pityocamptes

Funny, if not typical... woke up this morning and battery barely turned over engine. Hopefully it lasts until tonight when I can change it. It was an Autozone battery, yellow top - "Duralast Gold", that was like $125.00. Past the free replacement period, but they say I have a credit for half, or around $65.00. So I will owe the difference. I asked the person when did I buy it - December of 2010... So you are telling me these batteries only last 3 years to the month??? Jesus Christ...

Lizardslap

just buy the 65$ walmart battery and exchange it just before a year and get a new one

just go in after 7pm when the auto center is closed keep your receipt and go it dont work

I haven't bought a battery in 4 years doing this

NotARaCist

iTrader: (1)

Technically, that warranty should only be useable for one free replacement, not four.

pityo, more expensive batteries have longer warranties for a reason, but short of buying an expensive dry or gel cell battery, 3-5 years is relatively normal.

ej6fade

Whatever you do don't buy any of the new optima batteries. I got the yellow top and I've had 2 replacements in the last 2 years and some change. I'll never buy an optima again

NotARaCist

iTrader: (1)

I'm a big fan of the Diehard Platinums, but they don't come in stock Honda sizes (last I checked, at least). When I had my battery relocated to the trunk, I had the largest Platinum available back there. It weighed a good 80-100 pounds, lasted a good 7 years in my car, plus it's made another 2 years in my friend's truck with no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

Former User

In Houston, my car batteries last about 4 years.

B_Swapped93

On that 10lb battery life odyssey,anti gravity and deka all make great battery's ranging from 99$ to 280$ up mine is still suitable for street use if need be. Altho in my civic I have a OEM Honda battery thing lasted 6 years !!! but I don't use that car year round.

does anyone know how much the average battery weights ? I'm on my phone

24TEN

iTrader: (2)

I hate that I'm actually going to contribute something negative based on experience with this specific battery that is factual...

I bought the same battery at the beginning of the year and it wouldn't hold a charge last month. Basically it lasted 10 months and was well within the warranty period. Got a new one, no harm no foul (car died at home so no biggie). Well my surprise came when a friend told me that a mutual friend said those batteries are really only good if you plan on selling the car. And guess where that mutual friend works? Autozone, as a manager.

In general, my personal experience is that most batteries I've used last about 5 years give or take a few months with the exception of that yellow top Duralast one.

pityocamptes

Hmmm, so should I take the credit and buy a cheaper one? I hate to spend more than I have to... especially this time of year. So are you saying that the cheaper batteries from autozone (not the yellow top) actually last longer than the more expensive one?

24TEN

iTrader: (2)

I have no idea, but when they switched out for a new battery they gave me the next one up in price with no additional charge or fee. I didn't even ask for it either.

TomCat39

Surprised no one mentioned Interstate as a quality battery.

For my 5th gen EG civic it was about 150 after taxes with a 4 year warranty. I'm pretty sure it will last a solid 5 years without issue.

I stay away from the cheap generics (store brands) they barely last 1.5 years for half the cost. (spend more get more).

That's my two cents worth of experience over the last 7 years.

NotARaCist

iTrader: (1)

Take this from a guy who used to sell batteries, tires, and all sorts of other fun stuff.

They're (almost) all the same. If you can pick it up in a store, it's made by the same company as every other battery, it just gets a different sticker slapped on it. On top of that, there (usually) isn't a difference between the cheap "silver" and the more expensive "gold" batteries - just the warranty attached to it.

If you're going to buy something locally, the important thing to look for is the ship date. It'll either be etched into the plastic, or (more common) it'll be on a round sticker. When I was selling batteries, the sticker was [month]/[year], so a battery shipped in December of 2000 would say 12/00 on it. Get the most recently shipped battery you can.

pityocamptes

Ok, will see if I can get a cheaper one with my credit... thx

TomCat39

There is only a handful of manufacturers so many different brands will be made by the same company, true.... However, they are made to differing specifications.... That's where brand comes into play. ie Interstate has higher quality specifications their batteries are made to, thus they last longer than a cheap Canadian Tire Motor Master pieces of junk.

