The Future is Here

Today’s Ultra-Light Lithium-Ion Batteries Pack a Big Punch

When I first built our yellow and white Level 7 squarebody truck, I said that I would make changes to the truck as I learned or new technology was available. My personality is also one that wants to stay on top of technology and trend so I am always trying to learn more. Throughout my years as a builder, we have always struggled to stay on top of who is building the best battery. Most of our clients are fair weather drivers and invest a decent amount of money into these trucks. They are more motorsport minded guys who want to take their trucks auto crossing, run them at a few track day events, and even take their wife to dinner on Saturday night. Then in the off season they spend a lot of time in storage. This type of owner/driver wants a battery that is very reliable, lasts 5-7 years, can survive vibration, and never inconveniences them with a no-start situation. 

The typical lead-acid battery can last 5-7 years, but definitely can’t take the vibration and will more than likely be dead in the spring if not on a maintenance charger. Not to mention, the highly toxic materials that make up these batteries – sulfuric acid and lead – are extremely dangerous to the environment. 

We spent years trying to find a good source for a sealed AGM battery but had little success with almost every brand we tried. 10 years ago, you could buy an AGM battery that lasted the entire ownership of the vehicle. Over the years, the quality of manufacturing has fallen so low that people are replacing them at a very high rate and their cost is still very high. This is how we came across the Antigravity brand Lithium-Ion battery.

These batteries can be 70-80% lighter than your lead-acid battery. This is huge for us truck guys or any motorsport vehicle, for that matter. It is also the most cost-effective weight loss modification you can make. The ATX-30 battery that we use on our truck builds has 880 cranking amps and only weighs in at 5lb 5oz. Paired with the stainless-steel battery box that we manufacture; they have a total weight of only 9lb. With our battery box, you can place the unit on the frame rail in the area you find to be most beneficial. Losing weight off the truck will shorten braking distances, improve acceleration, and improve the physical handling. 

The power of an Antigravity battery can be two and a half times the starting power of a lead-acid battery of the same physical size. The higher power offers a faster start up, while maintaining a higher voltage during cranking. With EFI systems, aftermarket cruise control, etc., it is common to have issues where voltage drops below 10v during cranking. You will see the Antigravity maintain 13v during turn over, allowing the electronics to work more efficiently during starting. Lithium batteries also have the ability to withstand more discharge and recharge cycles than lead acid. They are rated at nearly double, so they will have a much longer service life. These deep discharges are what rapidly wears a battery. Antigravity also offers their batteries with Intelligent Restart Technology and the ATX-30 battery has this feature. If you have a parasitic drain, the battery will internally disconnect itself, or put itself to sleep, to prevent a discharge. Come spring time when you come out to start your truck, you would simply push the re-start button on the battery, and it will reconnect and allow you to start the truck. 

After nearly 2 years of using these batteries, we are very happy with the performance, zero maintenance, weight loss, and ability to mount them in smaller areas on our truck chassis.