The Right Battery is Critical for Automotive Start-Stop Technology

Start-Stop technology helps to reduce carbon emissions and fuel consumption by turning off your engine every time the vehicle comes to a stop. This puts severe micro-cycle demands on the battery as it is required to support all of the vehicle's electrical systems during engine-off periods. Batteries in Start-Stop systems must support more starts per year than they used to be required to in a lifetime. 

Automotive starting batteries are operated under the most extreme temperature conditions and must be able to deliver high cold cranking amps (CCA) consistently. Passenger vehicles with start-stop systems can result in up to 30,000 starts annually, and commercial vehicles with a start-stop system can register well over 100,000 starts annually. Starting batteries are constantly micro-cycled by key-off loads and must support rapid recharging between short engine on/off periods. Starting battery failure is most commonly caused by acid stratification, extreme temperatures and destructive vibration. Other electronic loads can constantly place a significant high cycle load on vehicle batteries. 

While Start-Stop technology helps to reduce carbon emissions and fuel consumption, Anti-Idle legislation mandates that commercial and emergency vehicles not idle engines during a pick-up, drop-off or rest periods putting severe high-cycle demands on the battery as it is required to support load loads with the engine off. High Cycle Start-Stop Anti-Idle batteries are designed for discharges up to 30%. Enhanced Flooded (EFB) Start-Stop batteries are designed for discharges up to 17.5%. Regular Flooded SLI batteries are designed for discharges of less than 3%.