Hey Guys, My car is now going on 5 years old. It still has the factory battery and I was wondering if its time I should have it replaced before winter starts in a few months. I havent encountered any problems at all, and my battery eye still indicates thats its good.
Thanks
I don't think it'll be a bad idea. Better to do it now, than have to hurry up and rush when you really need one, or being in spot were you can't get one right away.
Great ? to ask.Now what is the battery life rated on the battery is it like 48 month or 72 etc.I have dealt with this issue with my wifes car where it literally got up the age of it's life a died one cold morning.Now based on this I constantly check my wifes newer car a 04 and check the voltage on it monthy to make sure she does not encounter the no start issue again.I would replace it being the age and advance auto,auto zone, and even walmarts everstart are very solid considerations for oem replacements.I recomm autozone duralast gold ,I just repl my battery in my 87 maz trk bought in april 00 and it died slowly losing its charge in aug of this yr.I got my moneys worth no problems.The batt had a 3 yr free repl and prorated after that.I repl it with it with same and recom buying if you have extras like audio or driving lights with more cold cranking amps and reserve if u live in a cold climate area.I would expect to spend 65-80 bucks for a good battery from the 3 I listed.Temp change can kill a battery for sure hot or cold.
If you're that worried about the lifespan of the battery, I'd suggest going with the cheapest one you can find. Weather and usage patterns will kill a battery surer than cheap quality will, in my opinion, and it seems like the guarantees will last just long enough to send you into the Prorated reimbursement BS.
That said, I may be a bit biased seeing as my OEM battery lasted nearly 10 years. In Canadian winters.
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From working at a dealership, our rule of thumb was anytime you can see leaking, corrosion, caterpillers on the posts, or 3years/36k miles. Of course, the dealership wants to make money. My car still has the factory battery. I killed it once and jumped it, and it charged fine and still works. Countless times i sprayed wurth battery cleaner/leak detector on a battery, cleaned it off, and gave it back to the customer.
If you have a multimeter, test at the battery posts and make sure your voltage is 12.5+. Then start your car and it should jump to around 14 volts.
Then test for cca with engine off and running. You should get similar results. Careful when testing for amperage though, its easy to blow a fuse in the multimeter...
Alternately, any shop with a battery tester can test it for you. Many will do it free of charge. However, I would watch them to make sure they are giving the device correct information, because you can make a good battery read as a failure by testing for more cca than the battery is rated at. This tester is capable of testing both starting and charging systems, so you know your good. Sears has a preety good service called "the diehard test?" Anyway they test everything and provide you with a printout. If memory serves me right, the service is around $30, not to bad for the peace of mind that comes with it.
A battery is a battery. What you get is personal preference for the price you want to pay. I've personally found wal-mart batteries to be undercharged, possibly from sitting, but had no problems after an hour on the quickcharger. I've also noticed interstate batteries are prone to leaks. When I replace mine, I'm going with either AC Delco or Optima.
Replacement is up to you.
