Hi all, my 1999 XL 4.2 has an Interstate battery that I think is about 7 or 8 years old. It was in the truck when I bought it. No signs of it getting weak but I'm just wondering if anyone can share either good or bad experiences with Interstate. Here in Manitoba I have had batteries last 10 years on more than one vehicle, although in all honesty they were GMs. My son's 2008 Ranger is already on its third battery. He bought the truck new and the original only lasted 4 years, which I found kind of disappointing. What are your experiences?

 

Interstate makes Duralast and Diehard and many other brands (Walmart etc). They are everywhere. That said......I've had lousy luck with the past 4 batteries by them (different brand names, but still made by Interstate (Johnson Controls).

The past 2 batteries I bought didn't last 2 years each. With the damn prorate system it is almost as cheap to replace it with something else in a lot of cases. I replaced them with locally done battery store. They have always rebuilt batteries and they seem to last for 7-8 years. Since I put that one in my Mustang, I've had no problems with having a low battery. Before that, it would go down in 7-14 days if left it unstarted. So much power drains in those models.

 

You can't blame interstate for the bad batteries. Sure they may have made them, but they are made to the other companies standards and specifications, which may not match the batteries that they personally brand.

As for how long a battery should be expected to last, most good quality batteries you can expect 5-8 years as long as it is taken care of and not constantly drained to to almost dead, or freeze up.

 

2 of the 4 batteries I swapped out were Green top Megatron's, so yes I can blame Interstate/Johnson Controls. Both had a dead cell. I had great luck with Exide's before.

 

During the Amazon Prime sale I picked up a couple of books on automotive wiring and electrical systems and both books covered issues with batteries. The biggest problem with batteries today seems to be the demands on them are a lot greater than it was before all the electronics. It was also said that the electronics require more precision than in the past. The voltage range required is specific where in older cars a battery would crank until it wouldn't. Today, if the voltage isn't in range the car does nothing. Today it's more about voltage than cold starting amps. A zillion amps doesn't mean anything if the voltage is too high or low. Battery quality was also brought up. It ain't what it use to be and most batteries today are made from recycled materials which effects the battery life. Both authors also talked about the difference between the maintenance free batteries and batteries requiring maintenance. Batteries requiring maintenance last longer but require the necessary attention so they aren't as convenient. Both also brought up Optima batteries now being made in China and the price doesn't justify the quality and battery life you get with them anymore.

Battery life in a newer vehicle is 2 to 5 years with 4 being the average. That was a surprise.

How the car is driven also effects the battery life. I'm just guessing but your son may be harder on his vehicles than you are? I sure don't drive like I use too.

This is just what is in the books. The battery in my Edge lasted 5 years and was replaced. I gave it to a friend for his golf cart. The last time the battery was discussed he was still using it as one of four.

 

River1, I think you raise a number of good points. Yes, my son is harder on his Ranger than I am on my F150. Also, a couple of years ago my brother-in-law had a newer Ford Fusion that sat in his garage in the winter for a couple of weeks while he was out of town. When he got back, it was dead. On the other hand, my F150 sits in storage all winter in very cold conditions (it gets to -35 regularly here) and I might fire it up once in that six months. It has always started without a boost and without plugging in the block heater. I expect it just doesn't run as many electronics as newer vehicles.

 

Whatever the free replacement period is.....thats how long it lasts.

In south, heat is hard on batteries. Very short lives