Usually you get what you pay for.

Axatax

I don't know who makes the Honda OEM batteries (maybe interstate?), but I'm on my second one in 13 years. They're not sexy like a yellow-top but they definitely last a long time. I think they're right around the $80-100 mark from the dealer. In Florida, BTW, so weather could be a factor. I also have "conservative" subs (single 10" on ~250W).

HondaPartsHero

This. Most off the shelf batteries from Walmart or parts stores seem to have a shelf life of 3 years. Both the Honda batteries I've owned have lasted at least 6 or more. This is daily driving in moderate temps here in NC (gets down to low 20 sometimes in the winters and occasional high 90's in the summer but mostly moderate the rest of the year).

Kista20

I'm only on the 3rd battery including the original that came in my 97 civic, I first replaced it in 2002 and the last time was in 2010 both with honda batteries from the dealer. When the time comes I will definitely be buying another.

In general though oem batteries from the dealer are the best, I have a 2004 Gmc truck still on the original ac delco battery.

94EG8

A lot of them are made by Johnson Controls and Energizer, there are a few other companies whose names escape me right now. As far as those cheap motomaster batteries go, I've had pretty good luck with a couple of Motomaster 72s. Got 5 or 6 years out of one before it died, and I think what finally killed it was I let it sit for months in a car with an autostart, it never came back from that, worked fine when I parked the car. The other one is about 3 years old, still works great.

The old ones were Panasonic (milky white casing) and they were great. I've seen more than one last 12 years. I'm not sure who makes them now, but I don't think it's still Panasonic.

pityocamptes

Autozone bastards made me buy a new battery - I was SIX freaking days out of warranty, and even though I explained I was having issues with the battery for the past couple of weeks, they said the computer would not let them alter anything... maybe I'll send a nasty email to their corporate... anyways, installed new battery, and problem fixed... just pisses me off though... I can see maybe a month or longer but a handfull of days??

BeatDX

iTrader: (1)

I know the Duralast Gold WAS built by the same folks that built the Diehard, Union Carbide. I've used the Duralast Gold for years. I have one in my wife's Jeep. I did have to replace it under prorated warranty about a year ago after about 4 yrs.

I understand that Union Carbide is no longer making the Duralast, I don't know about Diehard.

Myechtatel

I work at Advance Auto and I can tell you from experience that batteries do typically last 3 years. And that's given that it is a decent battery. Any of the economy batteries or wal-mart nEVER START batteries will be 2 years or less. It also depends on the conditions the batteries are exposed too. I have seen 3 year batteries last about a year because they are left to sit outside in a vehicle and hardly ever used. There are exceptions to the 3 year rule. The newer Panazonic batteries I have seen quite a few last 7-10 years! These are the stock batteries for Toyota. Well worth the money if you can find one that will fit your vehicle. the Optima batteries are also exceptional as well as any other brand AGM glassmat battery. 6+ years easily and vibration proof. Also replace the terminals if you see any corrosion. Terminals are very cheap and can make the difference between starting or not. the fact that your Gold battery lasted 3 years is pretty normal. Be glad you are getting a discount on a new one. Hope that helps.

pityocamptes

Thanks!

BeatDX

iTrader: (1)

If a particular battery fails before it is expected it doesn't necessarily mean it is the fault of the battery.

I'm sure there are a boat load of factors which determine the lifespan of a battery. The vehicle, the use of the vehicle, overall condition of the charging system, the environment, the specific parameters of the charge, etc. Some of those factors might be predictable and capable of being addressed but I'm sure many aren't. The more specifically an item is engineered to an application more time consuming and expensive it becomes.

The perfect battery for an econobox, most private passenger vehicles for that matter, is not a priority that most companies need or want to spend resources on since it would increase costs. Good enough is what they produce and what we usually buy, especially in the econobox category.