smkettner
Southern California
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Joined: 03/21/2005
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I have replaced mine twice now. When it cranked slow I went the next day to Costco and picked up a new one.
2001 F150 SuperCrew 5.4 Lariat Offroad 4x4 Tow Package 4.10 Truetrac
2006 Keystone Springdale 249FWBHLS
12K SuperGlide, KGE3000Ti 2.3kw rated 2.6kw max
Frank's voltage booster, Prosine 1800 powered by 4 GC2 batteries
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PopBeavers
San Jose, CA
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Joined: 03/19/2005
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I replace batteries when they die. I just replaced the battery in my 1997 Dakota. The battery had been repalced in 2001. So the factory battery lasted about 4 years and the replacement battery lasted about 6 years. It was a larger than stock battery.
Wayne in San Jose
2002 Chevy Silverado 1500HD 4x4 Crew Cab
2005 Trailmanor 2720
Valley Odyssey brake controller, Honda 2000 generator, McKesh mirrors
Yamaha WR250R, Polaris Sportsman 700 X2, Polaris Scrambler 500
1997 Dodge Dakota stick to tow the ATV trailer
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outdoorsman2007
In the Woods - Somewhere!
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Joined: 04/12/2007
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Another vote for not replacing your battery until is dies.
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LIKE2BUILD
Mt. Zion, IL
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Joined: 09/30/2004
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Cox89XJ wrote:I just had to replace the battery on my 2003 Buick Lasabre.
I haven't replaced the battery on my 2003 Chevy truck yet, but now I'm concerned. When do yall replace them? After they fail or before?
You are right to be concerned as you are nearing the end of the battery's service life. I just replaced the battery in my FIL's 2002 motorhome this week. He had started it occassionally this winter and then when he had to move it this week....click, click, click there was nothing. The positive post had corroded so badly inside that battery that when I tried to remove the bolt it broke off inside the battery with minimal pressure.
This past winter my wife went to start her 2002 minivan, which still had the OEM battery.....click, click, click dead as a doornail. It had started just fine the day before.
The first item you can do it remove the battery cables. Prior to removing the cables you may want to spray down the posts with terminal cleaner to loosen any corrosion and make the bolts easier to turn. Clean all surfaces well on the battery with terminal cleaner. Then get a cup of warm water and dissolve some baking soda in it. Soak the positive cable (and negative if needed) in the water to neutralize and dissolve any acidic salts that may have formed on the terminal connector. Thoroughly inspect the positive post connection on the battery. The side post batteries that GM uses are notorious for breaking and causing corrosion around the positive terminal. Often times you won't see the first hint of corrosion, but when you remove the cable you'll find all kinds of yuck.
If you don't see any leaking and corrosion is minimal, reconnect everything and apply battery terminal protectant. If you do see leaking or the post can wiggle inside the battery that's a sure sign that your battery is done. If all is well, find a shop that will perform a battery load test. This will place a variable amount of load on the battery and indicate if it can handle the stress. If it passes, you're fine. If it doesn't you should replace the battery before it goes dead on you.
I had a 1997 Chevy 1500 that still had the OEM battery in 2004. The alternator started whining so I had it rebuilt. The shop that did the work said the diodes were shot and that is usually caused by a weak battery that creates a constant high load on the alternate to provide power. Based on this information, you could be slowly damaging electrical components by using a weak battery.
My truck is a 2004 and I need to perform the above mentioned cleaning and maintenance myself in addition to having a load test. I hope to get this done before really hot weather gets here.
KJ
2002 Jayco Qwest 324G
2004 Chevy 2500HD CrewCab |6.0L|2X4|4.10:1
Curt MagnumV receiver
Eaz-Lift Hitch with Reese Dual Cam
1981 Seastar 18' Runabout
1996 Polaris SLT780 Waverunner
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1 forgiving wife!!!
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Fast Mopar
Houston, TX
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Joined: 05/03/2005
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LIKE2BUILD wrote:The alternator started whining so I had it rebuilt. The shop that did the work said the diodes were shot and that is usually caused by a weak battery that creates a constant high load on the alternate to provide power. Based on this information, you could be slowly damaging electrical components by using a weak battery.
This is also what I was told by my local alternator rebuild shop. Regardless of whether it is true or not, I replace batteries after 4 years to avoid causing my wife to be stranded somewhere. I can't see a reason to try to stretch another year out of a $75 battery if it avoids a situation of being stranded at an inconvenient time.
2004 Ford Freestar 4.2 liter
2003 Jayco Qwest 12A
preserve the Second Amendment
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KSadler1
Albuquerque, NM
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Joined: 05/30/2007
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I have the original battery in my 2001 Ford F250 and it's still going strong. It has never showed any signs of weakness but I will replace it as soon as it does. It's better to do it at the first sign of trouble rather than waiting until I'm dead on the side of some road out of town, or in between towns.....
Ken
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horton333
Newmarket (Ontario)
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Joined: 11/08/2006
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Cox89XJ wrote:I just had to replace the battery on my 2003 Buick Lasabre.
I haven't replaced the battery on my 2003 Chevy truck yet, but now I'm concerned. When do yall replace them? After they fail or before?
I replace every five year, need it or not. Then I put in the best battery that will fit in the tray and while most new batteries would likely last more than 5 years I'm too old and batteries are too cheap to worry about will it crank on that cold visit up north in the winter. Especially with the modern cars where they typically start first crank you really don't know how much reserve there is till the time it is cold enough it has to crank over twice. 
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jeaelectric
knoxville
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Joined: 02/14/2008
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I hate to have a problem while out on the road. but a battery is a hard thing to peg when it will go out. I just replaced both my batteries on my PSD only one failed but I thought it would be better to go ahead and do both.
2004 PS Ford F-350 DRW
2007 S.B. Bristol Bay 3420BH
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Road Ruler
Canada
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Joined: 09/11/2003
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horton333 wrote:
I replace every five year, need it or not. Then I put in the best battery that will fit in the tray and while most new batteries would likely last more than 5 years I'm too old and batteries are too cheap to worry about will it crank on that cold visit up north in the winter. Especially with the modern cars where they typically start first crank you really don't know how much reserve there is till the time it is cold enough it has to crank over twice.
Yup, this is my policy as well and it works great.
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