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SolaraGuy.com • View topic - Battery Suggestions?
Stock talk about the Generation 1 and 1.5 Toyota Solara which were produced from 1999 to 2003.

Battery Suggestions?

Battery Suggestions?

Postby LatinDragonXJC » Sat Jun 20, 2009 7:52 am

I think my battery has finally seen its last days....after only 3 years of use. The other day got out of work early, ready to run errands, jump in my car and :( ....nothing, there's juice but not enough to crank. So I get a jump the next day, drive around for about an hour, try to charge the battery (is this true?). I park.

The next day, I have to move my car for street cleaning right before work. And dead again :( .

With some searching, it seems like Duralast are suppose to be the best batteries around, but I'm weary after it dying on me in 3 years.

Anyone suggestions or advice? Which batteries have lasted you the longest?
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Postby jimmm » Sat Jun 20, 2009 9:03 am

Wassup LatinDragon? Have you researched
a Toyota battery for your car?
I bet it would last the duration
and have a great warranty as well. Jimmm
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Postby Mole » Sat Jun 20, 2009 9:33 am

any car battery has a short life span of 3-4 years. any longer should be replaced even if it's still "good"
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Postby jimmm » Sat Jun 20, 2009 9:50 am

Mole is right. However, you can buy batteries
according to how many MONTHS you can EXPECT
them to last. You have to wonder why they use
MONTHS as a measurement instead of years. :D
With tires, it's according to the MILES. Either way,
most of the time you get what you pay for, but it's
up to you to decide if what you are asked to pay
is worth what you need. If you are a name brand
shopper you will always pay more for the same thing
you could get cheaper. Jimmm

P.S. Forget what I said previously about the Toyota
battery. You probably already spent enough on the
Toyota to have them sell you a regular battery with
the Toyota name on it. :o
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Postby Ilovemylara » Sat Jun 20, 2009 10:33 am

I've had a duralast battery for 2 years, and It still works great. I have never had it die on me. One time I accidentally left my system on (700watt, (2) 12's) for about 4 hours while i was working, and it started right back up afterwards. But thats not to say ALL duralast products are good. DONT buy Duralast roters. I replaced my front rotors last week when I changed my brakes, and they're already warped again, just like the old ones were :(
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Postby aenties » Sat Jun 20, 2009 12:28 pm

duralast gold series are very good.
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Postby jimmm » Sat Jun 20, 2009 12:42 pm

When I bought my 2004 SLE V6 with 59k miles in January 2009,
it came with a Toyota True-2 60 month (5 yrs.) battery,
which I am still using and have had no problems with it.

According to my Carfax report this is the second
battery for this car. The original battery (maybe the same
type of Toyota battery) was replaced in December 2006 at
43,360 miles. My car was manufactured and shipped to the
original dealer October 2003. So the original battery
(of unknown brand and lifespan) lasted almost 3 years.

This battery that came with my car has been
in use for 2 yrs and six months and the car has been driven
23,000 miles. I have driven 5 months and 7k of those miles.
I can reasonably expect that it will last
another six months or 20,000 miles (whichever comes
first), but when I buy my first battery, I will know
exactly what I have. Jimmm
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Postby jimmm » Sat Jun 20, 2009 12:44 pm

aenties wrote:duralast gold series are very good.


Duralast Gold Series? Hummmmmmm. . . . I like the sound of that. :D
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Postby LatinDragonXJC » Sat Jun 20, 2009 1:07 pm

Thanks guys

I just got back from an auto shop up the block, had him charge the battery for an hour and "test it". he said that the battery was "good". Not sure if that means it's holding charge well or just good for now (his english wasn't the best). So now I have to find whether I have a live connection when the car is off that's draining my juice.

Is an hour enough to fully charge a battery?
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Postby jimmm » Sat Jun 20, 2009 2:58 pm

It depends on how low was the battery, but if it doesn't hold the charge, then you will know that you need a new one.

I dislike it very much when people are not clear when they talk, so I always ask for clarification when I don't understand. I used to know mechanics who would fix things and say that it's good enough. The phrase "good enough" was never good enough for me. If it's properly done, then say so. If not, tell me that also. Jimmm

P.S. Do you think maybe that snow and ice is draining your battery? :D
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Postby JamesT » Sat Jun 20, 2009 3:55 pm

It might be that the alternator is the problem. If the alternator isn't working it won't charge the battery.
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Postby jimmm » Sat Jun 20, 2009 6:42 pm

JamesT wrote:It might be that the alternator is the problem. If the alternator isn't working it won't charge the battery.


This is quite true, and on all the other cars I've ever owned, if the dash dummy light is on for the battery, it means just as James T wrote. There is a problem with the charging system, namely the alternator.
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Postby SleeperSolara » Sat Jun 20, 2009 7:16 pm

You should replace your battery every 3 years.
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Postby LatinDragonXJC » Sun Jun 21, 2009 6:43 am

JamesT wrote:It might be that the alternator is the problem. If the alternator isn't working it won't charge the battery.


While the car was running, I disconnected the battery to see if the alternator was working. It did. This is how I normally test the alternator.


jimmm
PostPosted: Sat Jun 20, 2009 1:58 pm Post subject:
It depends on how low was the battery, but if it doesn't hold the charge, then you will know that you need a new one.

I dislike it very much when people are not clear when they talk, so I always ask for clarification when I don't understand. I used to know mechanics who would fix things and say that it's good enough. The phrase "good enough" was never good enough for me. If it's properly done, then say so. If not, tell me that also. Jimmm

P.S. Do you think maybe that snow and ice is draining your battery?


lol I guess I will find out today if it held a charge or not when I jump in my car (sans the snow and ice). But this guy could not clarify if I gave him an extra 5 bucks to do so. So I left it at that. I just used him because of the convenience of being up the block, instead of me lugging a battery on the bus to reach Autozone. I plan on going to Autozone and getting a load test done. And if the battery is in fact "not good". I'll buy the Gold Series, since I've heard so many good reviews (it's the same manufacturer as Die Hard batts.).
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Postby youngblood » Sun Jun 21, 2009 10:38 am

LatinDragonXJC wrote:
JamesT wrote:It might be that the alternator is the problem. If the alternator isn't working it won't charge the battery.


While the car was running, I disconnected the battery to see if the alternator was working. It did. This is how I normally test the alternator.


jimmm
PostPosted: Sat Jun 20, 2009 1:58 pm Post subject:
It depends on how low was the battery, but if it doesn't hold the charge, then you will know that you need a new one.

I dislike it very much when people are not clear when they talk, so I always ask for clarification when I don't understand. I used to know mechanics who would fix things and say that it's good enough. The phrase "good enough" was never good enough for me. If it's properly done, then say so. If not, tell me that also. Jimmm

P.S. Do you think maybe that snow and ice is draining your battery?


lol I guess I will find out today if it held a charge or not when I jump in my car (sans the snow and ice). But this guy could not clarify if I gave him an extra 5 bucks to do so. So I left it at that. I just used him because of the convenience of being up the block, instead of me lugging a battery on the bus to reach Autozone. I plan on going to Autozone and getting a load test done. And if the battery is in fact "not good". I'll buy the Gold Series, since I've heard so many good reviews (it's the same manufacturer as Die Hard batts.).


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