Who makes the best car batteries

[crazyoildude]

Who makes the best car batteries??
I heard Johnson Controls makes a good product but which ones are made by them.. (i heard that here)
What is everyones opinion??? How long should a battery be used?>

 

[Cutehumor]

Duralast at Autozone. Avoid Walmart batteries, they must get the [censored] batteries that barely pass spec from JC.

 

[heypete]

From what I've been able to find out, all Interstate-brand batteries are made by Johnson Controls, as are the store-brand batteries at Wal-Mart and AutoZone.

 

[Rand]

I thought exide made the wal-mart ones...

 

[Tornado Red]

Exide and Johnson Controls both supply batteries to Walmart. You have to read the fine print on each one to find out who made it. I bought an EverStart Maxx 94R in Iowa made by JC, but another TDI owner bought an Exide-built one in Kentucky. Identical size and specs, same labeling.

 

[aquariuscsm]

I always go for Die Hards.

 

[stenerson]

Best battery I ever had was on my 95 vw jetta. Couldn't kill that thing. A ten point deer finally killed the car after 13 years but that's another story.

 

[Jimmy9190]

AutoCraft at AAP are made by Johnson Controls. AFAIK they are the best for a decent price. I have heard to stay away from Walmart batteries, they are made by Exide. Exide makes the Napa batteries too, from what I have read online. Duralast are supposed to be good, I had a friend who had to warranty exchange a 3 year old Duralast red top battery, AZ didn't give any grief about it. They just pro-rated it based on the purchase date and discounted that amount off the price of a new one.

How long a battery lasts really depends on the climate where you live and how the battery is used. Here in the Florida heat a lot of OEM batteries fail after about 2 years, the good aftermarket ones can go 3 years or longer depending on the use of the vehicle and the load placed on the battery (stereo systems, accessories, etc etc).

 

[mrsilv04]

Originally Posted By: Jimmy9190
I had a friend who had to warranty exchange a 3 year old Duralast red top battery, AZ didn't give any grief about it. They just pro-rated it based on the purchase date and discounted that amount off the price of a new one.


When I go back into NAPA, they're like "Killed another one? OK, go grab a new one off the shelf and bring it here".

Both of my replacement batteries were free.

 

[crazyoildude]

I always used sears die hard
But the last two i bought were junk and i know someone else that just had a problem with a two year old die hard so i dont buy them anymore
i was thinking of avvanced auto parts best battery what does everyone think i have a $125.00 credit with them

 

[Jimmy9190]

I have an AAP Silver in my truck for over a year now and have had no problems at all with it. It's been a good battery, truck starts right up whether it's 45 degrees during a passing cold front in January or 110 degrees in the dog days of August and September.

 

[Audi Junkie]

WalMart Maxx were the highest rated in a number of groups by a consumer magazine.

 

[Dieselbob]

For the 25 years I have been working on cars, I have installed almost nothing but Delco and have had great success. I've only had a couple that died early, and a couple go 8+ years. I've probbaly installed close to fifty of them, but since GM dumped them off to Delphi, and Delphi sold them to Johnson Controls, I can't really say whether they are still as good as they were. I don't know if JC builds all their batteries to the same spec, or if it depends on what brand they are. I know a few people were put off on Delco batteries because the original ones in their cars didn't last real long, but if you notice, GM NEVER put their best batteries in OEM applications. Unless It's for a car I know won't be around much longer, I always buy the largest, most powerful, longest lasting battery I can shoehorn into the vehicle. (usually a 78DT84 dual terminal.)

 

[Edmond]

I pretty much think that most batteries are the same but what they sell you on are the lengths of the warranties that come with them.

 

[Popinski]

Best battery I have ever owned was an 8-year Napa Gold battery.

But according to Consumer reports, the battery from Walmart and Napa are the best.

 

[been40]

Basically, all batteries in the US are made by three companies: Johnson Controls, Exide, and Delphi. Delphi makes some EverStart (Walmart) and AC Delco. Johnson Controls makes Duralast (Autozone), Diehard (Sears), Kirkland (Costco), Motorcraft (Ford), Interstate, and some of the EverStarts. Exide makes Exide, Champion, NAPA, and some EverStart batteries. My experience is that the Johnson Controls batteries get the best overall ratings.

 

[bmod305]

been40-A couple of errors...Delphi doesn't make any batteries. Deka makes most of the batteries for AC Delco. Exide was dropped by Napa 1.5 to 2 years ago.



Dave

 

[brianl703]

Johnson Controls bought Delphi's battery business and many AC Delco batteries are made by Johnson Controls.

 

[Geo_Prizm]

Optima. Of course buy from WI.

 

[Schmoe]

http://www.driveaccord.net/forums/showthread.php?t=41048&page=7