Was going to do it earlier, but haven't gotten around to it - my six year old (55k miles) still has the factory battery, zero issues, fires right up...
I replaced mine after ~3 years of service as a preventative maintenance activity. Usually a battery will last about 3.5 years before trouble starts. It is not a matter of if --but a matter of when an old battery will fail. Why wait for failure to occur some stormy night in the middle of nowhere?
I've seen on Nissans where a failing battery can shorten alternator (and in some cases starter) life. I replaced (3) batteries (at or over 36 months of service) a few weeks ago in the Ridgeline, Maxima, and Q45. Although they are full replacement for 36 months and warranted for 5 years, I've never had a battery from Advance Auto fail. I just replace them before they reach 42 months of service as preventative maintenance.
I used an Advance Auto coupon TRT41 to get 40% off.
I replaced the original battery on my 2008 RL this year. We had EXTREME heat (+100 starting in June) and cold (-20 for two weeks straight in Jan.) here in my part of Nevada. That was the beginning of the end.
Went with a Les Schwab battery as their guarantee is excellent, never a hassle to replace if something goes wrong, and they are everywhere here in the West/Northwest.
My 2006 Honda Ridgeline RTL Factory battery just marginally passed battery testing 11.0V, so I had it replaced last month...I was having problems starting the colder it got...and now with it being 30 degrees outside I'm glad I got it replaced. The new battery fires it right up!
I just replaced my 09 Ridgeline's battery today. We had -30 with windchill -40, truck was in the garage(detached). Remote started thinking it started, walking to the garage, all I can hear is the engine trying to start. Got in tried to key start it click, click, click is all I hear! Tried boosting with a portable, no go!
3.5 years from date in service (6/4/2010). Western NY is not that harsh of an environment temperature-wise (not many days 90F or above and not a ton of days below 20F). Replaced the crappy Honda-branded Johnson Controls-sourced with an AutoCraft GOLD also Johnson Controls-sourced.
Let's hope the Advance Auto AutoCraft lives a longer life...
I'm with you. My luck has been a 3 year full replacement battery like AA Gold usually last about 44 months.
About 8 years ago, I decided to replace an aging 3 year battery before it goes too far beyond the 3.5 year mark. I'll start looking for an AA coupon for $40 or 50% off after it passes the 3.5 year mark then replace it as preventative maintenance. On the cars where I started using the battery preventative maintenance process, I've never had a starter or alternator problem.
Unfortunately, on some used cars I purchased with bad batteries, I found the alternator and starter would fail soon fail. It was like a bad/shorted battery contributed to other electrical system problems.
Five years here and it's time for a new one. Last year, it barely worked at -28C. Now it's barely working at -18C. The dealer says that the warranty (this is in Canada) is only a full one for the first year and pro-rated for three. It's not covered by the extended warranty. For a replacement, I'll go aftermarket with a spiral-cell gel battery like I did with my last vehicle.
Repeating and expanding upon some information that I more recently posted in another thread:
Northstar offers a four-year warranty, and that's with expected use in first-responder vehicles and heavy industry.
They are made in Springfield, Missouri.
The Northstar 24F is 58 (yes, fifty-eight) lbs. Seriously, check out the specs. It's literally twice the battery as the OEM in current and capacity. 1010 CA, 840 CCA, 160 min reserve, 76 Ah.
Given how easily my Ridgeline cranked to life yesterday at -25C, after I had accidentally left the interior lights on for 2+ hours the evening before, those figures are quite believeable.
It has its own handle. It was still worth the $6 for a carry strap to get the OEM battery out.
It fit perfectly in the Ridgeline with no adapters required.
Crank down on the nut to get the clamp tightly onto each terminal and verify grip by pulling up on the clamp.
I got mine from Total Battery, based here in Ottawa. Here is their marketing page for Northstar with more information, and here is the 24F page. I got a notably better price than what's listed by emailing them for a quote. I don't know if that's due to me picking it up in person instead of having it shipped.
Canadian Tire appears to offer a rebadged version with a five-year warranty and roadside assistance, at a higher price than Total Battery quoted, as their MotoMaster Eliminator Ultra XD. This is their top-end replacement for the Orbital Extreme that they sold for $199 for many years. They still sell a spiral-cell AGM under their own name, but I would assume that it is still a starter-only model and not a starter/deep-cycle model like the Orbital Extreme and the Northstar. NOTE at the bottom of CT's page where it says "This product carries a special warranty. Please see your local Canadian Tire store for details." I don't know if it's still true, but this used to mean that you wouldn't get the full warranty unless you paid CT to install it. My friend got a regular battery replacement at CT last winter and they neglected to back up the power to the car's computer, so I take it that CT's historically infamous service quality hasn't improved. I am happier with the purchase from Total Battery and self-installation.
