Publication No: EN-ODY-TM-0002 - February 2015
www.odysseybattery.com
18
FREQUENTLY ASKED SLI BATTERY QUESTIONS
What is the CCA rating?
The cold cranking ampere (CCA) rating refers to the
number of amperes a battery can deliver for 30 seconds
at a temperature of -18°C before the voltage drops to 1.20
volts per cell, or 7.20 volts for a 12V battery. A 12V battery
that has a rating of 550 CCA means that the battery will
provide 550 amps for 30 seconds at -18°C before the voltage
falls to 7.20V.
What is the MCA rating?
The marine cranking ampere (MCA) rating refers to the
number of amperes a battery can deliver for 30 seconds at
a temperature of 0°C until the battery voltage drops to 7.20
volts for a 12V battery. A 12V battery that has a MCA rating of
725 MCA means that the battery will give 725 amperes for 30
seconds at 0°C before the voltage falls to 7.20V.
The MCA is sometimes called the cranking amperes or CA.
What is a HCA rating?
The abbreviation HCA stands for hot cranking amps. It is the
same as MCA, CA or CCA, except that the temperature at
which the test is conducted is 27°C.
What is the PHCA rating?
Unlike CCA and MCA the pulse hot cranking amp (PHCA)
rating does not have an “official” definition; however, we
believe that for true SLI purposes, a 30-second discharge is
unrealistic. The PHCA, a short duration (about 3-5 seconds)
high rate discharge, is more realistic. Because the discharge
is for such a short time, it is more like a pulse.
Are these gel cells?
No, the ODYSSEY
®
battery is NOT a gel cell. It is an absorbed
glass mat (AGM) type battery, meaning there is no free acid
inside the battery; all the acid is kept absorbed in the glass
mat separators. These separators serve to keep the positive
and negative plates apart.
What is the difference between gel cell and
AGM?
The key difference between the gel cell and the absorbed
glass mat (AGM) is that in the AGM cell all the electrolyte is in
the separator, whereas in the gel cell the acid is in the cells in
a gel form. If the ODYSSEY battery were to split open, there
would be no acid spillage! That is why we call the ODYSSEY
battery a Drycell battery.
What is the Ah rating?
The ampere-hour (Ah) rating defines the capacity of a battery.
A battery rated at 100Ah at the 10-hour rate of discharge will
deliver 10A for 10 hours before the terminal voltage drops to
a standard value such as 10.02 volts for a 12V battery. The
PC1200 battery, rated at 40Ah will deliver 4A for 10 hours.
What is reserve capacity rating?
The reserve capacity of a battery is the number of minutes
it can support a 25-ampere load at 27°C before its voltage
drops to 10.50 volts for a 12V battery. A 12V battery with a
reserve capacity rating of 100 will deliver 25 amps for 100
minutes at 27°C before its voltage drops to 10.5V.
