Posted on 08/14/2015 7:36:11 AM PDT by Red Badger
Ohm is a 6-pound drop-in replacement for your car battery. What's not to like about what it claims to deliver. It never needs jump-starting. Works on the coldest days (in temperatures as low as -40C). Lasts more than twice than lead-acid batteries, which go for three years. Here, you are looking at a 7-year average lifetime. No lead, no acid. When Ohm says it is a drop-in replacement they mean that it is installed in the same way.
The site says to "remove the positive and negative leads from your old battery, drop in Ohm, and reattach the lead to Ohm (red/positive lead first to prevent sparking)."
Also, Ohm is "smart" enough to prevent accidental draining if the driver forgets to turn off the lights. It can automatically turn itself off when critically low and switch back on when the driver starts the car.
How it works: There is a "burst of energy" for starting the engine which comes from a bank of supercapacitors. When the engine is not running, the supercapacitors are kept charged by a small array of batteries.
As for materials the company said its supercapacitors are mostly carbon. The batteries are LiFePO4 (lithium iron phosphate.)
As for dimensions, Ohm's are 9.0"x6.8"x6.8", and will fit Group 35 batteries. "It will also fit in most cars above Group 35, but may require some extra fixturing, " according to the site.
When will you see Ohm in the marketplace? Not yet. Greg Kumparak, an editor at TechCrunch, reported that Ohm is in private beta testing and they plan to roll out a crowdfunding campaign in the next month or so. The website, meanwhile, said they plan to ship Ohm early to mid-2016.
Kumparak of TechCrunch addressed the question of price. He said he was told by the company that they aim for a price point of around $200. Kumparak said that would put it "on the high end of what you'd normally pay for a battery ($120-$180) if you wandered into your local auto parts store."
Nonetheless, viewers might find the pricing amenable considering how long it lasts and some other benefits."Conventional car batteries contain dangerous acid and are responsible for over 24 million pounds of environmental lead contamination each year. Ohm has no lead, no acid, and is safe for the environment." Another promotion point being highlighted by Ohm is its light weight. "It's the easiest, most affordable way to instantly drop 30 pounds or more from your curb weight by switching from a lead-acid battery."
Explore further: New battery could lead to cheaper, more efficient solar energy
More information: www.getohm.com/
I think I'll stick with the regular batteries for now.
Depending on the weight, if lighter than regular batteries, this could be a great battery for kayaks and small boats.
Lithium batteries used now cost $1200 and up.
If people like Porsche and Ferrari start using it, and they would if it’s a good product just for the weight savings on a performance car, then maybe it’s time to get one.
He crashed a spaceship in 1947 to give us transistors. They got this story about Bardeen and Brattain (made up names for aliens if I ever heard 2) at Bell Labs. Yeah! Right! ME 262s? 10 years later SR-71. It's aliens.
Las, it is really powered by pin ups ;-)
A 30 lb weight save is a big driver to get OEM placement.
Agreed. We got lasers from aliens too.
Big difference....
Nice concept.
When the Japaneese manufacturers start fitting them on their home market cars it will be time to move.
(Thanks for the pings.)
Here, a local battery store gives $5 each for used car batteries.........................
I was wondering how often you need to feed the gerbils.
They ought to call them DieHEAVY......................
Actually, my Bel Air Sedan is 3200 lbs. The new top of line Camaro is 3,702 to 4,374 lbs. My 67 Camaro convertible is 3,200 stock and I will be able to drop its weight by 300 lbs.
What kills the gas mileage most is the transmissions. I want to swap to the 7004 4 speed which will get my cars up around 16 mpg.
Lead has become increasing expensive over the last, oh say, 7 or so years...............I wonder why?...............................
Modern Civilization is based on the availability of TWO metals. One is GOLD, the other is LEAD................................
Might get one of these as a backup. Car batteries and Michigan winters don’t always get along.
Since it is made by Ohm, it will be hard to resist.
Try electronic ignitions and a new Holley Economaster................
Oh, try just one Mho,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
I recently replaced two 10 yr old batteries as they were not holding enough charge to do winter starting. Both were in VW Jetta TDI vehicles. I’m guessing that they did so well because they are large capacity to start with (glow plugs plus Diesel cranking needs), the charging system was well designed and it could be that the battery design was superior. Two out of two with the same life is not likely an outlier. YMMV
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