Truck Battery $$$$$$$$

AZ Buckshot Bill said:
Many of us here that are Costco members already know this, but the Costco warehouses sell Interstate batteries with a 3 year, no questions asked free replacement policy. [That REALLY made a big difference when I had to replace
the 2 batteries in my 2002 Ford Power stroke diesel truck.] I believe their price is better than about any other place that sells batteries.
I've always had good luck with Interstate, and the "show up with your old battery and your card and here's a new [or 2] battery" is pretty much a no brainer- as long as it's within the 3 year period.

Buckshot Bill
Click to expand...
I go directly to my local Interstate warehouse and can usually buy "blems" for about 2/3 the regular price. Most of them have a scratch in the case, a little piece torn off of one of the stickers, or a small nick in one of the lead terminal posts - some kind of minor cosmetic "issue" that has no effect on their performance, and they come with the standard 3 year warranty.
I buy ALL my vehicle batteries there.
 
I just had a new battery put in the 2017 Subaru Outback...The 5th replacement since new. Luckily they have all been under warranty(battery). Having the oil changer and it would not start. after 7 years they finally figured out the car had a dead short in an electronic module. One we didn't use. They turned it off. Evidently this is a known problem they finally found out about. So if you have a Subaru with battery issues...go to a dealer...they should have a fix(free)
 
Golddollar said:
This thread got me to thinking, so I'll bring it up for the collective wisdom of the group. I have an 2019 Ford Taurus (aka Batmobile #1) that I am pretty sure has the original battery in it. The car has 49,000 miles on it and would be 6 model years old. So far I've had no issues with the battery but I plan on travelling into western PA and northeast Ohio which can get some cold days coming up in the near future. Get a new battery now in an abundance of caution or does it seem to be OK?
Click to expand...

Get a new battery, some die without warning.
 
Narragansett said:
There are only a few manufacturers of batteries in this country. Exide, Interstate, and East Penn in Reading , PA. I had a long talk with a battery rep from East Penn once. They make all the Walmart auto and Marine batteries as well as countless other private label brands.
Click to expand...

Don’t forget JCI…they make the lion’s share of automotive batteries in North America.
 
I'm on my third Optima battery in my 67 Tempest. The first one was 9 years old when I decided to replace it. The second one lasted 4 years and one month, warranty was for 3 years. The third one just cost me $302.00, hope it last's as long as my first one did.
 
BC38 said:
I go directly to my local Interstate warehouse and can usually buy "blems" for about 2/3 the regular price. Most of them have a scratch in the case, a little piece torn off of one of the stickers, or a small nick in one of the lead terminal posts - some kind of minor cosmetic "issue" that has no effect on their performance, and they come with the standard 3 year warranty.
I buy ALL my vehicle batteries there.
Click to expand...

BC38, thanks for this info. I wasn't aware of this policy at their warehouse, but I'll be sure to check it out.

Much obliged,
Buckshot Bill
 
When my battery died last December, I called a friend who had it done at the dealer. Why? I have no idea, when he told me how much he paid for it, I laughed and called up some places and went to Autozone and got an AGM bigger than the stock battery for half what the dealer wanted for a regular battery. Since Nov or last year, if I had the front brake rotors and pads, tires, and battery I replaced for a total of about $2000 (The Michelin 275 40 20 A/S Sports aint cheap) would have cost well over $5000. They are delusional to even tell me those crazy prices. The rotors, two piece Brembos, were $1200 each there. I went to iron one piece with pads for $480+100 labor at a friend's place.
 
Golddollar said:
This thread got me to thinking, so I'll bring it up for the collective wisdom of the group. I have an 2019 Ford Taurus (aka Batmobile #1) that I am pretty sure has the original battery in it. The car has 49,000 miles on it and would be 6 model years old. So far I've had no issues with the battery but I plan on travelling into western PA and northeast Ohio which can get some cold days coming up in the near future. Get a new battery now in an abundance of caution or does it seem to be OK?
Click to expand...

The OP had a battery die after 5 years, the battery in my car is 6 years old. I received recommendations to get a new battery. I decided to take that advice and just got a new DieHard battery put in. The factory battery had 650 cold cranking amps, the new battery has 850 cold cranking amps. I remember some mighty cold winters along the Great Lakes, so I figured I'd better stuff the biggest battery I could in the Batmobile.
 
The Price of Ownership

How coincidental. My ‘98 Chevy Silverado
wouldn’t start yesterday afternoon. Jumped
it, got it home, into the garage. Interstate
battery will be 5 years old.

Chevrolet honestly said too old for them.
Seek out independent garage. My go to
garage; can’t look at it until the 25th.

This morning Interstate tested battery.
Passed load test. Did hydrometer in each
cell, 50/50 on the gauge, showing not
fully charged.
All three garages all said 4 years is it for
a battery.

Is it the Battery or the Alternator. I’m just
going to have Indep. garage test it after
the 25th. I’m trickle charging battery now.

