Replace battery or not?

[OtisBlkR1]

op, youv already awnsered your own questions.. this battery is cranking slow, its 6 years old... what are you waiting for..

this year 2012, ive had a total of 5 batterys fail, 2 of them gave me zero indication (both motorcycle batterys) and one of them was at a gas station.. just flat died out of nowhere.. that battery was 7 years old.

your battery is sending you the warnings now so you dont get left on the side of the road.. take the warning.

 

[Papa Bear]

Originally Posted By: scurvy
Originally Posted By: heathenbrewing
So the past 2 weeks the starter has cranked slower than it did previously.
...
Battery is 6 years old
...


Those alone are enough for me to condemn a battery for replacement.


+1

 

[TFB1]

The original battery was still cranking my '98 Grand Marquis when I bought it in April '10, changed it because a 12 year old battery could not possibly be trustworthy...

As a load test, I installed it into my buddies bucket truck with a 460, would barely turn that monster over but it did start... It was still cranking a 4cyl Turbo Coupe last summer(2011) but I forgot to disconnect the cable and it had a interior reading lamp on that discharged it, would not recharge...

My '07 Grand Marquis built in Dec '06 still has the original battery, will probably replace it before cold weather sets in...

 

[tonycarguy]

Replace the battery now.

You're lucky your battery is telling you to replace it. I never got such a warning; it just died one day and left me stranded in a parking lot. For this reason I now replace my batteries at 5-6 years, regardless.

 

[SIXSPEED]

A quick check that I've always used to see if the alternator is working is to measure the battery voltage with the engine running at idle. If it measures about 14.5 VDC then I consider the charging system good. Then after I turn off the engine and the voltage starts to drop from 12.6V down below 12V after a few minutes I know a cell is bad. When a battery fails it's usually due to a bad cell.

 

[SteveSRT8]

There's a reason why a seasoned mechanic will tell you that the battery/alternator/starter triumvirate is a tricky diagnosis challenge.

I've seen many a bad alternator read good voltage but fail to have enough current to do anything under a load. Plus batteries are not always eager to tell you what is wrong.

 

[Volvohead]

To the OP, the Ah reserve is fading.
You got your money's worth out of it.

Fading batteries sometimes overwork an alternator to failure.
Alternators are much more expensive than batteries.

Something to keep in mind.

 

[Zero]

Originally Posted By: Volvohead
To the OP, the Ah reserve is fading.
You got your money's worth out of it.

Fading batteries sometimes overwork an alternator to failure.
Alternators are much more expensive than batteries.

Something to keep in mind.


That's good advice.

 

[heathenbrewing]

Originally Posted By: OtisBlkR1
op, youv already awnsered your own questions.. this battery is cranking slow, its 6 years old... what are you waiting for..
your battery is sending you the warnings now so you dont get left on the side of the road.. take the warning.


Most posts have echoed this thinking. Thanks to all who posted their thoughts on the subject. I knew what the proper remedy was, just trying to justify my thriftiness.

I was planning on replacing this evening, but my deep well socket was too narrow and didnt allow the battery retaining strap to be unscrewed. I already have the right tools in my car and hope to get one more start tomorrow morning and pick up a new battery on the way to work.

Cheers All!

 

[mechtech2]

6 years is decent to very good life in a warm climate.

Take the extra step with your new battery, and clean BOTH ends of the power and ground cables. All sorts of benefits ensue.

 

[heathenbrewing]

Originally Posted By: mechtech2
6 years is decent to very good life in a warm climate.

Take the extra step with your new battery, and clean BOTH ends of the power and ground cables. All sorts of benefits ensue.


Replaced it yesterday. What a difference!

Good advice. I hit up the interior of the cable clamps and posts with steel wool until they shined.