Well, that escalated quickly...

[Bottom_Feeder]

My car has been perfectly fine in the five years to the month I installed a new EverStart Maxx battery... until just now.

I had just started it without issue or any signs something was amiss, moved to the other end of the shopping center lot to hit another store, and when I came out a few minutes later, all I got were a few random dash lights and clicks. I plugged in my jump box (put it to use!) and it started after a brief pause. The electric power steering motor made it bog briefly as I pulled out of the spot but it got me home. Not even enough juice to lock the doors once I turned it off. I put a volt meter on it and came up with 9.87v at rest so yeah, it's dead. I'm now waiting for the wife to get home so I can borrow her car and get another battery.

I can't complain about getting five years out of a battery, I got my money's worth out of it. And better this happen now than on the road trip we're planning on going on in a few weeks, or on my way to my doctor's appointment tomorrow morning. I just didn't feel like fixing it tonight!

 

[KGMtech]

It's strange how some batteries will behave when they are about to fail, no real warning period at all, works fine until it doesn't.

 

[Bottom_Feeder]

And this is on my 2015 Accord Sport that originally came with a 51R that I did a 24F upgrade on. The 24F is overkill so I'm not sure if I'll go that route again or try a 35 this time. Prices are the same, so....?

 

[Oro_O]

…. Not even enough juice to lock the doors once I turned it off. I put a volt meter on it and came up with 9.87v at rest so yeah, it's dead. I'm now waiting for the wife to get home so I can borrow her car and get another battery….

If you drove it that far and it didn’t improve the slightest, check the alternator output.

It could have failed internally and this behavior be completely battery related. But it is worth checking.

For the same price, get the bigger battery. Only helps, no harm.

 

[Zee09]

And this is on my 2015 Accord Sport that originally came with a 51R that I did a 24F upgrade on. The 24F is overkill so I'm not sure if I'll go that route again or try a 35 this time. Prices are the same, so....?

My 13 sport had a watch sized battery while my 2L Mitsubishi had a battery bigger than its engine...

 

[Propflux01]

AGM battery?

 

[Bottom_Feeder]

If you drove it that far and it didn’t improve the slightest, check the alternator output.

Getting home was less than a half-mile so I don't think the alternator had any time to recharge it at all. But good thought.

 

[Torrid]

It's strange how some batteries will behave when they are about to fail, no real warning period at all, works fine until it doesn't.

That's more typical of AGMs over standard flooded lead acid. I think more and more people are starting to see this behavior as AGMs have gotten more common these days, though I've had the same happen on occasion with flooded batteries. My experience with AGMs though has been as bad as it started just fine and 10 minutes later after shutting the car off I didn't even have working interior lights. I stopped at McDonalds the last time and I'm glad I used the pickup parking spaces because when I shut the car off to wait it didn't start again.

 

[Bottom_Feeder]

Pickings were slim at Walmart. Only one 24F and it was a Johnson-made Plus with a 7/23 date code and a Walmart stock date code from last week. Made the choice easy, and I saved $30. It's going to sit on my Noco Genius 5 all night and see where we're at in the morning before I install it.

 

[Kira]

Made the choice easy, and I saved $30.

Choice between Walmart battery and what?

Also

that originally came with a 51R that I did a 24F upgrade on. The 24F is overkill so I'm not sure if I'll go that route again or try a 35 this time.

I did the same timeline on an Accord. 51R.....35.....24F and I swear the 24F fit better.
Even the posts fit the clamps better.....and I know that can't be true but the 35's needed shimming.

 

[Bottom_Feeder]

Choice between Walmart battery and what?

Choice between Walmart's $139 Maxx or $109 Plus, and between an East Penn or a Johnson. This octagonal-capped Plus was the only 24F they had in the nearly empty rack. I'm just happy it's not old stock or beat up or someone's return.

 

[daves87rs]

Glad they had some….

 

[RaymondP]

Seems to make sense before purchasing the specific battery from Walmart or anywhere else to 1. Check date of selected battery and 2. Put a multimeter on it to check voltage. Should read at least 12.4 volts. I know a load test would be better but not sure if it would be a fair test given the battery may have been sitting. Others??

 

[Shel_B]

If you drove it that far and it didn’t improve the slightest, check the alternator output.

It could have failed internally and this behavior be completely battery related. But it is worth checking.

