new battery for e-tec

[colt100]

I need to replace my starting battery for my 40 HP e-tec. The manual says min of 640 CCA. Can i put a bigger battery in without causing any harm? I have my electronics, lights, ect hooked up to the starting battery and alot of the time, I not running my motor for any length of time to recharge the battery as I fish alot of small lakes. I was looking at possibly an optima battery but it has more cca then the battery that came with the boat (650 CCA @ 32 F). The optima has (IIRC) 750 or 800 CCA with about the same dimentions as the origional battery.

I just want to make sure that I'm not going to buy something that will hurt my engine.

[Hot Runr Guy]

You can install as large a battery as you want, as long as it is a 12volt battery. Think of the CCA/MCA & RC #s as a "savings" account. The higher the capacity numbers, the longer it can provide 12 volts before being run down.
Here's a WC member with an Optima 34M starting battery at a pretty good price in the swap board. http://www.walleyecentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=151661
HRG

[seahorse]

It is important to fasten the battery cables using lockwashers and hex nuts tightened with a wrench, per the owners and service manual. DO NOT use the battery wing nuts- they can loosen and cause electrical problems.

[colt100]

What kind of electrical problems can be caused by using the wingnuts? I always used the wing nuts in the past and except for removing the starting battery onve or twice a season to do a trickle charge, I never had a problem with the connections.

[Johnnielund]

Lockwashers and nuts is per the E-Tec owners manual. It is important. Wingnuts will loosen with vibration and cause poor contact. In my opinion Seahorse is an E-Tec expert, what he says is gospel.

[colt100]

Never knew that. Boat was set up from dealer with the wingnuts so that's what I've used for the past 3 years. I'll have to look into getting it set up properly. Thanks

[seahorse]

Never knew that. Boat was set up from dealer with the wingnuts so that's what I've used for the past 3 years. I'll have to look into getting it set up properly. Thanks

Ever read the owners manual?

[phowler]

Ever read the owners manual?

Apparently the dealer never read the owners manual.

Personally I had never heard of useing anything but wing nuts on boat batteries until buying an E-Tec, but then again I had never owned a boat / motor where it probably would have mattered.

I find it sad that the dealer wouldn't know this.

[seahorse]

For almost 25 years OMC and now BRP have preached, taught, trained, and wrote that wing nuts should not be used. Every factory trained mechanic has gotten it drilled into him or her, it was mentioned at every annual service update seminar, at factory training centers, by the service reps who visit the dealerships, and it is published in owners manuals and service manuals.

Yamaha says the same thing for their large EFI motors and I'll bet there is something in the Mercury Opti and Verado literature also about not using wing nuts on the batteries.

http://i213.photobucket.com/albums/cc281/originalseahorse/BatteryConnection-nowingnuts.jpg

[colt100]

Ever read the owners manual?


Yes I have, several times but must have skipped over that part as I'm not rigging my boat. I mainly re-read the sections on winterizing and taking it out of storage. I just looked up that part and will be rigging my batterys per the manual.