Anyway a new Battery will be $150-190.
Or a new Alternator.
 
Wifey's Nissan battery is 6 years old. Going strong.

Well? Should I go ahead and replace?

Looked at it and it's a Nissan 84 month battery.

So...gonna wait/hold out for another year.

,
 
In the past, especially in P/U trucks with big battery boxes, I have used Marine Deep Cycle batteries. They have a little less cranking power than a starting battery - But enough. Big advantage is you don't damage them like you do a conventional battery when you go thru numerous discharge cycles, especially in the cold. Don't know if they would work with today's finely balanced electrical systems?

The starting battery in my 2016 Ford is 6 years old. On occasions when I am not planning to drive anywhere for a couple of days, especially in winter, I place it on a Battery Tender trickle charger. Regular use can about double a batteries life.

Larry
 
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hemiram said:
When my battery died last December, I called a friend who had it done at the dealer. Why? I have no idea, when he told me how much he paid for it, I laughed and called up some places and went to Autozone and got an AGM bigger than the stock battery for half what the dealer wanted for a regular battery. Since Nov or last year, if I had the front brake rotors and pads, tires, and battery I replaced for a total of about $2000 (The Michelin 275 40 20 A/S Sports aint cheap) would have cost well over $5000. They are delusional to even tell me those crazy prices. The rotors, two piece Brembos, were $1200 each there. I went to iron one piece with pads for $480+100 labor at a friend's place.
Click to expand...

He had it done at the dealer because his car charging system had to be coded for the new battery. It's not like the old days where the battery was just hung on the out put of the alternator at all times. Charging on modern cars is controlled depending on the age and state of the battery. When a new battery is put in, the system has to be 'told' (coded) to start from scratch.
 
Does getting 3 years out of a battery nowadays, that has gone up in price an awful lot, mean we are paying more than double to buy two 3 year batteries instead of the one we had seven years?
 
My wife's 2009 Kia Borrego failed to start for the second time in two weeks this afternoon. The sticker on the battery is 6/19 (June of 2019).
Both times that it didn't start, it had sat for a couple of days and a quick "jolt" from a jump-starter revived it.
Guess it is time for me to go get a new battery tomorrow <sigh>.
 
BC38 said:
My wife's 2009 Kia Borrego failed to start for the second time in two weeks this afternoon. The sticker on the battery is 6/19 (June of 2019).
Both times that it didn't start, it had sat for a couple of days and a quick "jolt" from a jump-starter revived it.
Guess it is time for me to go get a new battery tomorrow <sigh>.
Click to expand...

Is it in the garage unlocked? So much stuff is on 'standby' when the car isn't locked that there is quite a current draw. Modern cars need to be locked, even in the garage.
 
LVSteve said:
Is it in the garage unlocked? So much stuff is on 'standby' when the car isn't locked that there is quite a current draw. Modern cars need to be locked, even in the garage.
Click to expand...
Nope. It is parked in the garage - but we still lock it up.

It seems to me that calling a 2009 model (15 years old) a "modern" car - may be a bit of a stretch.

FWIW, we've never had any starting issues with this vehicle in the 12+ years we've owned it.

This issue is something new. And the car isn't sitting around without being started for extended periods of time either.

It was started and driven just a couple of days ago on Sunday morning, before failing to start today (Tuesday afternoon).

I'm pretty certain that the 6-year-old battery is the issue.

Especially since we've seen the same no-start issue twice in less than 2 weeks.

In both instances it sat for 2 or 3 days, and wouldn't start. But a quick jump-start got it going again, but after sitting for just a couple of days, again, the battery didn't have enough juice to start it up.

The battery isn't holding enough charge to crank the engine after sitting for just a couple of days.

I'm convinced that its time for a replacement battery.

Thanks for the advice though.
 
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Just a FWIW follow up.
I went to our local Interstate Battery distributor today.
They put my battery on the bench to check it out.
The electrolyte was full for all 6 cells, and it checked out OK using their hydrometer.
The battery's initial voltage was 12.4v when the tech hooked it up to the load tester - just as it should be.
HOWEVER, when an actual load was applied, the voltage dropped to 8.6v - about 1 volt lower than it should be under load - and the voltage continued to drop down to less than 8.4v after just a few seconds.

So, bottom line, the 6-year-old battery wasn't capable of maintaining the required 12 volts that it should when it was subjected to an actual load.

I decided to exchange it for a new (blem) battery for a whopping $55 + taxes.

Should be GTG for another 4-6 years...
 
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Farmer17 said:
I’m not gaming the system. I take it in to get it checked and they tell me the battery is not up to spec and it’s part of their policy to replace it if it’s under warranty. They’re happy to do so and I’ve done it several times and never heard of a complaint once From AutoZone.
Click to expand...
Funny how they go bad 1 month before the warranty expires.
A good battery should last more than 3 years.
I would not be surprised if AZ’s person figured it’s easier to replace a battery than PO a customer.
No skin off my nose whatever AZ does.
 
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