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12V battery = Yuasa ?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Korozive, Jan 15, 2013.

  1. Korozive

    Korozive Junior Member

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    I really need a 12V aux battery for my '08 Prius. I called Toyota, the price is .... 202$ + taxes !!

    Other than that, I can't find yet a Optima reseller in Canada.

    But then I called Battery Expert and the lady told me about a "Yuasa" brand. Does it work, with the poles orientation and venting ?

    I'm selling the car after, so if I can find a new battery cheaper than 202+tx, it would be nice.
    What are your thoughts about this ?
    Thanks
     
  2. usnavystgc

    usnavystgc Die Hard DIYer and Ebike enthusiast.

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    Yuasa is the original equipment battery on a Prius. It should be an original fit with no mods required.
     
  3. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    The other battery to look out for is an Exide Edge FP-AGM51JIS about $160. Direct fit same posts same layout.

    John (Britprius)
     
  4. Korozive

    Korozive Junior Member

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    Ok the lady called me back. The model # is NS40ZL for 130$. Sounds very good to me, but I'd rather listen to experts here. What do the numbers mean ?
     
  5. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    The 40 almost certainly Means 40 amp/hr capacity the "L" on the end probably means "positive terminal is on the left" that is also correct, this is always designated with the terminals close to you.

    John (Britprius)
     
  6. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    Just checked it out, this battery should be fine but my assumption that the battery was 40 amp/hr was incorrect it is 35 amp/hr. I should point out that this is not an AGM battery but a standard liquid acid battery, this does not affect it's operation but it does contain more free liquid acid than the OEM.

    John (Britprius)
     
  7. jadziasman

    jadziasman Prius owner emeritus

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    Not a good idea to install a lead acid battery in the passenger compartment in the unlikely event that the battery vent hose should become clogged or in the more likely event that should your Prius happen to get rear ended there's a chance that the battery case might split upon impact, showering you and your cargo with battery acid. Not worth the risk to save a few $$$.
     
  8. dorunron

    dorunron Senior Member

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    Be sure to check the negative and positive post locations. All of the information I can find online is showing the post's to be opposite of the battery that fits the Prius.

    MF Auto Battery (NS40ZL 12V36AH) - China Mf Auto Battery,Mf Car Battery


    Century Car Battery - NS40ZL, 330CCA - Supercheap Auto Australia


    NS40ZL - 12V 35AH

    Ron
     
  9. JimboPalmer

    JimboPalmer Tsar of all the Rushers

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  10. dorunron

    dorunron Senior Member

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    Sure looks reversed to me! Studying the PDF further plainly shows that the post's are the big one's too!

    The PDF plainly says that the terminals are "A" and the layout is "2". Looking at the pictures and size's being called out it appears that the post's are reversed and the size of the post's are NOT the pencil post, but rather the standard size post's that are used in regular batteries.

    I think the OP is being mislead.

    Ron
     
  11. Korozive

    Korozive Junior Member

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    Thanks for all your input.

    I'm a bit surprised, because we did talk about the pencil posts (from what an optima 51D did have the big post and I needed the pencil ones).

    She also told me they just installed exactly one like this in a Prius last week.

    hmmmmmm......
     
  12. dorunron

    dorunron Senior Member

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    The information that I posted is based on what I am seeing online. The Prius battery is designed where the post's are one side of the battery. If you had the battery sitting in front of you, and you had the longest side facing you with the posts on the side closest to you then you would be looking at the battery exactly as it is viewed in the Prius from the center of the car looking toward the outer side wall. The negative post would be on your right, and the positive post would be on your left. When you view all of the websites and the PDF file, it does appear that the positive post is on the right, whereas it should be on the left. Furthermore in the PDF file, the number NS40ZL is listed as a old part#. When you look on the right hand side of the chart, it plainly states the terminal's to be diagram A and the post configuration to be layout 2. When you study the diagram and layout, it is pretty obvious that something is not right.

    http://www.gsbattery.com/PDFs/Conventional%2012%20Volt.pdf

    Ron
     
  13. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    Well, that could be, if the installer changed the battery terminal connectors and the customer tolerates the battery terminals only being an inch or so away from the sheet metal fender. The latter is a safety issue, if the right rear fender is impacted in an accident and the positive terminal contacts the sheet metal, potentially causing tremendous sparking and localized heating of the metal.

    If this is a conventional liquid acid battery, then there is an additional safety issue in the event of an accident that impacts the battery case and allows the release of the acid.
     
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  14. uart

    uart Senior Member

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    I have to admit I was considering getting this battery
    Century Car Battery - NS40Z, 330CCA - Supercheap Auto Australia
    a few weeks back as I could get it for about 90 bucks (compared with about $300 for either oem or the optima here in Oz).

    In the end I balked at it for the safety concerns outline by Patrick above. Just checking though, would the terminals have fitted properly with this one?
     
  15. usnavystgc

    usnavystgc Die Hard DIYer and Ebike enthusiast.

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    Am I missing something here? When I look at the .pdf, I see where the NS40ZL is only listed on the bottom chart and that chart does not detail the layout or terminal size. I do see where the NS40ZL (S) is listed as an old part # for the 36B20L(S).

    I found this pic of one and it sure looks like the pencil posts but the layout does look wrong.

    Yuasa NS40ZL - Yuasa

    Judging by this chart,(YUASA) the NS40Z is the battery that has the right layout and posts but the dimensions are smaller than the OEM. My concern about this battery is the fact that it is a standard battery (which means you have to add water to it periodically). I would not purchase this battery myself.


    I found this battery
    AGM Toyota Prius Auxiliary Battery - Made in the USA: BatteryMart.com
    which is a direct fit with the right layout, the right posts, SLA and 46ah capacity for $154. I can't vouch for it but it looks like a stock battery rebranded.

    I'm sure this battery (the NS40Z or NS40ZL) may "fit" and it may "work" but it is def less than ideal (to say the least) for this application. I would recommend either the OEM battery from the dealer, the Optima or the one in the link above.
     
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  16. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    Good find!

    The original equipment Yuasa battery is made in Japan. Ron in Houston recently bought a battery from a local Toyota dealership and believes that battery was sourced from a US supplier, so maybe BatteryMart is an alternate retailer for that.
     
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  17. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Was the $202 price the OP mentioned including installation? I mean: with possible extra charges for shipping, and possible compatibility issues, how much do you want to chase nickels and dimes?
     
  18. usnavystgc

    usnavystgc Die Hard DIYer and Ebike enthusiast.

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    I hear ya there.

    Is it worth driving all the way across town to say a penny a gallon?
     
  19. Korozive

    Korozive Junior Member

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    I was looking at this site posted above : YUASA

    And the model NS40ZL has the +/- on the wrong side ... but right under there is that NS40Z that seems fine (same thing but +/- on good side).

    I'm at work and can't really look for anything, what are the dimensions and specs of the OEM battery ?

    If the Oprima equivalent is DS46B24R (I guess these numbers are general for all brand) than the correct number at Yuasa should be also NS60 (which is also 46B24R).

    Thanks for all your sites, sadly from Canada shipping kills the deal 99% of the time.



    No in Canada the price for the battery only is 202$ excluding labour. If I remember correctly, it was 35$ cheaper in 2012.
     
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