Clore Automotive SOLAR Digital 12V Battery and System Tester

Now this is an excellent, must have battery tool! I have 6 cars under my care with adult but not yet independent children. I like caring for the cars. Batteries are always a concern as to reliability. I live in northern Midwest with cold winters. I have every tester known to man, and the knowledge to use them. I know how to maintain batteries with proper fluid levels. However, until this type of tester was developed in recent years, a very important feature of the battery was going untested, and many good batteries were being thrown away, and many bad batteries were being used when they should have been thrown away. My understanding from extensive study is that Clore Automotive developed the Midtronics tester that is the state-of-the-art in the battery industry. It is very expensive, owned primarily by dealerships and battery shops. The Solar BA-5 and BA-7 are less expensive consumer versions of the industrial Midtronics tester. I have used this Solar BA7 for several months, on about a dozen batteries, in warm and cold weather. IT IS OUTSTANING. In short, Solar tester tests conductance through the battery, as well as voltage and CCA. The conductance is the ability of the battery to flow current through the battery, and is a measure of the surface condition of the plates inside the battery. If the plates are corroded with sulfation, they will not flow the electricity as well as they should, and the capacity of the battery is reduced. My experience is that battery that is internally corroded can pass the traditional voltage and load tests, but fail this tester that includes its measure of internal conductivity! And, on the other hand, a good 800 CCA battery can fail a traditional load test with 400 CCA, and still have good internal conductance and capacity, and years of reliable use left in it. In this second example, I have found that checking and correcting the fluid level in the battery by adding distilled water to the fill indicators is usually what is needed for the CCA to go back up to spec on a battery with good internal conductivity. Anyway, this tester considers the voltage, CCA, and conductivity, and gives you a reading, and a green light if the battery is good. It couldn't be better or more accurate. Mechanic reviews say it is as reliable and accurate, (but does not have some features like a paper printer for a diagnostic report), as the more expensive Midtronics by Solar. FInally, the BA5 just tests the battery. The BA7 also tests the starter and the alternator. And it's SO simple. This new technology is amazing, and saves more money that it costs by properly diagnosing a battery the first time it is used!!!

The Clore Automotive SOLAR BA9 is an excellent purchase for its professional precision, durability, and versatility. Although it may require some occasional repetitions for inconsistent readings, its price - much lower than that of OEM testers - makes it a very competitive tool.🧰 Ideal for• Cars, motorcycles, boats and 12 V solar systems.• Workshop technicians or enthusiasts looking for complete diagnostics: battery, alternator and starter.• Domestic users who want to detect failures before being stranded.

As a long time mechanic, and seeing the price of professional grade stand alone tools continuing to rise to ridiculous prices, I was VERY happy to find this SOLAR BA7 Tester.Hook it up to the battery on your car, mower, ATV, etc etc, press a button or two, and then you have an instant digital read out in numbers, as well as color coded status lights for the condition of your Battery, Starter, or Alternator. And for cheap!PROS:1) It takes a matter of seconds to perform any test, making this simple to use.2) You can perform tests on batteries hooked up in a car still, or unhooked, making this extremely time saving if you don't have to remove a battery to test.3) You don't have to fully charge a battery to test!!! Almost all other testing units for batteries you have to have a fully charged battery, which is a pain in the butt, and waste of time. But not for this, you can test on a daily used battery that's not fully charged, genius!4) Most consumer grade battery testers only give you a read out of battery voltage for their testing capabilities, which is only a part of what you need for an actual test. Voltage is good for understanding percent of the battery charged, but not how much power it's putting out. What you actually need to know besides voltage is CCA (or cold cranking amps), this is the actual capacity of the battery to exert power. So rather than having to take your batteries to your local Auto Part store everytime, buy this tester and have the professional test yourself on your own time, anywhere.5) Sometimes your starting issue in your vehicle is not a bad battery, but rather a starter or alternator. So you can easily rule these out too by just testing them with the same tester too. You just hook it up to the battery posts just like you would for a battery test, select either the Starter or Alternator test on the tester, and either start the car, or leave it running, and it calculates the voltage readings needed to determine if the Alternator or Starter is bad or going bad, and you're done. Don't have to remove the alternator or starter or fumble around to get to them because you only connect the tester to the battery posts and it reads and tests through the system itself. So much easier with this tester.CONS:None that I can think of, it's a great tool for a good price. Can't say enough about it!