Koda

I run disconnects in my old cars. Clocks work, so I do so. Eckler's has good side post terminal disconnects for GMs. May have top post ones too. I still have a lifetime warranty on my K mart battery that my grandfather got in the 80 (same car, same name on the paperwork) though I may not get so lucky the next time it dies. My old man's van lost its lifetime warranty when Monkey Ward's went under ten or 15 years back.

I have an Autozone gold running my 442 which is subject to bad abuse with the car barely running, and it has since 05. Optimas are awesome, interstates are good. Toyota OEM batteries, if anyone cares, are 48 or 72 month rated, and we ship a 48 month one in the new cars. My truck made it 4.5 years and was leaking acid on the 48 stock one, and my sister's rav4 had heat failure last Aug at 4.5 years as well, that sucker was DEAD.

bob p

My experience with AGM batteries is that they do last longer than anything else. AGM battery chemistry is in a class by itself when it comes to long life, but you pay more for those batteries because they cost more to make. When comparison shopping, just be sure that you're comparing apples to apples. AGM may or may not be what you want. I pay more to use sealed AGM batteries in special applications like bikes because the batteries are mounted tipped over sideways which requires a sealed battery. Because disassembly of the bike is required to change them long life is important. On the cars I'm happy enough with the life that I get out of VRLA (valve regulated lead-acid) batteries. They're cheap and changing out a battery is only a 5 minute job.

EastPenn is an American manufacturer of AGM batteries whose name isn't widely recognized because they primarily ghost-manufacture for private label brands, like Harley-Davidson. I've used their AGM motorcycle battery, and it lasted far longer than any of 20 other motorcycle batteries I've owned. 2x-3x longer than the closet competitor, and the only reason it died was because I killed it by leaving it hooked up to a large parasitic drain without checking on it or putting it on a tender. I screwed up and ruined that one. With routine care it would have lasted much longer.

Deka also manufactures AGM batteries for cars, which are sold as private label premium brands. They do sell the same batteries at a steep discount under their own Deka brand name, but you'll probably have to go online to find them.

jfb

I hear you on this subject completely and thank you for the info and some new knowledge that I learned about buyouts and jci,s business. I will go to Walmart for a new battery, same quality lower price why not,it makes sense. I know from all of this info that we all have greater knowledge and a keener sense of pricing. I WILL GET THE LONGEST WARRANTY AND LIKE USAUL I WILL KEEP THE CHARGE UP,I charge all of my batterys 2 to 3 times a year for safety and the daily driver gets a febuary charge,i drive a small distance to work, heater wipers etc, I do not like any chances, knowledge is power.and let the olds battery sit at full charge all winter every year,switch off of course.

Allan R

If you're not a member you're not buying the battery there, period. Membership is not that expensive so considering all the other products you'll buy in a year buying from Costco definitely makes sense. Of course if you WANT to pay more for a battery somewhere else, who am I to argue? My experience buying batteries from Costco has been positive on every purchase.

re: top posts vs side posts. Check their application guide. I did see that GM options are side post and Ford is top post. Q: Isn't your F150 supposed to have top post terminals? Stores like Auto zone or O'Reilly's will gladly sell you a comparable battery for at least 40.00 - 60.00 more.

coppercutlass

I'm pretty sure the op has a family member , friend , or someone who is a costco member. I have my neighbor buy my allergy medicine there because its cheap and bulk lol he has a costco membership.

bob p

Anyone who you know who has a Costco membership can take you to buy you a battery as their guest.

http://www.costco.com/member-privileges-conditions.html

"Members are welcome to bring their children and up to two guests into the warehouse, however, only Costco members may purchase items."

BlackGold

I can't speak for Costco, but years ago I decided to try one of these "club" type bulk stores for 9V batteries, which I use a fair number of for wireless microphones for my church. They were selling Duracells for slightly cheaper than the already great price I was getting from a local electronic supply house.

It was a big mistake. Out of 48 batteries, several were dead right out of the box and several others died way too soon under usage. The date codes were recent. I called up Duracell and asked if they had such a thing as B-stock which they sell to discounters. They adamantly denied it. So I was left with the possibility that I was sold either counterfits or batteries which had been stored improperly. Either way, I decided I never wanted to purchase from a "club" store again.

There's usually a reason something costs less. You don't always get what you pay for, but you almost never get more than what you pay for.

bob p

Since we've got the battery situation covered pretty well, I guess it's OK to hijack this thread.

I don't think the B-stock problem is unique to any one store. I been thinking that lots of B-stock gets sold off as A-stock without proper disclosure. Most of the time it's at prices that are too good to be true, like free after rebate promotions. I don't feel like I've taken a risk with my Costco battery, as it's covered by the manufacturer's warranty, and the Costco satisfaction money back guarantee.

