[Goatracer1]

Champ we have no GM dealerships in town and even if there were Parts dept wouldn't be open after 5PM or on weekends.

[pontiacs-r-us]

I see no mention of Decca ? They were 1 of the main 3 manufacturers forever… did they get gobbled up also? I was told NAPA changed from Johnson control to Decca last yr.? Is Decca now a part of company that bought Johnson Control? I’ve had very good service from NAPA Legands that were built by JC… Also (don’t hate on me) Motorcraft batteries have been the longest lasting battery I’ve ever seen for a long time now… also I have an O.E. AGM battery in our 2015 Acura that’s still doing fine. I also got 9yrs from OE battery in a 2009 G8 … also an AGM… maybe something to longer life from AGM batteries?

[Lee]

I mainly use XS Power AGM batteries. I've had them last 10+ years, amazingly light as well. I also had a Braille AGM that lasted about 12 years.

[jhein]

Honestly, I've had very good luck with car batteries. I've never had a battery die prematurely unless I did something to kill it. Back in the day I would only use Interstate batteries. That was decades ago. Since then I've used various brands. Most recently I was using O'Reilly Super Starts in the DDs. Those have been very reliable. When I got the TA though, I wanted a black color battery, that's when I started using Napa which have been good too. I'm probably going to switch to Napa for the DDs too just because they are good batteries and the people there are more friendly and seem technically better than my O'Reilly store for whatever that's worth.

And as was mentioned earlier, even though two batteries are made in the same facility, they're not necessarily made to the same specs.

[KS circutguy]

Originally Posted by The Champ

36 months is better than 42 months?

There are three main car battery manufacturers with operations in the US alone. Clarios (formerly Johnson Controls) is the largest, Exide and East Penn.

Clarios makes many of the Interstate brand in Mexico. Clarios ACDelcos are made in St. Joseph, MO (Gold and Silver). ACDelco Advantage are made in South Korea. Clarios also produces batteries in China, Germany, and Brazil.

Yuasa is number 2, but has no US plants for car batteries, but their powersports batteries are made in PA.

Exide batteries are made in the US and Europe.

East Penn batteries are made in PA and IA.

And I haven't delved in to batteries made in China yet...

And having been through the plant in St. Joseph, MO, I can tell you that batteries made there for the different brands (Motorcraft, ACDelco, Interstate (at the time) and many others are all built to different specs, per the brands request.

Walmart has things built to their own specs to save money by having lower specs so they can offer low prices. You get what you pay for.

That's who I worked for FMP.
We also sold motorcraft, and hundreds of other popular manufactures products.
My apologizes are in order.
Lets not all forget most importantly battery made date codes,don't accept anything more than a few months old.
I've seen them as old as 1yr. in some inventories.

[59safaricat]

Got 13 years out of Walmart battery for my mid 80's Toyota pickup. I hate going there and giving them my money but I needed a battery late at night so I gave in. This was for a truck I put less than 500 miles a year so it spent months between uses. I fully expected that battery to last no more than 5 years under those conditions.

Got 10 years out a Kirkland (Costco) battery in my 1999 Honda Accord. This was before Costco switched to Interstate. The factory battery lasted 7 years (Panasonic). The Interstate battery replacement is 8 years old now.

Really, I never had a problem with a battery but I'm paranoid about running them down and never killed one yet. Not running them down and keeping it topped off with distilled water goes a long ways. Now that I have a 40x60 shop, I rotate a battery tender on them. I really should get rid of some vehicles now that I rarely drive much anymore.

[GOAT8U2]

Video links were nice thanks.

Born on date, I don't buy old beer or new batteries that are actually old.

I'm going to Antigravity battery for my GTO when I get it back. 8.5lbs, dead start safety feature and lasts pretty much 2x as long.

Main issue is initial price and charging if needed.

https://antigravitybatteries.com/pro...tive/ag-26-rs/

[poncho-mike]

I'm not sure I would want a lithium battery in my car. They are very sensitive to charge rate, and will catch fire and burn.

[Cammer-6]

I wouldnt use another Optima if you gave it to me.
and to think they have gone further downhill since i last used one 15 yrs ago

[chevymad]

Originally Posted by pontiacs-r-us

I see no mention of Decca ? They were 1 of the main 3 manufacturers forever… did they get gobbled up also? I was told NAPA changed from Johnson control to Decca last yr.? Is Decca now a part of company that bought Johnson Control?

Looks like they're part of East penn now. https://www.power-solutions.com/batt...%20application.

[ta6point6]

The cheapest battery you can find especially for classics that sit for a long time and a battery tender or if it sits somewhere that is not close to an outlet a cut off switch on the positive cable. I have had a Die Hard battery in the 79 truck for a good 15-20 years now and all I use is a cut-off switch. When it is really cold I might have to hook up the Gooloo jump pack to it but after that it starts every time. I have a cheap Walmart battery when they used to cost 40 dollars on Trans Am with a trickle charger and it is about 10 years old.

[Baron Von Zeppelin]

I've been getting 7-13 years out of the 1 year Walmart batteries.

The 1 year Walmart I just replaced in my Acura was dated 2011
Its been in 3 different vehicles since I bought it.
It was still useable for certain things so I kept it.

The 1 year Walmart in my van is only 7 years old and has been in 2 different vehicles.
The van doesn't get used as often and now that battery is getting flaky .
After a week it needs a jump start. , it will still be useable for certain things too.
But going to replace it.

Been buying those for about 25-30 years when they were $35
Now they are $70

On the flip-side ,,, my friend went hollywood style and bought a 3year Walmart.
3.5 years it was done.

The 1year Walmart just seems unbeatable by all measures.


Normally I get 7-10 years out of them.
13 was a new record

[fyrffytr1]

Do not buy a Diamond battery! I have one in my 2018 GMC truck that is my daily driver. I let it sit for 5 days while I was out of town with my wife. When I got home the truck motor would not even turn over. And, I have already replaced this battery once under warranty.