yes sir! The acid is forming inside the trunk. I seem to remember hearing reason "why", but I cannot remember for sure.
Usually this happens for one of two reasons. 1) cracked case. You'd know if this is the reason. 2) overcharging. If the battery is overcharging, it's cooking and spitting acid out from the vent caps. Bad situation because, other than damaging the surrounding area from the acid escaping, because it can cause the battery to explode.
Get an "Optima" gel filled one and mount it sideways, upside down, whatever you prefer. End of problem and get more cranking amps too. JMO.
All conventional lead acid batteries vent fumes which is normal. What I was talking about is an overcharging condition where the battery is nearly boiling and it spits out contents of the battery. Mechanics call this 'cooking' of the battery. I've seen this before and it is a dangerous condition.
Never put a regular lead acid battery in without being in a case vented to the outside. The gas is Hydrogen and explosive. Over charging will show it'self by the battery needing water much too often as well as indications all over the terminals and the top of the case. It is an easy matter to test the charging system for faults by using an LED test stick at about $8 from Radio Shack. It will tell a lot of things if you learn to interpet the lamps from the user instruction sheet, and how they act with starting, charging and running etc. Briefly, after starting, the regulator senses the lower battery voltage and raises the alternator voltage output forcing higher current to flow back to the battery. As the battery voltage rises the regulator reduces the charge down to a normal 13.6 to maintain the current the ignition takes and other accessories. If the charge rate remains high from a fault or even a bad battery, it overcharges causing electrolite boil. The results of this is lost water, gassing, a mess, corrosion and shortened battery capacity and life, over time. We use an Optima red top in the sprint car and does very well at some 800 cranking amps. .................................................................................. Dave, take a look at www.silverspringspeedway.com. You might enjoy the photos and the racing news. The only other Ford power placed second in the 100 lap feature with a motor not running full on. We are only in our third time out with our Ford powerd car and it also has the power. Will be giving it hell next season.
Thanks Ken, just what I needed to jog the old memory and savor days gone by for me. Can almost smell the fuel and hear the R's of a fine tuned engine coming off the corner in that distinctive slide. I also run the red top battery, can't say enough about them. As the old saying goes, you get what you pay for. Which car number do you guys have and is it a 358 class? Eating dirt is good for the body and soul, wish I could do it again. Will spend much time viewing the link today. Great stuff.
Hello, Dave. Yes the class is 358 cu/in on alky. As you see, the cars get wild front lifts down the straights. This is not always good. You see some have the front wheels turned to the right. This is not too good because as soon as the car is tapped in heavy traffic and the wheels come down, the car can go into the outside wall on the straight aways. The driver can't respond fast enough to all those conditions. The big right rear tire is the cause of the pull to the left the driver tries to correct for. We had that the first time out but changed the chassis setup and all but eliminated it. Many run this way for years and never catch on, about it. The photogs only got a few shots of the car so far, #27. My guy needs his seat time and is reluctant to go full power until he sneaks up on the venture because he has found the motor has as much power as the rest and is still able to drag with the others down the straights even though not running full tilt off the turns. 550 hp is a lot to get used to very quickly. Check in often and see what goes on up here. You will see there are 77 cars registered and about 55 show up every sat. nite. A very high attendence for any track. Talk with you again and enjoy.
