[ds968]

It came with its own ( very fancy / sophisticated looking ) tender . Similar to the Ctek tenders, but probably a lot more expensive because it's encased in a Maserati logo box, lol.

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[Bulti]

What I know about car batteries:


-they are designed to function when (almost) fully charged. Let's say from 80 to 100%. I don't have the exact numbers, but Google is your friend


-when discharged beyond a certain level, they loose a certain amount of their capacity. Every time the voltage drops too low, the damage adds up. Driving short distances (cranking a lot, and little chance for the alternator to charge properly)can kill a battery in 3-4 years. Drivers driving long distances can do 7, 8 or more years with the same battery


-a decent (about 100€) trickle charger with build in processor can be hooked up for many months (or even years) without causing harm


-cold isn't the real issue, it's heat what kills a battery. They get damaged in summer and fail to crank the engine in winter. When it's cold, they temporarily loose a portion of their capacity when it's needed most. Engines are harder to crank when it is freezing, and a already weak battery will fail. This is why most people think backwards.


- if you want to check the battery's health, check the voltage and check it under load (when cranking). But first pull one or more fuses to prevent the engine from starting. The voltage must not drop below 10 volts or so (depends on battery and car - car specific specs should be out there somewhere)



Hope this helps :-)

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[Rap]

So I think backwards eh? Interesting. I will work on being a forward thinking person. Now the truck will stay outside over the winter and if it doesn't start I will know it was because it was garaged in the summer! Oh my so much to learn and so little time!!

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[ds968]

-cold isn't the real issue, it's heat what kills a battery. . 

that's what I've been told also.  furthermore, summer ( although here , on the very west side of the bay area,  temps don't get much above low-mid 80s ) is when most of my batteries gave up.  

 

good to know about short distance driving with frequent starts vs long distance driving effect on batteries ; I suspected that may be the case, since it follows logic, but i have never seen any stats on that .  also likely that batteries in cars loaded with all sorts of electronics would last fewer years than ,say,  in a '55 chevy, because  all those things draw more power           

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[Rap]

I once drove 3 hours down to Millville,NJ.,  parked to check into the hotel, came back out and had a dead battery. My truck is only out to go to events and spends the rest of it's time in the garage. The garage is heated in the winter. This is why I brought the truck in. So while I don't dispute your info it sure hasn't jived with my experience.

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[Bulti]

As long as a car battery stays relatively full, it will stay healthy longer.  A modern car, loaded with all kinds of stuff that draw current, has an alternator with a bigger output to power it all and thus keep the battery full.  Once the engine is started, the alternator provides the juice for everything, not the battery.

 

Rap, it doesn't take a 3 hour drive to charge your battery.  It was probably already damaged and died there and then.  Had to happen sometime and somewhere...  When sitting in the garage, is it always hooked up to a trickle charger?  Or disconnected? Hooked up to a car a battery slowly looses power over time.  And when discharged too much after, say, 2 or 3 months it looses some of its capacity.  Then you start her up, all is well.  Although, repeat this so many times: battery kaputt.

 

How old was that battery?  Did you buy it new?  Had the previous owner already drained it too much and jumpstarted the car...

 

Then you got quality batteries who can take a punch, cheap crap and everything in between.

 

Fact is, if you want it to last: keep it charged (by driving, trickle charging or dancing around it in little circles) as much as possible.

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[tejon007]

Since the topic is how to change a battery...

 

When mine died last year, I wanted to use an Optima battery (although more concerned with it being spill/leak "proof" - which actually caused the entire inner wheel well on another car of mine to disappear from the PO's neglect - - a mess to fix), since I've had good results using them. 

 

I even had one that would fit, but it needed to be installed on its side because it's too tall.  Since I didn't have the time to mess with it, I just installed a normal battery - - but, next time it'll be an Optima

There's an installation description (on a 944) out there in case you're interested...

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[MCL968]

I don't know if this is still the case, John, but Optima batteries used to be very hard on alternators. Maybe they have redesigned them, but when they first came out they cooked a lot of alternators, including the one on my boat.

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[tejon007]

Matt,

 

There are at least three different types of Optima batteries - - yellow top, red top & blue top.  For a boat where you're only using the battery to start the motor, you should use a blue top...maybe you had the wrong one in your boat??

Either way, you should NOT use a blue top Optima in your car...

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