Spiral Plate Battery - Diesel Engine

WARNING: This page is about a different car, the 2005 Jeep Liberty. However, it is still accessible from the selected car via links, so may be relevant.

Vehicles equipped with a diesel engine utilize a spiral wound plate designed battery with recombination technology. This is a maintenance-free battery that is capable of delivering more power than a conventional battery. This additional power is required by a diesel engine during cold cranking.

Spiral plate technology takes the elements of traditional batteries - lead and sulfuric acid - to the next level. By tightly winding layers of spiral grids and acid-permeated vitreous separators into cells, the manufacturer has developed a battery with more power and service life than conventional batteries the same size. The spiral plate battery is completely, permanently sealed. Through gas recombination, hydrogen and oxygen within the battery are captured during normal charging and reunited to form the water within the electrolyte, eliminating the need to add distilled water. Therefore, these batteries have non-removable battery vent caps. Water cannot be added to this battery.

The acid inside an spiral plate battery is bound within the vitreous separators, ending the threat of acid leaks. This feature allows the battery to be installed in any position anywhere in the vehicle.

Spiral plate technology is the process by which the plates holding the active material in the battery are wound tightly in coils instead of hanging flat, like conventional batteries. This design has a lower internal resistance and also increases the active material surface area.

WARNING: NEVER EXCEED 14.4 VOLTS WHEN CHARGING A SPIRAL PLATE BATTERY. PERSONAL INJURY AND/OR BATTERY DAMAGE MAY RESULT.

Due to the maintenance-free design, distilled water cannot be added to this battery. Therefore, if more than 14.4 volts are used during the spiral plate battery charging process, water vapor can be exhausted through the pressure-sensitive battery vents and lost for good. This can permanently damage the spiral plate battery. Never exceed 14.4 volts when charging a spiral plate battery. Personal injury and/or battery damage may result.

Batteries are used to store electrical energy potential in a chemical form. When an electrical load is applied to the battery terminals, an electrochemical reaction occurs within the battery. This reaction causes the battery to discharge electrical current.