Last weekend with warm weather I went to
wash my RL with Godflesh and the battery died.
A few hours on a charger it seemed normal.
Not going to chance it after the fourth winter
and 55k on the RL.
Went with the Sears Platinum 35.
$235 4 year free replacement
My Sears Diehard Platinum Battery is over 5yrs old now in my 00 Acura TL.
I posted when I got it some joked about the temps here in DC don't get that cold. I posted that Diehard Platinum AGM Battery was a re badged Odyssey Battery. My car sits a lot is driven for short trips now the last four years.
I went about 100 miles with it in the last month & most of the time do about 150miles a month. So I drive it to the store & pharmacy 10-15miles about 4 times a week. It was said the Diehard Platinum was also good for cars that don't get driven a lot like Classics. The battery checked out okay when they tested it at the Acura Dealership when I had Timing Belt/Spark Plugs several yrs ago.
My neighbor has a 2004 Corolla she got new & she only drives on weekends I forget the mileage very low but she has got two new batteries since I got my Diehard Platinum.
The other day I went to the dealership for routine service. When finished, my service advisor said that my battery had a low reading so they put in a new battery. Most likely the cause is too much sitting and not enough driving.
Being retired, I don't drive as much as before retirement. I bought my 2012 Ridgeline in August of '12 and only have 2800 miles on it.
I love driving the Ridgeline. My guess with summer coming, I will get out and drive more.
As a side note we also have a Ford Escape that we use. This one we use a little more. 2010 with 11k. I replaced the battery on this one after the 3 year mark.
I've lost 4 battery's on average 1 every 2 yrs. The last one April 2013, different brands & decided the best replacement policy is at Costco, so that is where I bought the most recent. I also went with a slightly larger one, I would have to research what I did install this time. If interested, I can look at it tomorrow.
As for sitting idle, invest in a battery maintainer, they are about $20-$30, you can even get one with two outputs for both vehicles, wire it into each battery, they will recover the cost in 2-3 yrs, when your not buying the next battery.
I bought my Ridgeline in October 2005. The battery finally died on January 2014. Unbelievable that it lasted so long. I purchased a new replacement at Costco and I hope it lasts that long.
Was about to take a 1,500 mile road trip in my 6.5 year-old RL, so at 60,298 I replaced the factory installed battery with a Duralast Gold battery despite the fact the factory battery was still testing as 'good'.
My original battery bought the farm in only 2 years. Running a Kirkland from Costco. A good notch above the original capacity and reserve, and a very good warranty. Hopefully I will get some good years out of it.
For those who care: my Northstar battery worked very well all winter and I have no reason to think that it won't do the same for years to come.
Also, the Orbital Extreme (nearest competitor to the Optima Yellow Top) that I got for my previous vehicle less than a year before trading it in, in 2008, has been in a relative's car ever since. It's still going strong, too.
Just replaced my original 2007 battery last month with a Kirkland brand. Could have gotten a little longer out of it but it started to show signs of failure. 120,000 miles on it.
2006 RTL (2005 MFG) with 123K miles and the OEM battery gave up the ghost this morning. Seriously considering installing the DieHard Platinum 35 AGM this evening. Any advice from the ROC?
p.s. I live in Utah where the temperature is ALWAYS changing...
The first battery died in 7 months. The 2nd OEM one is being changed out tomorrow before winter. It wouldn't start the truck last year in 20 below temps and wind. So..4 years and 10 months on the 2nd one...Not real good. Not terrible. I use Interstate for my replacement batterys.
My original battery in my '08 (purchased Nov '07) lasted until April '11, so that was about 3.5 yrs, and now that replacement battery (NAPA 75 mo) seems to be getting weak after another 3.5 years. Left the headlights on yesterday for about an hour and wiped it out. Jumped fine, and is still starting fine, but I'm getting some of those minor glitches everybody complains about when a battery is about to croak (weird interior light issues, radio lighting issues, etc.). Maybe 3.5 years is all you can get? Seems like it to me. Oh yeah, I'm at 249,000 miles.
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