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View Full Version : Flat Battery (plus what to replace it with)


Ian C
03-04-05, 21:15
Name:
Flat battery

Also known as:
“My battery won’t hold a charge any more”
“My car just makes a clicking noise when I try to start it”

What is it?
Your battery is flat.

Usually caused by:
Leaving a light on
Duff battery losing its charge
Bad connection somewhere, usually in an aftermarket alarm system
Rarely, a bad alternator

Why?
Pretty simple this one, battery charged by car while it’s running etc., drained by electrical load while car isn’t running blah blah. However the tricky thing is, if you’ve got a battery that no longer holds a charge – what sort of battery do you need to replace it?

Replacement Batteries
For a start, Toyota will sell you a battery for a UK-spec for £50.

The best bet at the moment is a Halfords HCB005 – a calcium maintenance-free battery that is currently on offer at £55 at the time of writing, normal price is £70. It has 510 cold crank amps which is easily enough for a Supra. Three year warranty as well.

Other recommended batteries are:
Exide Maxima Deep cycle 900DC Gel battery
Premium Supreme Lucas battery

Also of note:
It appears that some Supras, perhaps the later vvti ones, have small terminals so either you need a battery with small terminal posts, or replace the terminals with more ‘normal’ sized ones.

-Ian

carl0s
19-03-08, 20:24
Halfords HCB005 calcium battery is now £82.99 in my local Halfords. Not such good value any more.

juanchan
19-03-08, 20:36
Halfords HCB005 calcium battery is now £82.99 in my local Halfords. Not such good value any more.

I noticed that a few weeks ago when I considered buying one to replace mine.

Sharpie
19-03-08, 20:46
4yr guarantee now.