about auto batteries

Frank Fusco

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12,782
Location
Mountain Home, Arkansas
:pullhair: How do they do it? I was on a seldom used county road yesterday planting political signs. Stopped, shut off engine of my old Dodger truck, got out, planted sign, go in and truck was dead. As in ded-ded.:( Called AAA for a tow. About an hour later (from ten minute distance) they sent a jeep. :huh: Oh, well. They guessed right, my battery was kaput. Service guy checked the date, it is five years old. And, looking back, I got a feeling it is five years to the day and hour I bought it. Oh. well. I'm heading to Wally World shortly to get a replacement. I have checked some prices. Batteries have gotten really expensive lately. About a C-note to replace this one. I ain't a happy camper especially since this comes at a bad time in the budget cycle. BTW, I have bought a lot of batteries over the years and heard all the stories. The current, ded, one is an Interstate, much more expensive than Wal-Mart. It worked and lasted five years. I have had Sears, Wal-Mart and others. Guess what? They work and last five years. Why spend the extra money on an alleged "better" battery?
 
Dead battery? But...whaddaya gonna do?

Couple of months ago, we had to bite the bullet and replace the batteries in our golf car we use around home. Four - count 'em - four 12-volt deep cycle and all that yadda-yadda. I wish they had been ONLY $100 each. These suckers are $200 each, so $800 later we're perking again.

Whaddaya gonna do? :dunno:
 
What was the life span rating for the battery? If it was listed as a 60 month battery then you got your monies worth. If it was only a 48 month battery then you got an extra 12 months out of it.

A car battery usually gives some warning signs that it's beginning to fail. For me it's when It has a hard time cranking the engine on a cold morning. When that happens I just replace it.

I bought a 1996 ford escort and put 100,000 miles on that car in 3-1/2 years and never had a problem with the battery and that car sat for a year before I bought it.
 
My 17 year old Toyota truck was only on its second battery when I traded it in. The OEM one lasted about seven years, and the replacement (Diehard®) was ten years old (72 month warranty) and still going strong.

My 2010 Ford Ranger still has the OEM battery in it, too.
 
Dead battery? But...whaddaya gonna do?

Couple of months ago, we had to bite the bullet and replace the batteries in our golf car we use around home. Four - count 'em - four 12-volt deep cycle and all that yadda-yadda. I wish they had been ONLY $100 each. These suckers are $200 each, so $800 later we're perking again.

Whaddaya gonna do? :dunno:

I live in a golf community hundreds of golf carts in use here. 5 to 6 years seems to be about the average life of golf cart batteries batteries. I have friends who golf 6 days a week. Cart is charged overnight every day. Yes they too last 5 - 6 years. Acid level needs to be checked and topped off often. The hot weather and high number of charge cycles goes thru a fair amount of water added. I would guess topping off about once a month for the high use users is about right.
 
Had a bad run in this vein. P/U would not start, dead battery. Jumped and got home bought 100.00 wally world special worked OK at home. Next week end returning
From sons home 25 miles from nothing black as can lights began dimming then _out. Motor quit and we were stranded. Called AAA but to dark to read customer number they say no dice for service. Had son brought flashlight to read card. Then got quick service and a haul job for the price of the AAA membership.
Well worth the money. Found out it was the alternator. $600.00 later.
Just all in the fun of living.
David
 
Speaking of car batteries - and I wish you hadn't, Frank! I'm blaming this all on you, Bubba!!!

This morning my wife got in her car (2009 Sable) to take our new kitten to the vet. She, the kitten and a neighbor got situated, Bobbie hit the starter and all she got was a click. Yep! Not completely dead but close enough!!!

My Escape was fine so she got to the vet and back. When she arrived back home, I jumped off the Sable, let it run a couple of minutes and headed into town. I guess we can't complain too much - 4 years on a 36 month battery. But, $120 later at Advance Auto and we're good to go.

Thanks, Frank! :rofl:
 
Well Frank, I heard something recently that the battery manufacturers have gotten the science down real well. They know how to build them with a very close tolerance as to their lifespan. Ain't science great! I expect we owe this "advancement" to the electric car technological leap forward. Another victory for planned obsolescence.
 
What was the life span rating for the battery? If it was listed as a 60 month battery then you got your monies worth.
Alan, it was a 60 mo. batt. and gave me every bit of that time. But, the frustrating part was that it died abruptly with no warning. Truck started strong when cold and when the batt died the engine was warm. If it had given signs of wearing out I could have been prepared. And the exactness of the failure is also bothersome. I wish there was some warning. Where I was headed was a bit remote. Without cell phones I could have been days before being found. At one time I had a battery in my truck that had a built-in back up battery. Just flip a switch and I was good to go again. Those aren't on the market anymore. Oh, well.
 
One other thought. There are so many electronics in cars these days, that what ever we thought we knew about batteries is now obsolete. And you already alluded to new battery technologies.

My new car goes through a boot up procedure when I push the start button. (no key technology except to open a door if the battery is dead or to lock/unlock the glove box). One of the line items in the boot process is to measure the volts/amps of the battery. If it does not measure the minimum required, the car won't start. That is to protect all those electronics - and why there is a specific jump strategy. I am encouraged to go to the new car class offered by the dealer every month. Couldn't make it for October, but have it on the calendar for November. There are many buttons I haven't pushed yet to see what happens.

Just took my first trip of over a hundred miles. Learned I got better gas mileage without the cruise control. [39.3 for hilly hands-on driving. 33.8 for flat cruise-control driving] Thought that was interesting! Ya pays for convenience! On the other side of the equation, I filled the tank for 28 California dollars. (adjusted for the regional cost of gas!).

Life is a changing! Good, bad, or ugly.

However, Honda seems quite confident of their product. Standard practice is free oil changes for 2 years. That gets you back to the dealer to ogle new cars while yours is in the service bay. And get Honda specific liquids. And if the car fails to run, I get a tow to the nearest Honda dealer. If its related to warranty items, the tow is free. If not, my dime. Nice to have a choice.

Here's me, learning a whole new way to control the car. At least all those on-board computers allow me to feel like I am in charge. But I'm on to them! :rofl:
 
Alan, it was a 60 mo. batt. and gave me every bit of that time. But, the frustrating part was that it died abruptly with no warning. Truck started strong when cold and when the batt died the engine was warm. If it had given signs of wearing out I could have been prepared. And the exactness of the failure is also bothersome. I wish there was some warning. Where I was headed was a bit remote. Without cell phones I could have been days before being found. At one time I had a battery in my truck that had a built-in back up battery. Just flip a switch and I was good to go again. Those aren't on the market anymore. Oh, well.

here ya go Frank

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