How long can a battery possibly last

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Princess Valiant

Princess Valiant

A.K.A. Rainy Day Auto
Joined
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I have a yellow top auto zone dura last gold that I bought two days before Thanksgiving in 2009.

It was a very cold day, I went out to start a yellow 74 duster and "click click click". I tried charging the old battery but it was out for the count. So my dad gave me a ride to auto zone. I told the guy, I need a battery for my duster and to power a winch. I need a good battery, one that just won't quit.

So he sold me this one. . .. and it just won't quit. It has been in multiple mopars over the years and the yellow duster is long gone. One time it even served as a loaner in my friend's truck when his went dead.

Today I used it to power a winch and it did a great job so I put it on the charger and thought "how long is this thing going to stay with me"

I keep it on the float charger in the "battery room" when not in use, so here it sits for the weekend till Monday morning when it will take me to work again so faithfully.

How long do these things last usually??

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I have seen a rare few batteries go 10 years.
Lucky to get 1/2 that on your average battery.
 
I just pulled an Everlast Walmart battery from my 66 Charger that sits more than it should. I pulled it because it had a 06 date and figured it was sure to leave me stranded soon. It was still working fine, just got nervous because it had served for 13 continuous years. Go figure.
 
My 05 Ram battery lasted14 years. My 10 Challenger lasted10 years. My wife's 13 Honda lasted 5 years.
 
I have a 05 Kubota tractor with the original battery in it - still working. -- Not sure of the brand. I haven't had a reason to look at it.
 
Rainy, I say that you are taking good care of the battery with a float charger. And you got hold of a battery that wasn't made on a Monday or Friday......lol.
 
8 years seems common to me on a high end, high capacity batteries; I get that regularly on batteries in my diesel trucks which pull some charge when starting. My '09 Challenger battery just got replaced..... 2 months past the 10 year anniversary. The one in my '62 Dart is at least that old. No special chargers or anything else except for regular use.

It's all in buying the more expensive, and heavier batteries.
 
if you got a good tune and actually drive it, a battery should last for quite a while. My slant started on the first crank with a proper choke and carb. I mean it didnt go more than about 1/2 crank revolution stone cold. if thats how it would start forever, then there is very little draw on the battery as its always charging when the motor is running. if you dont go beyond your amp rating of your alternator, its just a matter of the battery breaking down chemically. the new AGM batteries (Yellow tops included) should be very good. I had one of those "it lives" batteries...it was a green top/white case national warranty battery you always see the trucks driving around. Cant remember the name now! It finally fell off a shelf and the vents popped off and it drained itself. Suicide? Float chargers are a must for stored cars. Every time a battery dies, it loses 10% of its cranking amps capacity upon charging according to an old mechanic I knew unless its a deep cycle marine.
We have huge clear Exide batteries in our telephone central office in series and they last forever. Once a week they are hydrometer tested and adjusted with acid/water and are constantly monitored electronically. As big as stereo speakers.
 
I recall my OE batteries seem to go 10-12 years. Yeah I keep cars a long time. Even the OE battery in the Honda Sabre 14 years, the tiny little thing. Including a long period of being parked until I could get my right foot up to the foot peg/brake pedal.
 
The battery in my Dart is the same one as when I bought the car in 2005, still going strong, and lord knows how long it was in there before I bought it.

Do I win?:steering:
 
pishta said:
We have huge clear Exide batteries in our telephone central office in series and they last forever. Once a week they are hydrometer tested and adjusted with acid/water and are constantly monitored electronically. As big as stereo speakers.
Click to expand...

I always find the CO battery vault/room a little eerie. You can smell the acid. Always feel like I'm breathing in cancer - even with a mask on. Been here for 30 yrs and I'm not dead yet, so it must be in my head.
 
My wifes 4 wheeler is an 04 and I just replaced the battery this spring.
 
My brother swears his ford ranger had the original battery in it for 14 years. He drove 43 miles each way to work and did little else with it. 254,000 miles on this two wheel drive, 4 cyl. when it was to roached out to much to drive anymore.. Rusted to hell, but only put one clutch in it and this I know because we did it. Wish I had a picture of this thing, the rust was amazing, he had riveted straps to hold panel sections together. The rear bumper fell of just before he junked it. He took the passenger seat out for storage because he didn't trust anything in what was left of the bed. My big brother is as cheap as they come. He lived out in the country and his wife made him park it behind the house. Bought it new and got his monies worth. It got great mileage and it ran perfect to the end.
 
I’ve had very good luck with batteries. 10 years minimum as a rule. I’ve had some last 14 years. I try to always put a bigger cranking amp battery in than what’s called for. Kim
 
Rainy Day Auto said:
I have a yellow top auto zone dura last gold that I bought two days before Thanksgiving in 2009.

It was a very cold day, I went out to start a yellow 74 duster and "click click click". I tried charging the old battery but it was out for the count. So my dad gave me a ride to auto zone. I told the guy, I need a battery for my duster and to power a winch. I need a good battery, one that just won't quit.

So he sold me this one. . .. and it just won't quit. It has been in multiple mopars over the years and the yellow duster is long gone. One time it even served as a loaner in my friend's truck when his went dead.

Today I used it to power a winch and it did a great job so I put it on the charger and thought "how long is this thing going to stay with me"

I keep it on the float charger in the "battery room" when not in use, so here it sits for the weekend till Monday morning when it will take me to work again so faithfully.

How long do these things last usually??

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Click to expand...
Well, the battery in our Combine had a sell date of 1989 on it and was working just fine when the engine blew in 2011. It was a John Deere labeled battery(no idea who actually made them for JD)
 
I won't bore you with the details, but my best friend from high school has an early 70s Sears Die Hard Daddy bought new in "about" 71 or so. We swapped it back and forth and now he has it. I cleaned it out added acid to it and it was still kickin in the early 90s. Kirk wanted it for a bench decoration so I gave it to him, he drained it and still has it. I am sure he could put new acid in it charge it up and go.
 
Now that you mention it, I'm pretty sure the battery in my magnum is the original. I've never replaced it and we bought it new in 2006.
Now that that I've mentioned it, it'll take a crap soon.
 
Had an '83 D100 that had an 18 year old battery in it...still worked
 
Milder climates are a little easier on batteries. This winter in NY was a little above average with the cold temps. I had a battery all set up for my truck, 05 Ram, but it was a ***** getting it out of the confined space and without a battery strap to pull it up. I have one now.
 
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