quote:

Originally posted by Watergoat:
Costco/Interstate. Costco gives you a longer warranty on the same battery, and no bs about "we have to charge it and load test it first"

According to the Interstate guy dropping batteries off at Costco, the Interstate batteries you buy at Costco are not the same as the Interstate batteries that you buy at other shops.

^^^ Interesting!

Deka from a local battery place.

quote:

Originally posted by slosig:

quote:

Originally posted by Watergoat:
Costco/Interstate. Costco gives you a longer warranty on the same battery, and no bs about "we have to charge it and load test it first"

According to the Interstate guy dropping batteries off at Costco, the Interstate batteries you buy at Costco are not the same as the Interstate batteries that you buy at other shops.

That could be good or bad. Costco usually sells good quality products. Deka offers a few levels of quality in their batteries and the only way you can really tell is if you look at the cranking amps and the warranty. The better battery is usually 10-15% more money, but has higher cranking amps and a longer warranty.


For my old 2008 expedition deka had 2 OE exact fit batteries, both maintenance free etc. Both are lead acid. The price difference was only around $12.

VL65 Cold cranking amps 650- 12 month warranty
765MF Cold cranking amps 750- 30 month warranty

I've always used Interstate. Howevver,when the OEM battery in my Tacoma dies, I'm contemplating a Group 34 or Group 27, either an Optima or North star. Pricey but durable and dependable with tons of cold and hot cranking power and support for extended use of accessories with engine off.

quote:

Originally posted by NavyGuy:
I've always used Interstate. Howevver,when the OEM battery in my Tacoma dies, I'm contemplating a Group 34 or Group 27, either an Optima or North star. Pricey but durable and dependable with tons of cold and hot cranking power and support for extended use of accessories with engine off.

Optima's quality has dropped heavily over the last 4 years once production shifted to Mexico. I have a few boats with 3+ optima batteries in them and are stuck with them because the battery trays are cut for that weird Optima shape. I have a lot of Deka AGM's also in yachts I manage and they don't seem to last hardly any longer than regular lead acid either.....getting 2.5-3 years out of both Optima and Deka AGM.

North Star is very good quality. Odyssey is very good quality. The very best AGM is Lifeline, I've seen them go 6-8 years in a hard boat environment.

We have an Interstate warehouse nearby. It seems like I am constantly changing batteries on something. All of our farm machinery, RTV's, mowers, trucks, and car get Interstate batteries, I just can't find anything better for the money. They won't change the battery for you but I can handle that.

quote:

Originally posted by slosig:

quote:

Originally posted by Watergoat:
Costco/Interstate. Costco gives you a longer warranty on the same battery, and no bs about "we have to charge it and load test it first"

According to the Interstate guy dropping batteries off at Costco, the Interstate batteries you buy at Costco are not the same as the Interstate batteries that you buy at other shops.

Just curious.....can you explain why they are different?

quote:

Originally posted by NavyGuy:
I've always used Interstate. Howevver,when the OEM battery in my Tacoma dies, I'm contemplating a Group 34 or Group 27, either an Optima or North star. Pricey but durable and dependable with tons of cold and hot cranking power and support for extended use of accessories with engine off.

Yep, I bought into the Optima hype and bought a red top for my 2001 F-150. To date its been the shortest lived battery I've ever owned. And best of all, it came with little to no warranty and a premium price tag. Never again.

I just replaced the battery on our Equinox over the weekend and went with another ACDelco from Menard's. 36 month free replacement for $90.

I'm a little of an oddball here, but I actually went with a Duracell for my 2012 Honda Odyssey.

I got it at Batteries + Bulbs, their main business is just that. I was out the door with a new one for 114 and change. One of the best parts of that place is you can see what they have in stock when you spec your battery, and if you order online for pickup, you get 10% off. It's pretty great to just roll in, they check the battery before they sell it to you, and out you go.

There are predominately three major manufacturers of auto batteries in the US. East Penn, Exide and
Johnson Controls. Everything else is marketing.

Personally I buy them over at Sams Club or Walmart. If it ever gives me trouble, it's unlikely I'd be far from one of those retailers.

I used to be a Sears Die Hard fan, obviously not any more. Now I am doing OEM and putting Motorcraft back in.

quote:

Originally posted by mjlennon:
There are predominately three major manufacturers of auto batteries in the US. East Penn, Exide and
Johnson Controls. Everything else is marketing.

Personally I buy them over at Sams Club or Walmart. If it ever gives me trouble, it's unlikely I'd be far from one of those retailers.

Yes, but all 3 companies make batteries at all different quality levels depending on who's rebranding them and their specifications and mainly price point.

Just bought an Interstate AGM for my Lexus Hybrid.
Not cheap. $288.00 At an Interstate dealer.

I haven’t had any worse luck with Walmart batteries than any other brand. I had one that lasted nearly 10 years in an old Suburban that was parked in a garage when not being driven.

quote:

Originally posted by henryaz:
 
Odyssey.

This...or Sears Platinum...which is made by Odyssey

quote:

Originally posted by slosig:

quote:

Originally posted by Watergoat:
Costco/Interstate. Costco gives you a longer warranty on the same battery, and no bs about "we have to charge it and load test it first"

According to the Interstate guy dropping batteries off at Costco, the Interstate batteries you buy at Costco are not the same as the Interstate batteries that you buy at other shops.

Certainly possible. This is common with a lot of manufacturers selling in warehouse stores. My former vendor sold at Costco. Much lower quality than the product they supplied me.

I also remember looking at a set of chef's knives from a famous German maker, but these were made in Asia under an "international" label.

Farm and Fleet Platinum for the last 3-4. Made by East Penn.

It was Interstates before that but the price went up and local availability and warranty seemed to decrease so I switched.

IIRC Walmart has two grades - I typically buy their high level battery and have good success.

In and out in usually 15 minutes.

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