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Bye bye stock battery

23K views 32 replies 26 participants last post by  ThomasGT 
#1 ·
I had to bite another expense last week and buy a new battery. I think this cold weather we've been having took the last bits of life out of it.
(yes, cold for us is only mid 40's, but just go with it)

Mine had 41,000 miles on it. Two hot summers and two mild winters.
Does that sound short for a battery life? I'm used to 3 or 4 years out of them normally.
 
#2 ·
wow... that seems short to me....
We haven't gone through a battery here yet on our patriot, but our 2003 Dodge neon (SX) had it's orriginal battery when we traded it in for our patriot last year. that's 7 years of battery life in Ontario... which means 7 hard winters. 190,000 kms

I'll be dissapointed if the battery in the patriot only lasts two year......
 
#3 ·
I'm hoping that's unusual, as this is my third winter, and a bit colder than yours. Today is the first day in about a week we went above freezing.

I hate to have repair expenses while still making payments. I was surprised when I needed a lower control arm at 52K miles.

What did you replace with?
 
#4 ·
stock batteries are usually pretty lousy,
luckily still on original battery 3 yrs and 85k miles later,
previous car dodge neon , stock battery went out first year,
replaced it with Jeep battery i had lying around and that battery lasted +10 yrs and +200k miles,

so when it comes to batteries i buy the largest cca i could find,
if it doesnt fit, well, will make it fit.
and yes had to replace battery tray on the neon :)
 
#5 ·
I would think you should get at least 3 years out of a battery. Although, I have heard your driving habits have a lot to do with it. Short trips are really hard on a battery. Long trips actually charge the battery. AAA magazine does NOT recommend idling a vehicle in cold weather thinking that will charge the battery. It actually takes more juice to start the car (or jeep in this case!) and let it idle than if you drive it for 20 min. Bottom line, if you do alot of day time driving (no headlights on) and your trips are longer than 20 min at a stretch it is actually good for the battery. Or so I've heard.
 
#6 ·
#7 ·
Also had a battery replacement on +- 57000km.
2007-2010 so 3 years a battery.
In South Africa with normal temperatures, not too hot or too cold.

On my previous car had original battery for 6years, and 119000 km.

But anyways,probably one of things.
 
#10 ·
My stock battery completely died last winter, so yeah, from my experience I'd say I am not terribly impressed. (Vehicle build date May '07, bought vehicle January '08.)
 
#12 ·
Thanks for the feedback everyone. I feel a little better that it wasn't just me with a crappy battery. Everyone has a crappy battery!! :)

And for what it's worth - today we almost broke freezing this morning. A rare occurance indeed. But the new Duralast is cranking away.
 
#16 ·
Well, I replied to this thread last night and was greeted with, you guessed it, a dead battery when I went to go home. No warning, no signs, just a brief dim of the dome light and no crank. Wouldn't even take a jump, so I knew it was trashed. Thankfully Walmart was open at 11:00 and had one that would work. So in short, I spoke too soon!
 
#28 ·
Yeah I bought one from best buy that had extra holes in it were you could put in the amp wire. I also bought an optima blue top dual purpose marine battery solved all my issues as far as dimming lights. I also use it to hook up the winch when getting firewood.
 
#26 ·
Guys next time you need a battery, get an Odyssey 34-PC1500T. It's pricey but you will never need another battery for the life of your vehicle. I had one in a car that was 12 years old and it started the car like the battery was brand new. Never had a minutes trouble with it. I always knew the car was going to start no matter what the temp was.

I even left the interior light on for 5 days in the airport parking lot while I was away on business. When I came back, the interior light was still on and the car started right up. :smiley_thumbs_up:
 
#27 ·
My Pat has always started for me so far but several times has acted like it didn't wan't to. A few times it has cranked but not started but the second time I attempted, it did start. I also think these are crappy batteries. Cheap vehicles have cheap parts (think suspension) Still like the Patriot though.
 
#29 ·
Buy the Best Battery You Can

I nursed my battery until it was nearly 5 years old but it was never a great battery and I had to jump it a few times the last year when I left the interior lights on while stowing my gear from my boat. I also had disabled the battery killing automatic delayed headlights through my electronic package option with the controls listed in the owners manual.

I went to Interstate Batteries and they let me try out a couple of battery sizes not listed. I managed to get a much larger battery installed that barely fit under the intake snout (it is only there to reduce induction noise). I believe it is a size 75 but I am not going out in the cold to check right now.

A far as batteries go I believe Interstate are the best made out there and I have great experience with them. They are strong and last along time. I do not recommend house brand batteries from parts stores but if you must by the best you can afford. No AGM gel cell batteries for me. They just have to many inherent issues due to their design. A good quality solid built regular lead acid is the best for longevity and for cost as well. I have had some Walmart marine deep cycles for 7 years in my boat but I charge them right away and try not to take them down to deep. The Interstate starting/deep cycle battery in the boat is 9 years and still turning her over.

Walmart keeps changing battery manufacturers and they vary depending on where you live. My Walmart boat batteries look like they were made by Penn Batteries which has made some Interstate batteries to interstate specs. Penn is another good battery manufacturer. By the best battery if you want longer life and a more reserve power. Hope that helps.
 
#30 ·
I just had my battery replaced last week. 2013 Pat with 5000 miles. Two days in a row it was reluctant to crank but did start, so I took it to dealer to have them test it. They declared it dead and replaced free since it was still under warranty.

I had a 2011 Ford Fiesta that also had the battery die after two years but still under warranty.

I do make a lot of short trips.
 
#31 ·
I don't think that the auto manufacturers intentionally supply lousy batteries in their new vehicles. The biggest problem is that the vehicles sit around the lot for quite a while without being started, and when they are, it's just for short test drives. That is a lot harder on the batteries than being used everyday.

Where I work, we have seasonal vehicles, and ones that are used year round. The seasonal vehicles seem to go through batteries quicker.
I do know for sure that lead-acid batteries don't do well when left partially charged for long periods of time.
The car lots wouldn't have time to keep charging the batteries in the vehicles they have in stock.
 
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