Is DieHard Battery Really Better?

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I have a 1999 F150 with 123000 miles with the original battery still in it. When it goes my plan is to put another Motorcraft back in.
 
I just traded off my 97 F150 (114K) with original Motorcraft battery...seemed to have as much power as new. Always started, never had to put a charger on it. Pretty good IMO for a battery manufactured in March 1996.
 
There is something with the F150 batt. Co worker has a 98 F150 XL with 160K w/ original batt. They did something right.
 
When I put that Everstart Maxx in my 97 F-150 about 6 months ago with approx. 186,000 miles on it, it was the original Motorcraft that it was replacing.
 
I was forced to buy a Wal-Mart Everstart Maxx battery when my wife's car conked after church a few Sundays ago. Wally World was all that was open late on Sunday. It was quite a deal at 59 bucks, but boy I hate Wal-Mart. It sounds like the Everstarts are better than you would think though. One good thing about Wal-Mart: There's usually one not too far from where you are!

I have an Auto-Zone that's working on 5 1/2 years old. It has a seven year warranty.

My original AC battery lasted for 8 years in my Formula. I replaced it with an Oreilly Superstart.
 
Motorcraft batteries are the bomb.

my Dad's 98 F-150 has the original with 107,000 miles.

my moms 99 Mystique has the original.

my old 95 t-bird has the original up till 2003.
 
i had a group size 34/68 diehard in the truck. it was ok. i replaced it a couple years later with the right size (group size 27) from napa (legend series, gold). neither had trouble with starts in the cold weather here (which isnt very cold). both held their charge for weeks.

i liked the napa better simply because it was the right size.
 
Duralast & Everstart (WM) aften test better than DieHard. I have never had a DieHard last for the entire warranty period, and Everstarts have never let me down!
 
i have an everstart going on 1 year now. for the price of $39 you can almost buy 1 everstart and run it till it des,. but a second one and do the same thing, all for about the same price as a single more expensive battery.
 
Since batteries age even when not used it pays to buy from a place that moves fresh stock. I wonder if that is why some batteries go from good to poor when tested. I have also seen too much of new batteries being mishandeled by the installer. Typically the battey is dropped 6-12 inches to the concrete as the battery is swung and tossed toward the vehicle.
 
Any battery that has been sitting for 3 months is loosing it's charge. More than that and sulfation starts which cannot be reversed. Wal Mart was very bad for this when GNB made there batteries in the 90s. GNB had a plant in Leavenworth KS that did almost all the return work form Wally World.

Dropping a battery is a good way to kill them.

Any battery that has caps should be examined a couple times a year and add distilled water to the level where you see a meniscus develop.
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If the battery is is an extremely hot engine compartment like the V8 Taurus they will cook themselves and need replaced about every three years no matter what the brand. I moved mine to the trunk.
 
Consumer reports usually shows that the top brand in one size is not necessarily the top brand in another size. IOW, performance varies by size and also depending whether it is a northhern or southern battery.
 
All batts in USA are made by 1 of 3 outfits: Johnson Controls, Exide, or Interstate. Naturally, all 3 supply various models of Everstart to WM.

I buy from a "local independent" who sells generic batts made by Interstate. In Feb 04 I paid $32 for a new F150 batt (included tax and exchange) and it's still going strong. Same batt sold by Wallys for $60-70.
 
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