Mostly an informational post.

I had to replace the batteries in both of my vehicles this month, so I'll give you a quick after action report.

Battery #1: Group 35P lasted about 6 years and 9 months.

Battery #2: Group 35P lasted about 9 years.

Both were Farm & Fleet Platinum batteries and were replaced with the same. I even got $18 credit on the first one for not making the full 7-year warranty.

Not sure who makes these batteries for F&F, but they have always given me good service other than the one I let freeze accidentally which was my own fault.

Living in the Midwest, these batteries have not been babied. Plenty of hot summers and freezing winters and they both worked fine right up until death.

My only complaint is that my "local" Farm & Fleet is about a half hour away.

My only disappointment was that I had to replace my battery terminal cleaner brush and the Lisle one I ordered that was supposed to be made in the USA was made in Taiwan.

That is some great battery life, the most I have ever gotten is 5 years on my wife’s 4Runner. Most of the time the heat here in South Texas kills them around 3 years.

I have a friend that owns a battery store so now I have a cheap source for new batteries. I only paid $60 for an Interstate battery for my wife’s 4Runner.

Farm & Fleet Platinum batteries are a white label of East Penn Manufacturing, a privately-held company located in Lyon Station, Pennsylvania.

Not always but a giveaway is that if the serial number starts with EP they made it.

I think they also do Walmart.

Recently bought a Napa battery. $111 with the AAA discount which was substantial.

Texas' heat eats batteries and so does Nissan's power management so I typically get 24 to 30 months out of a battery. My truck was made in March '16 and I'm on my 5th battery, but only paid for 1:

Nissan labelled batteries. They have serial warranties and neither the 1st or 2nd made it to 36 month warranty so they were replaced for free. The 3rd made it past 36 months.

Interstate. My 4th battery (aka 1st Interstate) didn't make it to warranty and it was replaced for free but they only do that once.

Motorcycle batteries are even worse:

I get about 2 years out of an OEM AGM as well as an aftermarket AGM. Only 6 month warranties. I'm on my 2nd AutoZone Duralast Gold.

During COVID, my AGM battery died and couldn't get my hands on an AGM due to supply chain issues. I ordered a $160 lithium off Revzilla and it only lasted a year.

After lifespan, the next most frustrating thing about motorcycle batteries is the manufacturer leaves a tight space and battery manufacturer's sizes are inconsistent. My Indian Scout should take a YUASA YTX14H, but that is a AZX15 (not a typo) in Duralast Gold, a TX14AH with Walmart's Everstart Platinum, an ITX14AH for Interstate AGMs.

Only nice thing I have to say about Lithium is that you buy the group size and then use the supplied spacers to make it tall enough so there isn't multiple sizes of group size 14 batteries.

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Ego is the anesthesia that deadens the pain of stupidity

DISCLAIMER: These are the author's own personal views and do not represent the views of the author's employer.

I have used Napa (manufactured by East Penn) in my Explorer for the last 5-6 years. I have had two batteries start to fail before the end of the warranty. While that kind of sucks, Napa has now supplied me with three batteries for the cost of just the original. The latest about 5 months ago. So I’m getting just under 3 years per battery.

Good deal getting them to honor the warranty. Every bit helps.

I bought mine back in 2012 and have had no problems to speak of.

Batteries sure don't seem to last nearly as long as they used to! IIRC, the biggest killer of the old-style "wet" batteries was letting too much water evaporate. I don't know what kills AGM batteries.

I do wonder that modern auto electronics might have something to do with it. Programming the most effective charging rates and capacities for the type and size of the vehicle's battery has to be critical. Also, the plethora of electronic and electrical devices must be much more draining than classic auto electrics.

Finally, it seems to me that there should be more choices than traditional lead-acid cells. Why are not lithium, LiPo, etc. options available for non-EV cars? Seems like this would be a win for the lower weight if nothing else.

Other than my bmws which i keep less than 6 years and never had to replace a battery, all my other cars have needed batteries in year 3 or 4.
2015 subaru legacy, needed battery in 2018.
2020 subaru impreza needed battery in 2024
2022 alfa giulia needed battery in 2026. i replaced this efb battery with an agm one. all my bmws were agms.

