Battery Brand

hELLO bOSCOE   My idea is with 10 or 20 running tractors the cheapest battery will last 4 plus years, and then i'll start stealing out of the ones that aren't used or needed, until I have to buy 2 or 3. 

Caterpiller battery's, I almost always get ten years out of them.

I have had very good service from Wal Mart's batteries.

Interstate is the lowest cost battery that i have ever used! By cheap pay twice.

Walmart have been good for me, Interstate side posts-the worst.  Seem to always leak, so I avoid them at all cost!

I use Optima red top in the truck. Been in it 5 and half years no problems and had it sittin with the bright headlights and truck toolbox lights on for about 30 minutes and still cranked fine. Really like the blue tops for Marine batteries, fished an all night tournament from 7PM to 7AM on Kentucky Lake then fished for 4 hrs on the Ohio River in the current that morning and the batteries were still trolling fine. When it comes to Marine batteries I've been hearing a lot of good about the new Die Hard batteries, but anytime I've seen Die Hard in a truck the Die Hard lived up to its name.

I have gotten 5 to 7 years out of the "cheap" batteries at Farm and Fleet. If they are maintained they last longer. To spend twice as much or more on a "good" battery and get 1 or 2 more years out of it doesn't make sense to me.
 I did buy a used truck once that had an Interstate Battery in it. It was a blemished battery and I had no trouble with it for 5 or 6 years.


Edited by CTuckerNWIL - 07 Mar 2011 at 9:58am

If you live north of 45 degrees parellel, you are lucky to get 4 years out of any brand battery. I buy the cheapos and replace every 3 years in the vehicles.  Gives me extras for the tractors that way.If the high priced ones don't last like they are supposed to, you gained nothing by buying it. Just bought yourself the hassle of getting it replaced. I used to go that route then switched to buying cheapos. Same with tires.

My corvette has had the same optima since 1996. WD45 has a 2000 optima. plow truck and wifes van have optima's from 2004. I haven't had that long of a lasting battery of any othe brand. all are red tops. the yellow top in my camper did not last.

Have had good luck with AC Delco's and Ever Start brand. Have not had good luck with Interstate.

We have an Exide that is over 12 years old in a 7000. I had 2 in the 7045 and one went bad so I put it in your 7000 which only had one in it at the time. Still running strong.

I use TSC in my smaller tractors (B, C) and NAPA's highest CCA in my WD

I'ved used them all except Walmart (refuse to step foot in a Walmart) and the best by far for me has been Interstate hands down. Also if you can buy a battery from a store that gets them in dry and fills them the day you buy it is the best. The Case dealer I used to work at did it that way and then they switched to prefilled batteries and they had trouble from then on. This was 10-12 years ago. They were Case batteries made by Exide and that was about the time that Exide got caught restickering old batteries and selling them as new if they held a charge. I'd bet no one went to jail for that.

Never had any luck with Interstate. Wal-Mart & TSC batteries last as long as anything else in my cars, trucks, and tractors. I make sure I get the CCA to do the job.

I won't buy an interstate anymore, expensive batterys and do not last long here. Put many wallyworlds in and many hve been in for 7-8 years, b-i-l bought a wally battery and it was junk the day he took it home.. at least he got a full refund on that battery. Lately been buying farm and fleet batteries and they have been holding up. Best batteries I had were blems that are still going strong.  Had a set of in store brand small irrigation batteries and they lasted 13 years in a 190XT.