So i have a XS 16 volt battery and XS charger. This is the 3rd season on them both. 1st race of this yr my charger popped and had a small flame and smoked badly. I bought a new charger and have been fine every week until this past weekend. Went to start the car sat morning before time trials and it cranked slowly and stopped. Battery is completely dead. It will not charge at all. So the battery is junk now as well. So does XS stuff just not last? Both charger and battery needed replaced after only 2 seasons of racing. Have to buy a battery this week so should i look into another brand? Had several racers tell me Saturday that XS batteries are junk and to buy a different one.
My XS battery is eight seasons old. I almost never use the XS charger. I leave it hooked to an Autometer maintainer all the time. I’ll be buying another one when this one finally goes bad.
Truth be told, the battery is what most likely took out your first charger.
What type of battery were you running? AGM or lead/acid type? And is the charger the right one for the type of battery you are running?
Does XS have recommendations / guidelines to follow when charging their battery? With my Turbo Start lead/acid batteries I ran, they recommended that before each race, the battery charger be allowed to complete the charging cycle in full. It needed to go into "float mode" and that was near the end of the cycle. And to put the charger on the battery after each round if possible.
I am on my 3rd season on 2 XS 16v batts and they are going out as we speak. I also run a 16v alt. I have a dsr 16v charger. Seems to be about the life span from what I've heard. Supposedly, the c-tek pulse charger is what you want as it charges the battery different/better. I didn't use any batt tender or anything on mine during the winter and it's not a heated garage. So that doesn't help either.
I have the xp1000 series xs battery. The correct xs charger with float mode. Battery stays on charger all winter long in a heated garage. I literally just loaded the car 2 days before i went to the track Saturday. It turned over slow which was strange. Then come saturday there was nothing. Wouldn't even run the water pump. When the charger popped at the start of the season it was right when turned it off. Before i clould even turn to take cables off battery it popped and melted down.
The only thing I like about 16 volt batteries is how fast the engine turns over and how fast power windows work, that is it!
When they puke, whatcha gonna do? I stick with 12 volt crap, can always steal the battery out of my trailer or tow vehicle if I am desperate. I run a heavy ass battery in both of our race cars, group 34 or something. Think it weighs 50 pounds or more. Anyway, those bitches as great and I am not worried one bit about the weight, we slow the cars down for 10.00 and 11.50 Index Racing anyway.
A 16v battery below 14 volts is as useless as tits on a bull, they are DEAD! Seems crazy huh, since a 12v battery works just fine........... It's the way it is.
And OP, electronics are only good if you keep the magic smoke inside the semiconductors. Once you let it out, it no-worky no more! Sorry, just had to, I've done electronics all my life. You may be able to fix that charger, really surprised a fuse didn't pop first inside of it.
I always got at least 6 seasons out of the "Rock" battery. Never had and issue with them and i used a turbo start batteries charger.
I now have go lithium batteries going on 3rd season and they're perfect.
My D1000 lasted several seasons.
The turbo start before that did puke out at the track, so I did stick a 12V in and finished the event.
The only issue was the recessed plugs didn't work, so I had to charge from inside the car.
Just because you run a 16V doesn't mean you can't throw in a 12v in an emergency.
If you have a 16v alternator you are cutting the belt. And if you were Bracket Racing you better be the faster car the next round and know you are holding now! I have seen cars pickup between .01 and .1 losing an alternator belt during a pass (1/4 mile).
I had XS 16 V in my car. 2 seasons was all I got from it. I have the Go Lithium 16 V in it now. If you have a problem with a 16V battery you can always stick a 12 v in the car if needed. You just have to have a 12 v charger which I carry to charge the trailer batteries if needed.
I pulled one of the batteries from my truck to start the car but i had no charger so i just packed it up. Sounds like every 2 yrs i will have to replace a battery. I'll go back to 12 volt i think.
