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Mazda CX-5 Q85 Start Stop Battery $205.50 @ Repco

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Hi All,

When I saw my i-stop blinking and a triangle with an exclamation mark illuminated on my dash. I called up Mazda and was told that it is due to the car battery fault. (i.e. car battery needs to be replaced).

Was looking for a battery but mostly around the below:
RAC member gets it for $274
Repco is also around $274
Supercheap auto Century batteries goes for about $469.

Found a car battery deal at Repco today for 25% off going at $205.50! Just letting everyone know who are keen to get this. I'm going to get mine today!! =)

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  • Might want to edit your title and include $ in the price so it's picked up by system.

  • +19

    Stop starts suck!

  • +23

    From this car guy;
    Unless you're somewhere you know will have long traffic lights, try to remember to turn that i-stop off.
    There has been no magical new developments in startermotors, nor flywheels that will stop them wearing out pretty darn quickly (but obviously, outside warranty).

    It lets the company pass emissions ('how much at idle/stop? Oh zero!') And saves you minute amounts of fuel, but if you intend to keep the car, Id be expecting starters and a flywheel sooner than later.

    This isnt a driver technology, its an emissions testing one.

    • +10

      Pretty much this. A 2l car will use about half a litre an hour on idle. What little you save gets eaten by a more expensive battery and starter parts or alternator wear.

      • +1

        Bit more than that. Somewhere between 1-2L per hour

        But yeh agree, disable stop/start

    • My sentiments exactly ^^^

      Shame it's not an "option" that you can tick to remove to lower the purchase price.

      • It would result in a higher purchase price, because in tons of markets they'd need to pay more emissions tax to sell it.

        As I said, its for 'them' not 'us'.

    • It's garbage. I've disabled mine (mazda 3) permanantly using the bonnet latch method and using a standard premium battery. No dash light no annoying start stop no overpriced battery…win/win

      • Is there a link to read?
        I though the car would show (and sound) an alarm if you start moving with bonnet stays "open".

        • +1

          no lights or issues for me after 2 years.

          Can't find the original post with lots of pics but there's a wpool thread here. Just do a word search for bonnet.

          I just loosened and twisted the switch to move it out of the way and not activate when bonnet is closed.

          Only catch is that I've read somewhere alarm may not work but i don't care.

          https://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/2447895

    • The Start/stop system uses a Separate second starter motor (at least in my car) or a single motor that isn't the same as one in a car without the system, so you'll be replacing the starter motor you're asking people to disable?
      I still disable it cause it's annoying.

      But refer here
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFImHhNwbJo

      • 2nd flywheel also? Because those teeth DO wear out, same if not more labor either way.

        • If you drive a manual you'll probably need to change the Flywheel around the same time (maybe even earlier) regardless, but I turn it off in my manual car majority of the time.
          You don't have a flywheel in an Auto transmission, you have flexplates which aren't really affected.
          EDIT: Correct me if I'm wrong, just expressing my opinion!

          • -1

            @MahyarJ: You're mostly right in parts terms, but not in lifetime estimates.

            Whether auto or manual, you still have a very small contact patch for the starter, flex plate or flywheel, the area will wear.

            Its the "about the same time" that I think you're wrong with.

            I once rode with a mate in his cx5, and counted the stop starts on a short (half hour) drive. More than 30.

            Lets round that down to 28, assume you drive everyday, and call it "4 weeks" of "1 start", hell, lets make it 2 starts, gotta get home too.

            So now, for every day he drives, he has the equivalent wear of 14 days of driving.

            14x less life from those components!

            Not to mention the bigger factor, that when stop-starting your oil pressure is zero.

            It can 'coat' the walls all it wants with new tech, even if 'new oil' does protect the restart, there are tens of rotations where the oil will be re-traveling up the pickup and pressurizing in the head. This can take a full 5 second on some cars.

            So there's very very likely camshaft wear, and a little less likely, but still high, piston ring wear; and with no pressure, bearings likely touch a little.

            And nothing was changed to accommodate all that; part numbers match between start-stop models and not.

            You watch, when these cars reach 15yo or so, we will have significant landfill from them, and we will see if mazda do 'good' like what subaru do, and sell new shortblock engines for affordable prices, or if people start scrapping hundreds of mazdas.

            Will be a 'scary' time for anyone eco focused.

            • -1

              @MasterScythe: I think you are comparing Engineers to idiots. Your first post mentioned that they don't make the parts differently, but they definitely do they combine several technologies for the starter motor, apparently they also turn slower.

              Also you're implying the flywheel, flex plate isn't used/engaged every time the gears are changed? Cause it does, so your 28 number is negligible. if a car goes to 4th/5th gear within seconds. One start/stop isn't gonna do the damage 4 or 5 gear changes every 30 seconds or so will do.

              Most cars have electric oil pumps and coolant pumps (among many other pumps) that run when the car is off to ensure that there isn't a 0 pressure start up while the alternator/serpentine belt isn't running, hence why most start/stop cars have much larger batteries.

              I think either your information is outdated or Mazda's Start/stop system needs to be updgraded hahaha.

              Car engineers have been trying to make engines more reliable and in turn economical, the start stop feature helps emissions, but they've been around since 2004ish, we'd see many cars sitting in land fills if they had issues with their Fly-wheels, starters. Engineers wouldn't risk long term reliability, cause that ruins their brand image in 15 years time they're not stupid.

              Part numbers not being different, would have to be more likely to do with the fact that the engine is the exact same and designed for the moderately increased load regardless of the startstop system being enabled or not.

              Anyway as I type this I notice I'm getting a bit argumentative so let's just leave it at to each their own I guess!

