HIQ batteries from eBay store--With UPDATES*

[DENWA]

Bought 4 pcs from HIQ Battery Ebay store. $1098.16 delivered to my door. Shipped from UPS which was very slow because of the holiday season.

Here is my opinion on them so far:

PRO:
1. Light weight-- ~21lbs each
2. Small for the 100Ah 12V design
3. Very nice gold plated terminals that come included
4. Price: they fluctuate but was able to get them on sale at $259 each plus tax with shipping included.
5. Says they are rated for 4 series 48V connection so we will see how that goes as we haven't charged them yet.
6. Handles are very useful design--more on them later.

CON:
1. The plastic handles and housing feel very inexpensive compared to other batteries I've purchased. I don't know if its ABS but feels like a cheap kids toy grade plastic.
2. Four batteries arrived in 2 separate boxes. 1 box was busted open on arrival and it seems they didn't use the best packing tape or protective foam.
3. Output voltages from factory 13.09, 13.07, 13.05, and 12.74V--not a cause for alarm but still makes you worry about their final test/quality check procedures or if they have any.
4. One of the batteries feels like the cell stack is loose and moving around on the inside-- this is concerning as if you turn it upside down you can feel the shift and a CLUNCK. Contacted the seller today, will keep you posted to their response.

Testing so far:

1. Connected them all in parallel and charged them to 14.40V at a 5 amp charge rate-- this gave them a good long time to top balance.
2. Removed from charger and allowed to sit overnight. All packs measured 14.35V before a quick test install into the golf cart.
3. Let the kids run it around the neighborhood for a few test laps-- Side notes-- Picture above was taken as a test and not the final install as we will replace the factory wires with bigger/equal length cables and install the battery hold downs but a new design. Also cart doesn't go any faster despite removal of ~250lbs of battery weight and the factory battery gauge still reads low but I've heard this before in lithium cart conversions.
4. Allowed it to sit overnight with the cart in TOW mode to remove any electronics drain. Measured the packs and all four measure 12.82V


Next steps:

Take them to the office and test them for capacity on the MACCOR battery tester as soon as it gets calibration completed but its been waiting for this for 6 weeks so it may take some time. I'll probably set them up for 14.6V charge at 10 amp charge/discharge rates to get best capacity and report back.

 

[DENWA]

Reply from HiQBATTERY:


All batteries are factory tested, but not tested again before shipping. Because they have less than 20% SOC at the factory, the voltage will vary, even if you receive a battery with 0V, this will not affect the use of the battery as long as it can be charged. For the internal loose battery should be careful not to put upside down, as long as the correct placement will not affect the use, if you are not sure, can be replaced for you. Thanks

 

[Delmar]

Thanks for the update on your project, please keep posting!

The cart is speed limited to around 11MPH and will not go faster regardless of battery power available. Accelerate faster due to lower weight and less voltage sag, yes. A taller tire will add speed.

How much driving dropped the voltage from 14.35V to 12.82V? Curious how accurate the claimed 100AH rating is. I don’t need the capacity for driving, I need capacity to run my 48V UPSverter during grid down.

Very surprised the rated 100A continuous discharge would accelerate the cart without a BMS shutting down. My AC motor cart will draw ~130A while accelerating or climbing hills, curious if a DC motor draws the same. Do you have a clamp meter to measure?

 

[DENWA]

I don't have a DC Clamp meter, I gave it away (aka loaned it to a friend and never came back) but the motor is rated at 2.6kW.

So I assume the rating is a 100% power which at 48V is like 54Amps.

I was wasn't keeping track on the test above but recently we've been checking and I believe it was 1.5 -1.7miles per lap and far from flat land and a few steep hills. We will have to do it very scientifically in the near future as work still doesn't have the battery tester working.

 

[DENWA]

I asked:

1. What is warranty time and how is warranty handled? Prorated or replacement and how long? What is process for Return of battery or approval to declare a defective and return? If battery does not meet the advertised capacity of 100Ah is it covered under warranty return?

2. Why does your ebay store have same items for sale at multiple different prices? for instance your 12V 125Ah batteries are $339 and $379 on your ebay store. Your 12V 100Ah batteries are $299, $309 and $329? Some would say this is deceptive pricing. Please comment.



They replied:

Hi, our warranty policy is free replacement and return within 30 days due to defects and failures, this includes insufficient capacity. After 30 days, free replacement or repair within 3 years, customers need to pay the shipping cost.
Our stores sell the same items, but sometimes a limited number of items are on sale or have different warranties or because of ebay promotions are priced differently . And low cost links are not always available. Usually the customer will choose the link with the lowest price available. Thanks

 

[camelCase]

I've got a couple of these batteries that have been doing OK so far (about six months of intermittent use). They both tested to just a bit over 100Ah. I'll be curious to know how these work out for you long term in what is a more demanding duty than mine are used for.