I’ve had a few DieHard last 8 years. The OEM battery in a Kubota tractor lasted 14 years to when I swapped it into an old car I was selling. It cranked that big block Ford just fine. The OEM Toyota 4Runner battery is 8 years old and still going. My Allstate ATV battery is about 8 years old.
I have a company work truck so my vehicles do a lot of sitting. I trickle charge all of my batteries once monthly during the winter months. I guess the light usage is good for longevity but I start to wonder about anything over 5 years old.

I also use F&F Platinum batteries and have been pleased with their performance and warranty when needed.

It use to also give me an excuse to buy some 9mm ammo while waiting on the installation.

East Penn has one of the better reputations for traditional flooded wet cell batteries. They make batteries for a lot of different labels as well as their own brands like Dekka. Aside from serial number another give away is case design. Lately, I've been picking up East Penn manufactured Duracell brand flooded batteries very inexpensively from Sam's, and a NAPA Gold labeled AGM also by East Penn at a good price.

Manufacturing quality contributes to longevity, as do ambient conditions. How the battery is charged and how it's used or abused effects longevity more. Traditional wet cells do not stand up to abuse like deep discharge well, and charging systems in most automobiles are by and large still pretty basic and not necessarily precisely regulated so not optimal for battery longevity.However a few use 3-stage smart charging systems, that recognize the 3 different phases of bulk, absorption, and float, and can deliver the appropriate regimen required for each phase. They can even monitor battery temperature and load to adjust voltage and amperage as necessary. They can be programmed for various battery chemistries to change charging regimen to take advantage AGM or Gel batteries potential advantages. This means batteries can last far longer

I have a vehicle equipped with a 3-stage smart charger that has an optimized charging regimen for an AGM battery and ir was programmed with the correct battery specs and age when it was installed. When I finally replaced the battery it was more that 10.5 years old. I have a high quality smart charger in my sailboat as well. It's a tough environment, lots of vibration from the adjacent diesel, lots of pounding from sea state, extreme heeling angles, lots of heat in the engine compartment and when the boat is closed up not being used. These are of course deep cycle batteries regularly discharged fairly deeply because when sailing or at anchor we rely on batteries to supply all our electrical needs. The engine is on only when docking or anchoring or when the wind dies, yet despite use and ambient conditions I swap out batteries only every 6-7 years.

Battery technology is advancing rapidly and prices are dropping significantly. For instance cruising sailboats and RV's are moving to solar stored in Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries which offer safety, thermal stability, dramatically reduced size and weight, huge lifespans and fast charging. The trade off are sophisticated electronics to control and manage them.

18 (calendar) year-old Toyota Corolla, 219,000 miles, on the 3rd battery. OEM lasted ~7 years, an Interstate ~6 years, second Interstate still going strong.

My lovely wife and I are retired and have four vehicles. Sometimes some of them don't get driven for a while. We only drive the truck when we need a truck. We have an older Corvette that sometimes is idle for month or more. We keep them on battery maintainers which I believe gives longer life of the batteries than letting them discharge.

Here in Southern Arizona I plan for the need to replace a car/truck battery every 2-3 years. The extreme heat tends to take its toll on them.

I’m about to replace my 12v battery in my car soon @ 3 years.

Even though I’m driving a EV if the 12v goes down nothing works. Doors, hatch and Frunk so you have to jump the Frunk so to speak to be able to change the battery.

I’m doing this as a precaution so I don’t get bricked.

quote:

Originally posted by Gene Hillman:
My lovely wife and I are retired and have four vehicles. Sometimes some of them don't get driven for a while. We only drive the truck when we need a truck. We have an older Corvette that sometimes is idle for month or more. We keep them on battery maintainers which I believe gives longer life of the batteries than letting them discharge.

Same here. At any given time at least two of our vehicles will be on tenders.

I, too, use battery maintainers on a regular (every day) basis.

Prior to their use I was getting 2-3 years on lawn mower batteries and about 5 on the car and truck batteries. With the maintainers the mower batteries are lasting 2x-3x longer than previously, and the vehicle batteries are load testing excellent past the eight-year mark.