Battery Question

[TommyDodge]

I am going to have to buy a battery for the 1991 Ram D150 that I have.
It has been several years since I bought a battery and was curious as to where you buy yours. I used to buy mine from the Dodge dealer but that dealer is someone that I no longer do business with since they have changed hands several times since I bought my last battery several years back
I am looking for a god quality battery that will last awhile that is preferably made in the USA, don't really want junk.
Thanks
DB69

[Gordon Maney]

That raises an interesting question; where are most of the batteries made today?

[NNICKB]

We have a Jeep here that is 10 years old and still has the original Mopar battery. It starts just fine even in the Arctic weather we have been having. I don't know who the actual manufacturer was..that is, you could buy a new Mopar battery and it could be something completely different.

Batteries have come a long way in recent years. I wouldn't be afraid to buy one from your reputable local auto parts store. Usually the longer warranty batteries are the better ones. Also get the biggest one that will fit in your truck, as even if it gets weak, it still has some reserve. You get what you pay for.

It is pretty hard to tell where anything is made any more. Many "American" brands are just marketing organizations.

[Chris Olson]

My Brother just bought two new batteries for his superduty truck and the Motorcraft batteries were USA made..
I also think that Sears Die Hard brand is US made.

[Desoto61]

Another good thing to think about, buying it from a big chain like NAPA means the warranty is good at any of their stores. Similarly if you buy a brand like Interstate their warranty is good at any location that sells Interstate batteries, which can be handy if you travel, since the battery never seems to die when you're some place it's easy to deal with.

[Daewoo10356]

in my truck I have an Oreily's special since their warranty covers it nation wide and at work all of out lifts roll with the stock toyota battery for about 2 or three months then interstates are swapped in as the stock ones quit

[Gsmith]

I have had pretty good luck with Advance Auto Parts Titanium batteries. I don't generally try to push my luck with the service life of batteries however, so at the first sign of trouble out comes the old and new goes in.

[TommyDodge]

The biggest problem I have encountered with batteries is that I am looking for a good battery that has lots of cold cranking amps, and I haven't found any that are a thousand or more CCA's. the one in the truck now has 700 which isn't even the amount in what I consider in a good car battery
DB69

[Desoto61]

The biggest problem I have encountered with batteries is that I am looking for a good battery that has lots of cold cranking amps, and I haven't found any that are a thousand or more CCA's. the one in the truck now has 700 which isn't even the amount in what I consider in a good car battery
DB69

The thing you have to watch with just looking at CCAs is that you may get that extra output at the cost of some other aspect of the batteries performance. Usually it means the battery has a lower available capacity and/or will not be as rugged as the same size battery with a lower CCA output. See http://www.howstuffworks.com/question219.htm

The Optima type sealed batteries are very good as well as being rugged and versatile by virtue of their design, but the price reflects these benefits as well.

[BrightRanch]

All I buy for the ranch is Caterpillar Batteries. They seem to be the best buy for the buck and they are priced about the same as a die hard or an interstate. They seem to hold up better in the seasonal equipment that doesn't get used in the winter.

[Deathdeelr]

I run a Hawker/Odyssey PC2150Sin my 880. I've run Odyssey's in all my cars and bikes for years. 100AHr and 1300cca's. They're not gel cells or spiral core like Optimas. They're solid core like a Duracell battery. Don't worry about the special chargers. That's only for deep cycle use. Drop it in the truck and forget it. The battery is close to $400 but it's worth it. The battery in the 880 is about six years old and was in my Suburban before the Dodge. I think they advertise a 10 year warranty.

[Doc Dave]

I have had an interesting experience with a battery.

When I bought my 1952 PW for restoration in May of 2002, the first thing I did was to buy a battery. I got the proper size one from Interstate, 6 volt.
I also bought a "maintanier" from Battery Minder, and hooked that up when I did not start the truck and move it around.

Now, after 8 years, this same battery will still turn the engine over to start it.

I have several of these maintainers now on all my equipment that sits a lot, like the riding mower, gravely, farm tractor, etc. These devices seem to prolong the life of the batteries a significant amount.

[712edf]

Dave, where you find that "maintainer? My truck sits at my dad's weeks at a time btween starts. Even unhooking the cables, the batteries don't last long.
Bucky

[Desoto61]

Eastwood sells a few different models. An internet search will turn up a lot ranging from a few $$ to more than $100 for advanced versions.

A dedicated battery tender/minder is a better option than the small battery chargers that have a "trickle charge" feature. I've found them to be too agressive and tend to boil off fluid in the battery over time.

The glass matt style batteries (i.e. Optima) have a very low resting discharge rate according to their documentation and can be stored for 6 months to a year with minimal loss of charge. We'll see if that's true when I get home in two months.

[Doc Dave]

As DeSoto says Eastwood has them.
I bought mine direct from
www.batteryminder.com
check this out:
http://www.batteryminders.com/batter...o-p-16134.html

I got this type for my vehcicles and tractor.
I got a cheaper version from this company for the riding mower.
On their home page you can navigate around to the different units they list.