Society

Hi all
I'm looking for some advice on this one,

After 14 months my set of batteries are starting to play up. Axiam's answer is a new set of batteries, but not under warranty this time. I've never had more than 18 months from the batteries so I either prolong the life of these or its going to have to go. This is the third set of batteries I had in the car and its the same every time. I start getting low voltage warnings and then Axiam say its a new set, OK when they're paying but this time its me. I'm very reluctant to purchase 12 new batteries to have them go in 18 months. I'm sure something is amiss but Axiam are either unwilling or unable to find anything wrong.
Can I rescue these batteries? or is there another power source I can use to make the car viable again.

Yours hopefully

Carl

Any solution will likely require a new set of batteries, and if you change chemistry some serious electronic work.
If you have the funds and abilities I would be looking at fitting lithium using Hipower or TS cells, they should give 5 years of life if looked after.

What batteries does it use, number voltage and capacity?

I am assuming that you are running on lead acid batteries. Performance and durability depends on the make and quality of the batteries you fit. I fitted a set of new Elecsol batteries to my truck and they did not even last one year, a complete waste of money. I then fitted a set of second hand ex- British Telecom lead gel, transmitter backup batteries, made by Sonnenschein which have lasted 8 eight years and are now starting to give up. Unfortunately these are not available now as replacements. Best option at the moment may be Trojans which are available on Ebay and have a reputation for being good for electric vehicles.
What make and specifications are your present batteries?
Another Peter.

Hi
I have 12 12v lead acid batteries
The new batteries are from China made by ABT, here is a link to their website http://www.abtbatt.com/
the batteries are E-trek DM series 6-DM-76

Thanks
Carl

I have not heard of this manufacturer, but personally I would tend to trust British, German or American manufacturers. I heard of one Chinese company who half filled their batteries with sand to make them heavier without lead.
If you fit a different brand of batteries you may have to mess about when fitting because of different dimensions and terminals, but it is worth it to have good batteries.
Peter

As others have replied, battery life depends on how they are used. Yours are 76Ah batteries. I don't know what current the Aixam draws, but heavy acceleration or hills are likely to need currents of around 3C, which does put quite a strain on the. Also deep discharges - ie using the vehicle until it is almost at the end of its range - will shorten life.

My Metro conversion used 10 x 12v 100Ah batteries, and I found that several sets of batteries lasted around 18, although I had more luck with Powersonic batteries.

Your batteries are AGM, the other type of sealed batteries are Gel types. I have been told (hopefully reliably) that AGM are good for providing high peak currents, but have somewhat shorter cycle lives than Gel types.

Lithium would be better if you have the cash and can get a battery management system organised. Otherwise I would suggest that you try a reputable brand of gel batteries.

Thank you all for your advice. New batteries seem to be called for but I'm not sure I can justify the expense for 18 months and about 2000 miles of motoring.
I've heard conflicting reports about battery conditioners, are they worth giving a go?

Thanks and a Merry Christmas

Carl

Generally speaking once a battery has reached the end of its servicable life then thats that I'm afraid, no amount of messing and conditioning etc will bring it back.

The best thing is to treat batteries carefully from new, avoid discharging them outside their rating (tricky in an EV) and to charge them correctly.

ChrisB