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What is a Car Battery?

A car battery is a battery designed primarily for engine starting. Unlike other types of battery (such as leisure batteries) which are designed to perform best under slow drain situations, a car battery must be able to push a high burst of energy which will allow the car engine to start.

As the car battery is the heart of your vehicle's electronics system, we recommend fitting the highest quality car battery that your budget will stretch to get the ultimate performance from your car over the longest period possible.

Car Battery Technologies

Wet Batteries - A traditional car battery is known as a wet (or flooded) battery. In its basic form, this is a strong plastic (usually ABS) container which contains lead plates submerged in a dilute liquid electerolyte solution. These must be kept upright to avoid spillage. Batteries have been produced this way for many, many years.

AGM Batteries - Absorbent Glass Mat (AGM) batteries were developed in the 1980s and feature a fibreglass matting which surrounds the lead plates with the electrolyte absorbed within it. The major benefits are that the battery becomes spill proof (and so can be theoretically mounted in any position), has far better vibration resistance and is better able to deep cycle (survive multiple deep discharging and recharging). They also (for various technical reasons) are more reliable than their wet counterparts. The downside is that AGM batteries are more expensive to produce. AGM batteries are factory fitted to the majority of premium Start Stop vehicles.

EFB Batteries - Enhanced Flooded (EFB) Batteries are best described as a hybrid between wet and AGM batteries. They are designed to provide many of the benefits of an AGM battery such as increased reliability and deep cycle capabilities without the high cost. EFB batteries are fitted as standard to many entry level Start Stop vehicles.