I do this when I’m riding my motorcycle in city traffic. If it irritates a driver…sorry, at least they see me.
9 years out of a battery
- Thread starter KevinMalone
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My 1998 John Deere mower is on its 3rd battery in 26 years. The original plus 2 replacements. In winter I occasionally hook a maintainer to it for a couple of days. My wife’s lightly driven 2013 Lexus ES350 has a 7 year old Lexus branded battery in it and is currently on a 1.5 amp maintainer. I’ll probably replace it in the fall just because.
Local climate has an enormous effect on battery life.
Last time I changed one of my own batteries it was 10 y.o. and still working okay, in my mild mid Atlantic location.
I got stuck in the Arizona desert when my friends 3 y.o. battery failed suddenly.
I only drive 1-2 times a week, typically about 50 miles, so I fully charge the battery once a month.
Last time I changed one of my own batteries it was 10 y.o. and still working okay, in my mild mid Atlantic location.
I got stuck in the Arizona desert when my friends 3 y.o. battery failed suddenly.
I only drive 1-2 times a week, typically about 50 miles, so I fully charge the battery once a month.
My wife had an early nineties Nissan where the OEM Panasonic battery was in it's ninth year when it got to weak to start the car after sitting a couple of days.
Contrary to the popular notion, sulfation is not the primary reason batteries go bad. The primary reason is due to positive plate erosion which is accelerated by overcharging and especially by deep cycling. During the charge and discharge cycle of lead acid batteries, the positive plate undergoes physical expansion and contraction as lead molecules are converted from lead dioxide to lead sulphate and back. During this conversion process during the charge and discharge cycles, bits of lead material fall off the positive plates until there isn't enough material left on the plates to provide sufficient power or something shorts or opens and a cell stops working.
This is why batteries die more rapidly in hot conditions as chemical reactions happen more violently at higher temps. Charging at lower speeds may help minimize the physical damage to the positive plates and keeping a low current maintainer on the battery reduces the charge cycling which also preserves the lifespan of the battery.
Contrary to the popular notion, sulfation is not the primary reason batteries go bad. The primary reason is due to positive plate erosion which is accelerated by overcharging and especially by deep cycling. During the charge and discharge cycle of lead acid batteries, the positive plate undergoes physical expansion and contraction as lead molecules are converted from lead dioxide to lead sulphate and back. During this conversion process during the charge and discharge cycles, bits of lead material fall off the positive plates until there isn't enough material left on the plates to provide sufficient power or something shorts or opens and a cell stops working.
This is why batteries die more rapidly in hot conditions as chemical reactions happen more violently at higher temps. Charging at lower speeds may help minimize the physical damage to the positive plates and keeping a low current maintainer on the battery reduces the charge cycling which also preserves the lifespan of the battery.
do you also have a starter battery under the hood
Battery life is very much temperature dependant. They are never going to last long in a hot climate. In the cool UK climate I've twice had 12 years out of a car battery and my motorcycle battery is 10.5 years old and still starts on the button. I know someone with the same bike and a similar battery in Arizona that is lucky to get 3 years.
I’ve gotten 11 years out of an ac delco in my Cobalt, replaced it pre-emptively before winter because it was getting a little weak and got flatlined by someone listening to the radio too long, it came back after a slow desulphating charge.
New vehicles in my opinion are “harder” on batteries than they need to be because they use too small of a battery with too little deepcycle capacity for all of the phantom draws.
Use a good old fashioned group 32+ sized battery would help
New vehicles in my opinion are “harder” on batteries than they need to be because they use too small of a battery with too little deepcycle capacity for all of the phantom draws.
Use a good old fashioned group 32+ sized battery would help
Ever since I've had modern vehicles I've never gotten more than 5 years out of a battery. Either the current draw is just too much on modern cars that it wears them quicker or the limited voltage from the alternator with modern circuitry isn't actually helping the battery last longer.
Not only that, but you'd think you'd get some kind of warning with all of this tech. I can't remember the last time I had a battery where the car didn't just go from driving fine 10 minutes before it just wouldn't start and there was no recovering the battery.
Not only that, but you'd think you'd get some kind of warning with all of this tech. I can't remember the last time I had a battery where the car didn't just go from driving fine 10 minutes before it just wouldn't start and there was no recovering the battery.
I don't think that leaving your headlights on all the time while driving is having any significant negative affect on your battery life. High ambient heat is the number one factor. Also, I believe that the under-hood temperatures are higher on the newer vehicles. Living in TX I only get about 3 years out of my batteries regardless of who manufactured it or what vehicle it is in. IMO you are doing good to get 4 years out of your batteries living in AZ.Getting nine years out of a battery is incredible! In the desert, I could never achieve that. I usually de-sulfate/charge mine every 4 to 5 weeks.
I always run full lights, regardless of the time of day or location, to ensure I’m more visible to others. When it gets crowded during the day, I use high beams, which definitely helps. It makes people less likely to cut me off in traffic. I know this because people who are tempted to switch lanes too close in front of me, begin to merge but then hesitate when they see my high beams. Anyway, I think this is one of the reasons why I can only get about four years out of a battery.
same supplier?
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I'm not saying that you shouldn't have changed out the battery after 9 years. Indeed a good move!
I am curious as to, what does the battery voltage drop down to while starting the engine?
Dropping to 12.4v at rest sounds normal. But if it drops below 10v(or there about) while starting, then it is indeed time to start thinking about a new battery. Just sayin'!
You're probably right. The old battery sat in my garage overnight and still measures 12.4v so it might have some life left in it. Understandably the owner didn't want to chance it as they drive their grandchildren around, especially with colder weather around the corner.
If it were my own car, I would've tested it more and carry a jump starter with me
I've got one of those 2 year warranty Walmart batteries in my pickup that's pushing 5 years old. It still works, so I'm not going to change it.
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A load test is a better indicator of whether or not the battery is good, or needs replacement.
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The BMW branded H8 AGM (also Exide I think) in my E90 is on its tenth year, but I'm not as impressed due to its interior location and the battery management system
Owen Lucas
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I got about 10 years from the Japanese made Panasonic in my of Scion. Topped off the battery once with distilled water. If I could buy JDM Panasonic batteries that would be awesome, but I guess it's not economically feasible to send heavy batteries to compete with local manufacturers.
My BIL is still on the OE battery in his 2011 Equinox 2.4L 4 cylinder without any extra maintenance or battery maintainer.