That said, I think that you're right -- a practice seems to be spreading where companies dump their B-stock on the discounters, and let defective merchandise find it's way into the marketplace instead of clearly marking them as seconds or destroying them. The B-stock in the marketplace is not differentiated in any way from the A-stock merchandise and competes with it, the only difference being price. It seems that a large supply of B-stock gets passed off to deep discounters who sell it to the unsuspecting public, who assume that they're buying discounted A-stock merchandise instead of defective merchandise.

Yesterday I called Brake Parts Inc. to complain about a defective Raybestos wheel cylinder. I bought 4 wheel cylinders for my car, all of which are spec'd to have 3/8" bleeder screws. (The Raybestos part number for the 24-thread SAE bleeder screw with the 3/8" hex head is S6858.).

3 of the 4 had the correct S6858 bleeders, but the 4th one did not. It didn't have a 3/8" bleed screw or a 7/16" bleed screw. It didn't have an SAE bleed screw at all. The closest thing that fit was an M10 wrench, which fit a little too loose for a bleeder screw. It made no sense that the bleeder didn't match the others, and there's no way I was going to put wheel cylinders onto my 62 Olds that had one M10 bleeder and 3 SAE bleeders. I wanted what I paid for -- four wheel cylinders that all had 3/8" bleeder screws.

I called the Brake Parts Inc. help line to complain. As soon as I told the guy that I had a WC13387 wheel cylinder that had the wrong size bleeder screw on it, he immediately replied, "You bought it from RockAuto." He asked for the 4-digit date code on my box and looked up the lot number in his computer. He admitted that they sell parts directly to RockAuto and told me to contact them for warranty. BPI wasn't interested in helping me with what was clearly a manufacturing error. To me, it would appear that they're quietly selling their seconds to RockAuto and refusing to warrant the part when the customer discovers the ruse.

jfb

this is a update on Walmart batteries when I purchased one they did not have top post batteries. I went on line and found a marine corporation that sells screw in top posts on side posts. I also will tell anybody that all aftermarket ignition systems are very voltage critical some say they work down to 5 or 6 volts and this does not hold up in the field or reality, I would say 10 minimum or it will come off like a dead box no spark situation and even instructions can be misleading, I do my homework in all situations.. I would also add that Walmart will price match if you bring in a print out, I bought my battery for 23 percent less .

bob p

My neighbor tells me that she has WMT price match on groceries all the time.

How do they price match batteries? Most places that price match will require that the item be the same model number and part number or they will refuse to match. With WMT batteries bearing a unique in-house brand label, I'm wondering how they handle the situation where you submit a price for an equivalent battery that has a different brand name on it.

orange442

I have had 4 Walmart batteries the leaked acid badly over the past several years and many more that did not hold up well at all. I will never buy batteries from them again. I know if Walmart can buy a lower quality battery they will and their price have gone through the roof and their warranty sucks. I buy my batteries at Atwoods farm and ranch store. The have the big high cranking amp dual post batteries for $79.99 everyday with a warranty as good or better than anyone else. They go on sale regularly, usually $69.99, and I bought 2 for my Duramax since one of the 2 Walmart batteries that were in it had lost a cell and would no longer charge. I will not buy from auto parts stores either because of their inflated pricing.

jfb

from above I brought in a print out from online and they held true to the price and I used screw in top posts from f------l through a marine corporation. orange I agree about parts houses it is a sham and from what info I was given earlier walmarts seem to be of decent quality and made by the same people who make batterys for a variety of people and there quality has been tested maybe the winter froze yours? mr padavano has had good experiences with theirs and that man has more lasting and proven knowledge then most of us. me included.

becerra66

I too thought I was going thru batteries , but it ended up being the voltage regulator, first once I replaced was defective returned bought another one and different brand installed no more battery issues

at first too much voltage exploding my battery, then not enough voltage.. I had to agree with Brown73

orange442

My Duramax is is parked inside my insulated garage and never gets out in bad weather because I have a 93 3/4 ton 4x4 that is my daily driver. My Dad had the same problem and his truck with 3 Walmart batteries and it was also in a climate controlled garage and also does not get out in cold weather. I have been working on cars for 35 years and worked at sears 25 years ago installing countless batteries and between me and my Dad, we have literally owned and worked on hundreds of cars and trucks and currently have more than 60 cars, trucks, and parts cars between us. I have handled 1000's of batteries so I know a little about them. I am just trying to impart my most recent experiences and issues with batteries. I will NEVER buy batteries from Walmart EVER again. Take from that what you will.

droldsmorland

I go to the local Interstate or DeKa battery distributors. They have everything needed for batteries from 00 cable to HD hi-press crimp on ends etc...Often one can purchase blems. These will have minor appearance flaws and are sold at a discount, same warranty. Last Die Hard was $170(b-day gift last year). Same battery from DeKa is little over $100. I try to NOT go to the big house pimply faced houses of china parts. That includes wally world. Only go there for cheap Mobil 1 and Rotella T and of course entertainment....walmartion watching.
I have a Die Hard Gold 850 cca group 24 from 2001 thats still going...beat that! Thats a 14 year old battery! That bat was 90 back then same one is 170 today, but Im sure not of the same quality.