Well against my better judgement i ordered another XS battery yesturday from jegs. It came today and was covered in battery acid. Looks like someone took a grinder to the top of it and thats where it leaks. Box was in perfect condition.
That sucks. Sometimes even if lots of people are having good luck with something and you are not it is better for YOU to switch to something else. Case in point. I had a number of friends that were running Goodyear tires. Even though I had never had any luck with Goodyears I went ahead and bought a set. Total crap on my car. I wouldn’t run them again if you gave me some. Maybe it’s time for you to switch. Good luck!
for those who run a 16v battery with an alternator, your accessories dont have any issues with the 18.5-19 volts? (ignition, racepak, pumps, fan, etc)
Ive been looking at the two post and three post 16v rock battery but I still cant decide on which one because I dont think my electronics will handle more than 18v
The only issue I had was with the water pump. It was cavitating on 16, reduced the voltage on it and it works great. No other issues with anything else. Good luck!
BTW, I bought a three post Rock battery from a SS racer that was supposed to be nearly new when I first decided to try 16 volts. It was junk, probably not the battery’s fault since it was used. I didn’t bother trying to get my money back, I just bought a new XS battery and I’ve been running it ever since. YMMV
Got 4 cars all had 16v turbo start with turbo start chargers. 3 of them went bad in 2 weeks. Threw them all away bought red top Optima changed alt to 12v never looked back 3 years ago big blocks and small blocks. Put house of Payne starters on too cranks good round after round. But I have heard good things about the rock bat nice piece
I switched to 16 volt battery 7 years ago. I bought a rock battery and charger package. Battery was always plugged into the charger 24/7. The battery decided to take a shit on me in the staging lanes with 6 cars in a $5K race it was only 1.5 years old. Replaced it with a XS battery and have never looked back. Still using the Rock charger to this day
Im between a 14v xspower battery with an alternator or a 16v rock battery without alternator, which one do you think would be the best option for a bracket only race car? Is there another brand offering 14v batteries besides xs?
Not sure but I guess an alternator can help with battery life because you wouldnt need to charge the battery every round, right?
Im between a 14v xspower battery with an alternator or a 16v rock battery without alternator, which one do you think would be the best option for a bracket only race car? Is there another brand offering 14v batteries besides xs?
Not sure but I guess an alternator can help with battery life because you wouldnt need to charge the battery every round, right?
Definitely an alternator with either choice. My East Coast alternator has been flawless but House of Payne stuff comes highly recommended. Whatever you do, do not buy some Ebay POS thinking it’s the same. We changed out my friend’s at the last race when it took a dump.
Even if true, what in the frick good is that 0.10 when weather starts coming in and they give you 10 minutes between rounds!!!
Some guys just don't get it. I'm there to win rounds, not set personal best every week
Alternator is a must in bracket racing. Got my new rock battery and charger this week. Doesnt crank like my xs did which is strange but hopefully it lasts longer.
and if I go with the rock 16v battery and adjust the alternator to only 17volts, am I damaging the battery? I guess it would be safer for the electronics than the 18.5+ volts.
I'm switching my no-box car to the rock also.
Several very smart guys highly recommended them as long as you use their charger.
I guess it is pretty badass??
I'm switching my no-box car to the rock also.
Several very smart guys highly recommended them as long as you use their charger.
I guess it is pretty badass??
Battery is 4 pounds lighter then my xs was. Charger seems to be of higher quality but i dont know. They better be a good set up for 700 bucks it cost me.
I have used Go-Lithium batteries for years with zero issues, just over 9 lbs ea., 2 of them use the same space as 1 group 24. I have had Rock batteries as well with zero issues, I needed the .07 the weight difference gave me to run my index in the heat.
I run a msd digital 7+, udx racepak, biondo 450, electric water pump, spal 14"fan, transbrake, line lock, throttle stop, rons primer plus electric fuel pump, air compressor, front and rear lights, I dont know if all of this things could handle the 19volts, Im going to ask them for recommendations.
What electronics do you use?
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