How Are The Interstate Car Batteries From Costco ?

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How are the interstate car Batteries from Costco? What about the Warranty, prices and CCA?
I always used auto zone gold Batteries because i bought them wholesale through my commercial account but the last two i bought from auto zone were not so great.
 
I've got two (in different vehicles) and they seem fine. They'll take them back w/o question if anything is wrong ...

I been buying batteries at Costco for decades and never had a bad one. The one in the bronco (Costco Brand) is going on 10 years old and tests fine every time I throw a load at it. We'll see with the switch to Interstate... But I don't expect problems
smile.gif
 
You haven't gotten a battery yet Captain??

East Penn is a very good choice. Batteries Plus has them with the name Duracell. I believe O Reilly's has their batteries made by East Penn has well. Three free replacement at both places.
 
I bought one last Month from auto zone for the Caddy...Auto Zone Gold $90.00 with my commercial discount but now my 19 year old niece needs one in her 2010 Camry and her Boyfriend works for costco and gets a discount but i don't know anything about their interstate batteries or if they are the same quality as other interstate batteries.

I heard that the wal mart Maxx was also a good battery with a great warranty. Im just not likin the auto zone golds lately.
I am looking for a Good Price and plenty of CCA's with the best warranty since i am paying for it...lol
 
Originally Posted By: rooflessVW
Made by Johnson Controls - junk.

Made by East Penn or Varta - not junk.


Varta is JCI.
 
These batteries are probably all made in the same factories, with the same alloying, and roughly the same electrolyte mix. The differences will be between the actual prime manufacturers, e.g. Enersys, C&D, JCI, Exide, East Penn, etc.

Alloys and electrolyte vary between prime manufacturers and by application, for agm vs flooded, SLI vs deep cycle vs UPS, etc.

While some are made into unique cases (like the white interstate), go into any parts store that carries the same batteries as another (e.g. Two stores that carry JCI batteries), and I suspect the cases are the same.

So I suspect that there are a few lines made by each manufacturer, a premium one with highest cca, a midline/value brand that is some compromise, and then an OEM grade, perhaps made to a lower price point but with some other specifics to ensure they get through warranty. Something like that.

One of the core lines might get the best x% sold to one vendor, the next y% sold to another, etc. manufacturers can determine impedance and capacity and "bin" the batteries, before sending them for decals and palletizing.

So I'd highly doubt that there's a ton of difference between any JCI battery at any store, other than how the store warranties the product after the sale.

Key is to ensure you're comparing apples to apples product lines when price shopping and feature shopping.

Also remember that weight is a good thing...
 
Originally Posted By: maximus
Originally Posted By: rooflessVW
Made by Johnson Controls - junk.

Made by East Penn or Varta - not junk.


Varta is JCI.


Owned by JCI yes, but still quality and still manufactured in Germany, not China, Saudi, or Mexico.
 
Originally Posted By: deven
When did JCI become bad? I remember people here recommending Walmart batteries which i believe were made by JCI??


Walmart batteries have a good warranty, which is why they're oft-recommended. The batteries at Walmart are now Saudi-made, and I would rather my money go nearly anywhere else. Enough of my taxes go to Saudi already.

I'd also rather not replace my battery more than once every 5-10 years, even if replacements are free. Battery replacement is not a simple task for me and many others.
 
Originally Posted By: deven
When did JCI become bad? I remember people here recommending Walmart batteries which i believe were made by JCI??

There are about 5-10 of these (Costco version of the JCI battery) in "circulation" amongst the fleet of cars that I maintain. All of the batteries have shown significant degradation after 12 months when tested with the HF digital tester. Furthermore, they usually test poorly or fail by the 3 year mark.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: deven
When did JCI become bad? I remember people here recommending Walmart batteries which i believe were made by JCI??

There are about 5-10 of these (Costco version of the JCI battery) in "circulation" amongst the fleet of cars that I maintain. All of the batteries have shown significant degradation after 12 months when tested with the HF digital tester. Furthermore, they usually test poorly or fail by the 3 year mark.

WoW. Good to know. Thanks!
 
Originally Posted By: rooflessVW
Originally Posted By: deven
When did JCI become bad? I remember people here recommending Walmart batteries which i believe were made by JCI??


Walmart batteries have a good warranty, which is why they're oft-recommended. The batteries at Walmart are now Saudi-made, and I would rather my money go nearly anywhere else. Enough of my taxes go to Saudi already.

I'd also rather not replace my battery more than once every 5-10 years, even if replacements are free. Battery replacement is not a simple task for me and many others.

This is also good to know. Thanks!
 
So far so good for 1 year old Costco Interstate battery in our Subaru. Keep it charged, clean, and taken care of and no issues. Great if not best price and warranty.
 
http://www.jgdarden.com/batteryfaq/batbrand.htm#J

Lots of rebranding/restickering goes on.

Those seeking maximum Lead acid battery longevity should keep it fully charged, and if possible, keep it cool.

Takes a long time to get a battery from 95% to 100% charged, and getting it to 100% is much much better for it than getting it to 99%.
Most automatic chargers will stop and flash the green light below 95%.

Keep it near 100% and cool, and one will likely get a long lived battery no matter the brand or sticker or whichever internet rumor is most vocal at the moment
 
In all the years I've used Interstate batteries I've never had a battery fail, and never needed to use the warranty. If the price is competitive, and assuming it's a "real" Interstate battery, I would have no problem purchasing one again.

Locally, Interstate batteries have become extremely expensive. Our county switched to using NAPA batteries about 4 years ago and, in the entire fleet of county, law enforcement, DNR, secondary roads, GIS, health department and maintenance, there hasn't been a single failure. That was one of the primary influences when I purchased new batteries for two of our vehicles last week, along with a price that is about 30% less than Interstate.
 
Originally Posted By: deven
When did JCI become bad? I remember people here recommending Walmart batteries which i believe were made by JCI??


I had pretty good service from the first Walmart EverStart Maxx we had in our MDX a number of years ago. It stayed strong for about 3.5 years, when it died in pretty quick fashion (and in mild weather, too). I bought another one and it's never seemed to be quite as good as the first one. It never has seemed as strong, and it's noticeably slower to crank when the weather gets "cool" now (sub 60 deg F). I have a feeling that I'm going to have to replace it this winter. If I do, it probably won't be with another EverStart.

The East Penn "Duracell" I bought from Sam's Club for our CR-V was a great battery, and was sold with the car a year or so ago.

Our Ridgeline has a "Super Start Premium" from Ozark Automotive Products and it has a 09/12 date sticker on it, so it's over 4 years old. It cranks the engine super quick, and shows no signs of stopping yet. Who makes Ozark's batteries? Are they their own company, or are they a re-sticker?
 
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