Hi guys:

I got a 02 SE which i bought used. It currently has 118xxx miles and i put in a new Duralast battery 2 years ago. There are times when I'd leave the car on the street for a week and drive it only on the weekends; the car would start right up after sitting for a week.

Then there are times, usually in cold weather, if I shut off the car for about 10 minutes with the key in the ignition, thus leaving the HID's lit and/or radio playing, the battery would get really weak to a point which the clock/radio/windows will still function, but it just can't crank the engine.

Since the battery was purchased new 2 years ago, I would think this is caused by other factors. Nevertheless, I'll stop by Autozone later and have the battery tested. But if you guys have experienced this, some pointers would be appreciated.

J.

 

Yeah battery test would be the best idea, check your grounds as well.

 

u got any aftermarket amps?

 

It could be just the battery. I bought a battery from Kragen and long story short, at month 18 when the 3rd Kragen battery died, I went and bought something else. In the process I learned that the batteries were made by Exide. Guess what brand I stay away from now.

 

You're jumping the gun here OP,
1. Test battery
2. Post thread about issue if battery test is inconclusive

 

Like said above. Have it tested. AutoZone does free battery testing as you probably already know or have been told. They even give printed or written battery results. You get what you pay for when it comes to a car battery my towns local AlternatorStarter&Battery tech with 30 years experience tells me... He says the manufacturer of the cheapies such as Duralast and EverStart (NeverStart) have the batteries life expectancy pretty much figured out using low quality parts.

 

Thanks for the responses guys! I went to Autozone and walked out with a free new Duralast Gold battery. Luckily my old battery had a 3 year replacement guarantee; and the battery test showed that it wasn't holding electricity.

I only posted the thread because I didn't think it would be the battery (or didn't think Duralast was that ****ty) and now i know. But since I can get another one if this one fails within 3 years from today and a good battery is not cheap these days, I'm gonna stick with this.

Again, thanks for the inputs. Jay

 

Actually, the warranty period is only from the date of original purchase. If the sales guy told you differently, maybe the policy changed, or he's got it wrong. But typically if you only have 6 months left from the original purchase, that means this new battery is only covered for the next 6 months.

 

Plus 2^^.

You do not get a fresh 3 years after a replacement.

 

Although I wouldn't doubt this is true of some places, I know a lot of places where it can be argued. The warranty should be on the ITEM, NOT the purchase, which means, if you get a new item, it should be a new warranty. It depends on who is offering the warranty, the Store you bought it from, or the Manufacture of the Battery. If it's the Manufacture, than the warranty should start over.

 

Sure, argue it all day long. But at the end of the day, what the manufacturer puts in their fine print is all the store will go by. If the fine print says "Original purchase" or "Original Owner", that's that, store is not going to be on the hook for it, and manufacturer has already said their peace.