Some time ago, I mentioned that I was having trouble with what appeared to be a parasitic drain on my Ranger, noted in my signature (see thread for more detail
http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubb...ers#Post3546624
I had not had the time to deal with it and had backbucketed it. Needed truck last Sunday, went out and dead. Put my charger on it and turned it to 10 amp and it ripped right off. Ended up going to Menards and buying a NOCO 3500 and a 100" extension cord, hooking it up and letting it sit all week (no garage, wasn't going to get my new charger ripped off and my CTEC is hooked up to the Mustang right now.
Since I had Friday off, I advanced this up to priority status and took it to the mechanic that I have used for years. He ran the diagnostic for a parasitic draw and it came back below Ford spec. His diagnosis (and he even admits that it is a WAG) is that the battery is bad (it passed a carbon pile he did) or insufficient for the truck, even though it is the proper battery for the truck. He went on about AAP batteries are "part store batteries" and are not as "durable" as the Interstate he wanted to sell me (not buying it.)
However, I would like to try to find a battery with better specs than what I have (550CCA, 90 reserve.) I think that if I am going to dump an 11 month old battery, I'll just go to the dealer and buy a Motorcraft (AAP/Interstate/Motorcraft are all Johnson control anyway, probably to different specs.) and it is about the same price anyway, maybe slightly less, as Ford is now running a $25 mail in on the Motorcraft. Cannot find specs on line anywhere about either the plus or max, or availability for the truck. Therefore, I will have to check with a dealer.
Back to the question:
1. Are "part store batteries" inferior to brands like interstate? I have never found this to be the case anyway and always have had good service with them anyway. I would not give this a second thought, except this comes from a good, honest guy who has always been straight with me before.
2. Since there is no excessive draw, will searching for a heavier duty battery be beneficial. Don't mind buying if it will help, but also don't want to go throwing $ down a rathole.
Opinions?
http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubb...ers#Post3546624
I had not had the time to deal with it and had backbucketed it. Needed truck last Sunday, went out and dead. Put my charger on it and turned it to 10 amp and it ripped right off. Ended up going to Menards and buying a NOCO 3500 and a 100" extension cord, hooking it up and letting it sit all week (no garage, wasn't going to get my new charger ripped off and my CTEC is hooked up to the Mustang right now.
Since I had Friday off, I advanced this up to priority status and took it to the mechanic that I have used for years. He ran the diagnostic for a parasitic draw and it came back below Ford spec. His diagnosis (and he even admits that it is a WAG) is that the battery is bad (it passed a carbon pile he did) or insufficient for the truck, even though it is the proper battery for the truck. He went on about AAP batteries are "part store batteries" and are not as "durable" as the Interstate he wanted to sell me (not buying it.)
However, I would like to try to find a battery with better specs than what I have (550CCA, 90 reserve.) I think that if I am going to dump an 11 month old battery, I'll just go to the dealer and buy a Motorcraft (AAP/Interstate/Motorcraft are all Johnson control anyway, probably to different specs.) and it is about the same price anyway, maybe slightly less, as Ford is now running a $25 mail in on the Motorcraft. Cannot find specs on line anywhere about either the plus or max, or availability for the truck. Therefore, I will have to check with a dealer.
Back to the question:
1. Are "part store batteries" inferior to brands like interstate? I have never found this to be the case anyway and always have had good service with them anyway. I would not give this a second thought, except this comes from a good, honest guy who has always been straight with me before.
2. Since there is no excessive draw, will searching for a heavier duty battery be beneficial. Don't mind buying if it will help, but also don't want to go throwing $ down a rathole.
Opinions?