Preemptively Replace Battery...OR not?

H

HowAboutThis

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Oct 8, 2017
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OEM Toyota battery that is 8 years old. Still showing OK with a cheap digital load tester. I'm thinking of either a Toyota replacement or Costco/Interstate AGM replacement. Is 8 years pushing my luck? Should I be preemptive? Costco AGM or Toyota flooded or Costco flooded?

Opinions...and...1-2-3...GO!
 
I'm in the same situation. I have a 7 y/o Deka battery in my truck that's still working well. I might go another year if it's doing well by winter.
 
You are getting close for sure. I'd think about it if I needed the car for getting back and forth to work and couldn't deal with downtime issues. Would you be saving money getting one now if prices go up due to tariffs? I don't know if car batteries are made in the USA or not.
 
I would either do it now or at the first sign of trouble. And then I would be off to Costco.
Of course having one of those neato jump boxes in the trunk is good backup.
 
It depends on how inconvenient it will be when it fails. For example, if you only drive around locally and there's a store nearby where you can purchase a new battery off the shelf, you can wait. However, if you're planning on driving to a remote place in the near future it would be worth replacing it now. Regarding battery choice, I'd get a maintenance free calcium battery with the longest possible warranty. I personally like Exide sealed maintenance free batteries which have a 42 month warranty.
 
What's your time worth? How flexible is your personal schedule to deal with the inconvenience of an unexpected problem related to the old battery?

8 years but testing OK now? I'd monitor and run through the Summer and replace in the Fall.
 
Depends whether you enjoy a good game of Russian Roulette, or not.
If in doubt, swap it out.
 
These align with most of my thoughts. Just tested the voltage and such with my cheap Viking tester. 12.56V after sitting overnight, almost 100% charged, 390CCA showing even though the battery is rated 356CCA.

I replaced my old Panasonic Honda batteries every 10 years preemptively.

My commute is now within about 8 miles of home instead of 35. We've got AAA and the dealership is about 5 minutes from my current job. And Costco is about 5 minutes from home
I'm thinking I'll roll the dice and wait a bit longer...
 
The only way I've gotten 6+ years out of a car battery is to keep it on a battery tender when it's not being used. But as to the original post - it depends on how good you are at guesstimating when and where your battery will conk out and leave you stranded. Is your safety or the safety of your family worth the gamble ??? Y M M V
 
In a cold climate, I'd replace it before winter. Batteries always give up at the least convenient times, as in when it's -20 degrees outside.

Your car seems to be easy on batteries. Why spend more on an AGM?
 
Depends on how long you plan on keeping the vehicle. Under a year? Let it ride. Another 8 years? That battery will likely fail before then.
 
HowAboutThis said:
OEM Toyota battery that is 8 years old. Still showing OK with a cheap digital load tester. I'm thinking of either a Toyota replacement or Costco/Interstate AGM replacement. Is 8 years pushing my luck? Should I be preemptive? Costco AGM or Toyota flooded or Costco flooded?

Opinions...and...1-2-3...GO!
Click to expand...
HowAboutThis said:
OEM Toyota battery that is 8 years old. Still showing OK with a cheap digital load tester. I'm thinking of either a Toyota replacement or Costco/Interstate AGM replacement. Is 8 years pushing my luck? Should I be preemptive? Costco AGM or Toyota flooded or Costco flooded?

Opinions...and...1-2-3...GO!
Click to expand...
If you don’t do it now, when will you do it? When it dies and you’re possibly stranded and it’s very inconvenient? That’s the decision.
 
I would not get an OEM Toyota battery. They are just JC/Clarios premium/max batteries that have been sitting on the dealer shelf for 11+ months. If you want Clarios get the Costco batt when they get fresh stock. Or better yet, get the Sam's Club East Penn Duracell for the same price. Take your battery tester to the store and test the battery before you buy it... if <12.5v don't buy it.

but at 8yrs you are on borrowed time. Expect it to fail on your next out of town road trip when you're taking clients out for dinner.

AGM vs Flooded... I'll leave that to others to debate. I put my vehicles on maintenance chargers almost every day, and I'd worry about off gassing an AGM, but that's just me. I suppose if I had an AGM I would change my charging strategy, or use a different charger.
 
The way you got to 8 years was by not replacing it at 6 years. The way you get to 10 years is by not replacing it at 8.

As my smart Alec cousin used to say, just think about how much longer the next one will last if you don't replace it now.

Sounds like it would be fairly convenient to replace it when it does fail. Meanwhile I'd carry a set of heavy gauge booster cables.

Enough said.
 
My OEM Toyota Battery lasted 12 years without issue. (11 Tundra CM LTD).
I'd have let it continue lest I was taking a trip to Moosehead Lake with my 90 year old Father.
Many long and not traveled logging roads to get to our destination.
Should have kept the core as it tested fine.
Bought a jump pack for the trip as I just did not trust the replacement.
Found our old family lakeside cabin some 3 hours from our rental at the last outpost.
40 years had past since we both saw Mt. Kineo.
Both Dad and my new battery (Walmart Deka) are still doing fine.
 
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