For the same price, get the bigger battery. Only helps, no harm.

One of the techs I use told me not to get a bigger-than-normal (standard) battery. I doubted her but researched the issue nonetheless. This is what I found:

Problems With Using Too Large of an Auto Battery

Car manufacturers evaluate the amperage necessary for starting and operating the vehicle in different situations to determine the alternator needs. The whole charging system is based upon the evaluation of the vehicle's needs. The battery is just one aspect of the system. Using the wrong battery...

itstillruns.com

 

[wavinwayne]

My car has been perfectly fine in the five years to the month I installed a new EverStart Maxx battery... until just now...

The battery in my 2018 Forester died the same way. It was fine until it was dead.

 

[SatinSilver]

One of the techs I use told me not to get a bigger-than-normal (standard) battery. I doubted her but researched the issue nonetheless. This is what I found:

Problems With Using Too Large of an Auto Battery

Car manufacturers evaluate the amperage necessary for starting and operating the vehicle in different situations to determine the alternator needs. The whole charging system is based upon the evaluation of the vehicle's needs. The battery is just one aspect of the system. Using the wrong battery...

itstillruns.com

A Camry comes with a 24f and a Corolla comes with a group 35. Honda puts a battery in the Accord that's smaller than a group 35. I agree not to upsize the Camry battery though.

 

[Cujet]

It's strange how some batteries will behave when they are about to fail, no real warning period at all, works fine until it doesn't.

If you ever decide to cut apart such a battery, you'll find that the plates have eroded away into nothing.

 

[MSCH]

Getting home was less than a half-mile so I don't think the alternator had any time to recharge it at all. But good thought.

honestly the alternator isn't there to recharge a dead battery but is there to run the vehicle electrical loads and put the small amount of current back into a good battery that was used for starting the engine..

figure the more the battery is discharged the higher its internal resistance to recharging is..
a bad battery basically wont recharge and pass a load test no matter how long you drive the vehicle.
also throw in the fact that electricity takes the path of least resistance..
so the car consumes electricity from the alternator and the bit of current trying to make its way to the battery really doesn't accomplish much, not for a long period of driving time anyway.

Hence, all starting charging system diagnosis starts with the battery.
if the battery is weak, you hook it to a charger and then test it..
if it fails
replace the battery..
then do other troubleshooting if necessary.

 

[Bottom_Feeder]

I'm back up and running again, but I wasn't 100% sure at first that the dead battery was the only problem.

Once the battery was charged overnight and installed, the meter was showing 12.7 volts. But once the car was running, I was still only showing 12.7 volts. Then I remembered Honda's 'dual mode' charging system, turned on the headlights to create an electrical load, and voltage jumped up to 14.5 volts. So the alternator's fine, it was just the battery's time.

 

[Oro_O]

One of the techs I use told me not to get a bigger-than-normal (standard) battery. I doubted her but researched the issue nonetheless. This is what I found:

Problems With Using Too Large of an Auto Battery

Car manufacturers evaluate the amperage necessary for starting and operating the vehicle in different situations to determine the alternator needs. The whole charging system is based upon the evaluation of the vehicle's needs. The battery is just one aspect of the system. Using the wrong battery...

itstillruns.com

Within the realm of the range of batteries, charging devices (alternator), and load we are talking, nothing in that article would apply (that the alternator can’t adequately charge the battery, the fuse panel can’t handle it, etc.). It is very poorly reasoned. Car manufacturers will use the same alternator and regulator package for a variety of installed batteries, for example. Specific cars will even dictate different batteries are acceptable. One single example, I have a Volvo with the battery compartment specifically constructed to take different batteries from 750 to 1000 CA - all just fine to use with the same alternator, regulator, fuse panel, per the manual. At the VERY extreme ends of possibility - say, putting an RV battery in a Kia Sorrento - these cautions would well apply. In the realm of everyday reality, no.

As a second take, that article is terribly vague, unreferenced, and authored by someone without any evidence of experience, credentials, or authority. I know you are repeating something you’ve heard in good faith. My point is not to inherently contradict you, but to point out that there is just a tremendous amount of wrong advice given out by mechanics, and especially by on-line PAID writers on automotive subjects who don’t have the training to do so. Selling revenue clicks is far more important than getting quality advice for most web sites.