Batteries

[Brett Dikeman]

At 9:42 AM -0500 2/9/04, Andrew Duane wrote:
>Well, at the staggeringly ripe old age of 3 years, the battery
>in my A6Q will no longer reliably start my car.

That's pretty short, yes- but lead-acid batteries can die any of a 
number of ways(sulfation and shorted cells are the #1/2 causes of 
battery "death"; sulfation from undercharging), and if they're not 
properly maintained, they won't last.

>  What is the current
>consensus on replacement batteries? Interstate?

See my last paragraph for brand stuff....but most any battery should 
be fine as long as you don't max out the Cold Cranking Amps; get only 
enough CCA for what the vehicle recommendations are, because higher 
CCA rated batteries use finer grids on the plates to maximize surface 
area.  Hence the plates break apart under vibration and charging more 
easily.  This warning does not apply to spiral-wound SLA's, which of 
course use drastically different construction techniques.

I'm quite happy with my Optima thus far.  Even after leaving the 
interior light on for over 12 hours, the car started one morning in 
December for work with no hint of trouble.  Actually, I've done it 
twice by accident.  It also had no trouble starting the car in -25 
degree weather with 10w30 oil in the engine at this year's winter 
driving school(the after-run pump is another matter- it died the 
usual death...)

I'd suggest going through the lead-acid battery 
FAQ(http://uuhome.de/william.darden/) to evaluate your existing 
battery before outright replacing it.  Are levels OK?  Are the plates 
a consistent color between cells, and what color are they?  What is 
the state-of-charge(important: follow the directions re removing 
surface charge, and note temperature corrections!)  Etc.

Among other things, the site also contains a listing of who actually 
makes what brand batteries, although it changes with frightening 
speed, making buying by brand nearly impossible.

Brett
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