TruStart vs NAPA replacement battey

[Roadking]

Thanks for all the great input.

The battery is original to my '05 and I had it tested at the Toyota dealer a couple weeks ago. I had no idea it was "marginal" as they call it. The said it wasn't an emergency, but it should be replaced sooner, then later. I do a lot of late fall/early winter hunting in some semi-remote locations and would hate to walk out to get a jump. Like someone said, there are only a few manufactures and they all pretty much use the same material and techniques to make a battery.
I think I'll take a look at the electrolyte level and make sure they are all full before replacing the battery...(I think I can do this somehow)...I always thought this was a sealed maintenance free battery.

 

[MikeInNH]

I've NEVER had a battery tested. When the weather gets cold I can usually tell when the battery is on the edge.

 

[Roadking]

I also have never had a battery tested, I always drove until they failed or almost failed…not rocket science in frozen tundra.
I happened to inherit a free oil change at the Toyota dealer, and as a courtesy (to sell me something) they checked the condition of the battery, (which I still think is OK) and convinced me since its seven years old it’s probably time to replace it. I’m telling you… before I left, I had a $10 coupon for the battery install, they greased my driveline and reattached a rattling heat shield…all you need to do is “ask politely”.
I did feel slightly obligated to at least consider the Toyota battery and based on that exchange probably will in the future, when the time comes (if it doesn’t die in the middle of nowhere).

 

[MikeInNH]

I had a $10 coupon for the battery install

I hope that's all they charge you..

I installed my new battery last year in 15 minutes. Would have done it quicker, but when the battery was out I cleaned up the area. I got a "Special" flyer from the Toyota dealer near me...They were only going to charge me $50 for a new battery installation. WOW...what a deal. That does NOT include the price of the battery.

 

[eli_lilly]

Johnson Controls makes virtually every US car battery. So the only real decision would be if you wanted to, for some reason, go with something like an Optima AGM - which is still made by Johnson but is at least architecturally different than a lead-acid battery.

-E

 

[nevada]

Johnson Controls makes virtually every US car battery. So the only real decision would be if you wanted to, for some reason, go with something like an Optima AGM - which is still made by Johnson but is at least architecturally different than a lead-acid battery.

-E

that may be true(i have no idea) but every company has products made to THEIR specifications. and they are not all made equal, regardless of who makes them. batteries, tires etc etc, it doesnt matter.

 

[MikeInNH]

that may be true(i have no idea) but every company has products made to THEIR specifications. and they are not all made equal, regardless of who makes them. batteries, tires etc etc, it doesnt matter.

That's partial true.

. First off...things like a battery is NOT an extremely complicated item. It's pretty easy to design and manufacturer. The specs that you talk about are NOT special specs by Toyota. They are part of the design of the battery.
. Much of the time with batteries, Tires....the Auto manufacturer will give the tire or battery manufacturer a design spec. The component manufacturer will then design a SPECIAL component for the auto company or use a component they already have. Toyota may have a spec for a tire that's different then Nissan. But Bridgestone may make a tire that fits both specs.
. Also...many times the Auto manufacturer will leave the design up to the component manufacturer. Like batteries. The Auto manufacturer doesn't get into the HOW the component is designed. Just that it will work. Take a look at the gas pedal problem Toyota had. Two different plants were building the gas pedal..but only ONE plant had the design/manufacturing problem.

 

[Sungod]

Nope, I live in WA state and after testing the battery it was on it's last leg. I thought 112k miles was pretty good but 170K miles is freaking awesome on one battery!

Mileage has zero to do with your battery's longevity.

 

[krupnation]

Mileage has zero to do with your battery's longevity.

It may have zero to do with longevity but it's a good guage on when a battery will need to be replaced. Batteries are maintenance items, even if I could get 250k miles out of one I think I'd still replace it every 100k miles or so. That's all I'm saying...

 

[MikeInNH]

even if I could get 250k miles out of one I think I'd still replace it every 100k miles or so. That's all I'm saying...

With my current commute...that would every 2 years. Not very realistic.

 

[krupnation]

With my current commute...that would every 2 years. Not very realistic.

You put on 50k miles a year? that's friggin' insane. I'd move closer to work! Or buy a beater commuter car.

 

[MikeInNH]

It's more then just the commute. My youngest son goes to a private high-school. So I have to drive him to school (no bus service) and then drive to work (opposite direction). So that adds to the commute. But driving directly to work from home it's over an 80 mile commute.

I use to live closer...but we just relocated our company. We could more closer to my job, then then my wife would have a longer commute.

And as for buying a better commute car....well if you actually sat down and did the math it would take me over 10 years to break even.....even with gas prices at $5/gal. Show me someone who sold their perfectly good running paid for truck to buy a newer car that gets GREAT gas mileage to save money...and I'll show you someone who's mathematically challenged.

 

[krupnation]

That sucks man, but if you live in NH then I know what you're talking about. I have friends in VT and everything is a drive. I guess I take for granted being able to work from home and the most driving I do is to the airport in Seattle (90 miles one way) for work. I only average 15-18k per year on my runner.

I was talking about an older Golf TDI or something like that for a commuter. Or I have some friends who have to drive to Everett for work and they bought old Honda CRX's that get like 35 mpg. Super cheap rides and are reliable. But you being in NH you'd be better off driving the runner as you guys get some snow up there.

 

[MikeInNH]

When I was just an engineer I was able to do a lot of work at home. But being the director of engineering, my time is spent at work in a lot of meetings. Very rarely do I get to work at home anymore.

Most of New England is this way. When I started working for this company my commute was only 20 miles. We've moved 3 times since then...only 5 years ago.