The rechargeable battery is one of the fundamental elements of any modern car, because without it, not only the initial start of the engine is practically impossible, but also the operation of other electronic systems. But which one to choose in the huge variety on the market?
The answer to this question is possible only after full-fledged tests in "combat" conditions, to which the batteries of the "European" standard size 242x175x190 mm, both domestic and foreign production (both of those and those of six), fell.
It so happened in Russia that foreign products are held in high esteem in our country, and most motorists choose exactly those products where the brand is indicated in the Latin alphabet. And this opinion is shared by many Russian manufacturers, which is why AKOM, Tyumen Battery Premium, Titan Euro Silver and SilverStar batteries bear foreign names. Only "The Beast" and "Tyumensky Bear" are not shy about the Cyrillic alphabet.
But, as they say, “they are greeted by their clothes, but escorted by their minds,” therefore, discarding all prejudices about names, you should check the battery in the case. And here the Russian “representatives” showed themselves from a very good side, even against the background of such a “star team of the world” as Delkor, Bosh, Multi Silver Evolution, Exide Premium, VARTA Blue Dynamic and Topla.
Well, it's time to start a cycle of real tests, and the first of them was the assessment of the reserve capacity - it shows how long a car can operate at night in cold rainy weather with a faulty generator. Results are measured in minutes, and the longer the time, the better the battery. The winner of this test was the Tyumen Battery Premium, which lasted 110 minutes, and just a little - 1 and 3 minutes, respectively - Topla and Exide Premium lost to it. The worst was Delkor with only 91 minutes (the only competitor with less than 100 minutes).
The next test criterion is to check the starting energy with the declared current, which characterizes the battery energy in the starting mode and measured in kilojoules (the higher the final figures, the better). The palm in this discipline again went to the Russian battery Tyumen Battery Premium with an indicator of 29.13 kJ, while SilverStar is an outsider - only 7.58 kJ.
To compare the current characteristics of the batteries taken under equal conditions, without paying attention to the data indicated in the passport, the reduced starting energy with a single current of 525 A. It is measured in kilojoules, and it is better when the result is higher. As in the previous tests, the Tyumen Battery Premium has perched on the first line of the rating, producing 35.39 kJ, while other representatives of the “top three” yielded to it significantly: Topla - 27.29 kJ, Zver - 25.46 kJ. The last position went to SilverStar - only 6.88 kJ.
The following measurements were taken by analogy with the previous test and were recorded in similar units, but at a temperature of -29 degrees Celsius. The highest result was once again demonstrated by the "Russian" Tyumen Battery Premium, who collected 10.44 kJ, and the worst were three batteries at once, which completely failed after a short period of time - SilverStar, AKOM and Delkor.
Only in a single discipline all batteries showed approximately equal results and passed the test with a decent margin - this is a charge acceptance at a constant external voltage. It characterizes the ability of the battery to return to full performance after a deep discharge.
Main battery rating:
- Tyumen Battery Premium;
- Topla;
- Exide Premium;
- Tyumen Bear;
- The beast;
- Titan Euro Silver;
- Bosch;
- Multi Silver Evolution;
- VARTA Blue Dynamic;
- AKOM;
- SilverStar Plus;
- Delkor.
But what about the tested batteries with "survivability" without recharging, that is, with the ability to retain charge after months of inactivity in an unheated room? And this question is very interesting, because old batteries, in which there was an increased content of antimony (it accelerated the process of water electrolysis), after a month lost their charge. In modern batteries, antimony is replaced by calcium, which is why they not only hold a charge longer, but also do not require maintenance.
Electric charge (amount of electricity) is measured in pendants, and how good are they in new batteries? An additional test took 120 days, and during this time the ambient temperature varied from –21 to +23 degrees Celsius. The test participants were completely deprived of attention (no maintenance and recharging), and after the expiration of the allotted period, they were placed in a freezer for a day at –18 degrees Celsius.
Having passed all these "bullying", the batteries underwent new tests - discharge with a single current of 315 A with voltage control at the terminals after 30 seconds of discharge. Each of the "experimental" after a four-month inactivity was able to spin a conventional starter, and even none of them sank below 8 V.
The Tyumen Battery Premium became the unconditional champion, and together with it only Exide Premium, Topla and Varta Blue Dynamic showed the voltage at the terminals above 9 V. Not surprisingly, SilverStar had the worst result - 8.03 V.
Of course, modern batteries are resistant to lack of attention, but even a new battery must be charged before being installed in a car. The fact is that most sellers do not bother with this issue, so even a freshly purchased battery can fail after a short period of operation.
Additional battery rating (retention):
- Tyumen Battery Premium;
- Exide Prime;
- VARTA Blue Dynamic;
- Topla;
- Multi Silver Evolution;
- The beast;
- Tyumen Bear;
- Bosch;
- Titan Euro Silver;
- AKOM;
- Delkor;
- SilverStar Plus.
The winner of the test is obvious - it was the Tyumen Battery Premium, which showed the highest possible rating and was "ahead of the rest" in all disciplines. In addition to this, it turned out to be the best in terms of price and quality ratio. In general, the reputation of domestic batteries was damaged only by AKOM and SilverStar, but Tyumenskiy Medved, Zver and Titan Euro Silver received good ratings and entered the "TOP-6".
If we take the average indicators, then the “Russians” turned out to be much better than the “world team” both in terms of characteristics and in terms of value for money. But this does not mean that the domestic market will be able to do without foreign products - after all, four home brands are not able to fully satisfy the existing demand for car batteries.
