Fitting A Different Battery Advice Needed!

[luki_uk]

Hi,

I have a toyota yaris 1.3 2005- that needs a new Battery. I would like to fit a Bosch s4 063 - however the Battery group for my car is 012

the only difference I can spot though, is that 063 batteries are 15mm shorter. Would it still be ok to fit one then?

012 / 063 comparison

Voltage 12 / 12

Ampere – Hour 45 / 45

CCA 360 / 380

Length (MM) 207 / 207

Width (MM) 175 / 175

Height (MM) 190 / 175

Weight (KG) 13 / 12

Terminal T1 / T1

info taken from here: www.puretyre.co.uk/car-battery-specification-chart/

thanks for the help!

[Madasafish]

You must - repeat MUST - ensure the terminal locations are the same. Or you will have all sorts of problems.

A bit shorter does not matter - but a LOT wider may do... The Battery fits in a space which is effectively adjustable using the clamps.. so small variations are tolerated. 15mm should be OK.

I would ring Euro Car Parts and ask them - they are VERY competitive in price and have a wide range..

[Mike169]

My first question would be is how is your Battery secured to the car, by a clamp at the base, a strap across the top or? Batteries must be 'bolted in' as such so of course a different size Battery must be able to fit securely.

A good place i know who know lots about batteries are Lincon Batteries, their phone number is 01702 525374, i am sure they will give you straight and honest advise.

[MikeSh]

I've used a slightly shorter Battery in a car - can't remember which now. The clamp wouldn't go down far enough, so I used some small bits of hardwood to fill the space. If it needs fillers don't use metal !!

[Mike169]

Just curious why you want to fit a different Battery anyway, is it because a 063 is cheaper as it's a popular one so maybe a bit cheaper and wondering how you are getting on?

I dunno if you know a Battery is basically just a Battery, what i meant by that is if the voltage is the same, output is the same although this can vary without importance but battery terminal types, position on battery, of terminals, types of terminal lug, clamping method.

Like you can fit a heavier capacity battery to a car say a diesel battery to a petrol car just for the greater storage capacity as long as it all fits, cables go on ok and it all clamps down.

I have some technical knowledge of all this as i own a boat and just removed 3 x 96ah truck type batteries of varying 'looks' and replaced them with 4 x 125 ah bigger ones making a battery tray and new cables (Called swaging) increasing the available capacity by from a questionable 288ah as one was a leisure battery up to 500ah giving much greater storage and cranking capacity.

Anyway sorry blabbing on, let us know how you get on?

[luki_uk]

Hi all, thanks for your answers!

I came on this forum after I spoke to the eurocarparts guys (online chat) where I was told that "every millimeter counts" - basically they said I should go with the 012.

The reason I wanted to fit a 063 is just cost, yes. However being the first time I have to replace a Battery, I preffered to ask you guys if it was fine to fit a different size one after having checked that voltage/output/terminals are all the same.

to answer the questions, the Battery is fitted with a clamp at the top - some hardwood as suggested will do the Battery will not be stable (someone reminded me it would be a mot failure if so).

I will be getting the 063 battery on saturday morning and fit it - and then I'll let you know! the good thing is that eurocarparts confirmed that they accept returns as long as it's not damaged, so worst case I can always go back and get the recommended one

[luki_uk]

Hello all,

just another post to let you know that I bought the Bosch s4 063. The only issue is that the clamp at the top does not keep the Battery firmly into position, however a bit of hardwood as suggested, did the job.

thanks again to all of you for the answers!

[t-spiritpete]

Why would you want to do that, bits of wood! .... just fit the correct Battery, a type 012 for only a few pounds more.

I've seen a car set on fire due to a wrong sized bodged fitted Battery, the passengers in the back seat were lucky to escape from this 2 door car!

Sorry but that's my opinion.

Pete.

[Mike169]

Well i have to agree with Pete above as now you have modified the car and for insurance terms you are on sticky ground to save say a tenner.

Also when you come to sell the car for a prospective buyer to see a lump of wood securing the Battery in then i would walk away not knowing what other bodges have been carried out on the vehicle.

The Battery must be securely fastened for MOT purposes and to save a few bob for the sake of economy just to buy a more popular and fast moving Battery is just ludicrous.

My advise to future battery purchasers is stay with the manufacturers genuine parts to maintain the vehicles value for the next several years.

[t-spiritpete]

Well i have to agree with Pete above as now you have modified the car and for insurance terms you are on sticky ground to save say a tenner.

Also when you come to sell the car for a prospective buyer to see a lump of wood securing the battery in then i would walk away not knowing what other bodges have been carried out on the vehicle.

The battery must be securely fastened for MOT purposes and to save a few bob for the sake of economy just to buy a more popular and fast moving battery is just ludicrous.

My advise to future battery purchasers is stay with the manufacturers genuine parts to maintain the vehicles value for the next several years.

Thanks Mike,

Later on I thought I may have been a bit rude to the OP and that's not like me but I feel quite strongly about safety issues!

Pete.

[MikeSh]

Well i have to agree with Pete above as now you have modified the car and for insurance terms you are on sticky ground to save say a tenner.

Also when you come to sell the car for a prospective buyer to see a lump of wood securing the battery in then i would walk away not knowing what other bodges have been carried out on the vehicle.

On that basis changing to a different tyre from OEM would put you on sticky ground, and for every other component. Provided the Battery is securely held (and that means the spacer must not be able to slip out) there is no safety problem. You haven't seen what the OP has done, so to call it a bodge at this point is just rude. (I'm not saying he hasn't bodged it, but there's no reason to assume he has.) As suggested he has use HARDwood, which shouldn't deteriorate, and if it's cut neatly to fit it will not be "a lump of wood"

Future resale is another matter. We have no idea if that is in his current plans, and as the car is 9 years old I don't know that a well made adaptation will have much effect on what value the car has left anyway.

[Mike169]

Hi Pete, thanks for adding me as a friend and looking at your profile i see we have led similar lives and have similar priorities, safety being a big one for me too. I have worked in garages from small ones to main dealers from cars to artic trucks and was an MOT tester for many years. I have also done 'container work' going into docks with the Scania artic truck i drove at the time, a 44 tonner, it was rather large! Tyres is another issue i am quite strict on and will take my time explaining to people why buying quality ones can actually work out cheaper in the long run apart from the enhanced grip and performance. I bought an older E class Mercedes for my wife to run around in as she does lots of miles and we wanted to 'save' our 12 plate Rav4 and one of the first things i did was to get the 4 odd tyres off the Mercedes and had 4 Michelin Primacy ones with the view of safety and should she be unfortunate to have a skid or whatever at least i know i have done the best i can to look after her beforehand.

Regards Mike169