• Hi Guest!
    If you appreciate British Car Forum and our 25 years of supporting British car enthusiasts with technical and anicdotal information, collected from our thousands of great members, please support us with a low-cost subscription. You can become a supporting member for less than the dues of most car clubs.
    There are some perks with a member upgrade!
    **Upgrade Now**
    (PS: Subscribers don't see this gawd-aweful banner
Tips
Tips

Which battery...

Share this page

I went to the auto parts store last fall with some dimensions (width & length of battery tray, with an idea of high it should be)& post location, as I thought it would be up to me to find a good size... my jobber asked me what it was for... I joked about the chances of them having the correct one... shut my mouth - he typed it in, and 2 options came up one was shown as recommended replacement "correct-fit" & the other was a more universal fit-all, I walked to the back shelf "correct-fit" was in stock & was perfect dimensions, looked much better than the one that P.O. had put in - to small, looked out of place in the tray.

It is an Exide 78DT-72, 850 cold cranking amps. Only complaint is that it has side post & top post but I understand most replacement batterys have the side post these days, no big deal I just left the plugs in & used the correct top post's...
 
What you got was a "universal" battery in GM group size 78 (which was used mainly in Caddys.) That's why it has both sets of terminals (DT stands for dual terminal). The only thing that'll fit in mine is a group 51 which is a Honda battery. I think it might actually be a 51R. ( R for reverse as the positive is on the other side IIRC.) Sounds like you had a 26 in there before.

I like Optima as they don't leak.
 
- that's some good info. I never knew how to debunk the numbers.
Ya "correct fit" is a loose term as I guess the most accurate would be the repo "tar top's" that moss sells...
The other option they had looked exactly like the one the PO had put in the car so maybe it was the "26" that you mention... looked kinda funny in there.
Thanks for the info.
 
I keep seeing group 24 and group 51R mentioned in various sources.
 
Billm said:
My '69 takes a size 24, is that the changover year?
Click to expand...

I think it's the 24 for everything but the 1500 cars, but I could be incorrect.
Stupid catatlog shows 24 for my car, but the only way it'll work is if you take the heater out.





Jer, battery numbers are real easy.

1st should be group size, (26 and 70 are the smallest but usually have more power than the cheapest 24, so don't let the size fool you. I can crank the 360 in my Jeep truck w/ the riding mower battery alone, which is even smaller.)

Second is post type or orientation. (DT, R but you won't see SP for side post as the group size dictates this (70, 75, 78)

Third is month of warranty. In your case 72 months.

Fourth is the ammount you'll be overcharged for a battery that should cost no more than $39.
 
Kate in Elko has a '74 (1275) that needs the smaller battery, I think that it was when they changed the heater style that they went to the smaller battery.
BillM
 
I installed an Optima 8071-167 D51 YellowTop Dual Purpose Battery (in my /74) and have been able to forget about low voltage, spilled acid and maintenance ever since. It's quite small, fits with room to spare, is deep cycle and cost $ 130 thru Amazon. Very happy with the purchase.

Size: 9 5/16" x 5 1/16" x 8 15/16" tall, Weight: 26 pounds
 
I totally agree with Jimmy74. The battery acid coming through the heater used to eat holes in my Levis. I will never have to worry about that again or rebuilding the battery platform. Rejoice!

Oh yea, and it's yellow.

Walter
 
okay I have a question - on my newly aquired 1974 Midget, the battery is a type 51R which comes as a recommended replacement, however this causes the posts to be on the firewall side - is this correct ? I'm just used to the posts being on the heater box side on my 67, of course it takes a bigger battery with different heater box, just wanted to confirm that the connections should be on the firewall side on the 74 type Midgets.

Thanks in advance
 
X3 on the Optimas. I have one of those battery tray liners
AND an Optima. Just in case. :wink:
 
yes Optimas are very nice - my car came with a brand new battery so until then... - is it normal for the posts to be that close to the firewall ?
 
well after searching the "Horler Bible" the posts are towards the heater box on the later ones just like the earlier ones, so if you have a 74 type arrangement, don't use the "51R" style battery which puts the post against the firewall (if your ground cable is on the left & postive cable on the right) you will want a "51" instead which puts the posts towards the heater box, which looks better & safer !
 
Who am I to argue with the Bible but...
I have a factory '74 brochure that shows the
posts against the firewall, neg on driver's side.
I'm just sayin'......

Paul
 
hmmm - interesting - a brochure does carry some weight as well - well I have to admit I feel better with the clamps away from the firewall, maybe it isn't so bad with factory clamps, mine have the universal clamps on the cable... the mystery continues !
 
The bible isn't always correct.
Like the picture of the air filters with the drain holes pointing up.
All Spridgets had the battery posts against the firwall, this is why most Spridgets have rusted out spots where the battery terminals were next to the firewall. OK, so it was a design flaw which showed up 20 years or so after the design. Unless you are going dead nuts original or concours, put the battery posts AWAY from the firewall. It is also a good idea to get a plastic or not metal battery retainer bar. I had a battery short out against that metal bar, it welded itself to it and things could have gotten alot worse.
I use a strip of wood as my hold down these past 20 years, it can not short out and it will not corrode. All I do is check it for termites every now and then :wink:
 
Back
Top