  • triangle with an exclamation mark ilumminated on my dash

    Is that the Master Warning Light?

    • yes it is the master warning light. i was told by the dealer that it is due to the low CCA rating. new battery is like around 620CCA and my current was measuring 300CCA or something around those figures. Just replaced the MF battery now and when ever i start or stop the car the light does not iluminate and/or I-stop doesn't keep blinking.. xD

  • +2

    I turn of my start stop. In a manual, its a curse because you stall if you are not thinking about letting the engine get going when you put it in gear. Its not pretty stalling in heavy traffic or need to move quickly.

    • +1

      same, I hate it

    • Dashcams, when it causes an accident, nice big payout.

  • it is due to the car battery fault

    How long did your battery last?

    • Our September 2015 build plate Mazda started having battery issues at exactly the 5 year mark (it took an extra second to kick over, start/stop was disabled etc). I made-do with a spare small Optima yellow-top… until now =) Thanks OP!

      • +1

        You had a good run of 5 years. Mine started weakening at just over the 3 year mark. Irritating because battery warranty would have finished and it was pro-rata'd anyway, so wouldn't get much back (Mazda6 with start stop). Same issue the past 2 batteries, only getting 3 years out of it. My other car got over 6 years, no start stop and the battery is also very small (Honda).

    • my original battery that when i bought the car was back in March 2016 and decided to go after 4.5 years ish.. still quite a good run with the battery.. had always went to dealership to service the vehicle every 12months/10,000km reached. =)

  • +1
  • +1

    Probably not a fair comparison to the $469 SuperCheapAuto battery.

    Looking at the handle design, maintenance free (MF) top and matching 24M warranty, these appear identical (aside from sticker):

    1) $205.50 @ Repco: https://www.repco.com.au/en/globes-batteries-electrical/batt…

    2) $299.99 @ SuperCheapAuto: https://www.supercheapauto.com.au/p/century-century-iss-batt…

    The $469 model is completely different: https://www.supercheapauto.com.au/p/century-century-iss-acti…

    Still a bargain, I grabbed one myself. Thanks OP!

    • Yea true! just saw the difference in the century one apologies! the original battery is a **** of a thing to remove.. such an awkward position and heavy!! finally got it out and now have a new battery! yay!

  • Is this better than a LION battery?

    • Li-ion batteries cant be direct swapped; you can however direct swap a LiFePo4 battery, and that would be significantly better.

  • You need to do a nintendo like combo and give it a bit of a drive after you change it for the warning light to go off

    https://www.pandgmotors.com.au/blog/mazda-i-stop-reset/

  • +1

    I have the same issue with my CX3, I calculated for the start/stop to be worth it, I needed to stop a minimum of 13 times per drive so offset any fuel, higher priced battery and wear and tear savings.
    This would be fine if I travelled in peak hour traffic daily and lived in the suburbs but as I live in the bush my drive to and from work (50 mins each way) I usually only stop a handful of times.
    In pure Ozbargain fashion I keep a cheap jump starter in my car and use that when my battery is flat (usually once a fortnight) and charge my battery every now and then with a ctek charger, and ignore the replacement battery triangle warning.
    But for $200 might be worth finally replacing it

    • In ozbargain fashion, yes.

      While I couldnt give 2 shits about the stop start; having a weak battery in your system is a high resistance load on your alternator.

      You'll be burning more fuel with the 'intelligent' alternator trying to charge a damaged battery. Also if its not reaching a full 14v anymore, you might find your injector pulse is a little lazy, increasing fuel consumption.

      To hell with stop-start, but a non-damaged battery is crucial to a car.

      If it goes flat often due to not driving, grab a solar trickle charger, and whack a little barrel connector on the battery, plug it in whenever you park up for a while :)

      • Great advice but I drive 2 hrs daily to and from work.
        There isn't any noticeable excess fuel usage, get the same amount of kms regardless of new or old battery, i keep all my fuel receipts and write down kms (helps to determine which servo has the better fuel).
        Bit the bullet and finally gave in and got the Repco battery, gonna use the old battery for an exhaust system in my motorbike shed tied to a spare solar panel to help clear the condensation, so saving money there by using the old battery vs 240v to offset having to buy a new battery

  • In my Impreza I jammed a folded up piece of paper in the start stop off button.Works a treat.

    • This also works for my mazda. Just jam something to keep the button permanently pushed down. Without it I'd consider selling the car. Who wants to push a button to turn it off every ride.

    • Its a toggle switch, cant you just slide the connectors off the back of it, and bridge them? Much nicer looking, less risk of failure, and 'anyone could do it' difficulty.

      Unless its part of a circuit board, not just a switch/toggle…

      • Unfortunately my CX3 doesnt have a dedicated button, you have to go into the system settings and turn it off every time you start the car, easier to ignore the triangle

      • I googled it and you’re correct on the Impreza you can bridge the wires or remove the battery low cable at the terminals.

  • I have 2012 CX-5 2.2 Turbo diesel & in both repco & supercheap auto its daying this battery is not compatible

    • it may be that the terminals are either on the wrong side pos where neg should be or the terminals are at the front when they need to be at rear, many batteries mfgs have two types to address this, guess you need to drive to repco open bonnet take piccy, then go in store find the claimed battery and check?

    • The battery for the Diesel engine is different.

      They are Generally more powerful and more expensive.
      Autobarn has them for a good price.

      • Thanks folks, that's what I'm thinking as currently i have century T110 which us 760 CCA, gurss i need to fork out $369 but will check with mycar tomorrow fir competitive price plus installation

  • In Feb this year, the warning came up as I was overseas for a month, but after driving about 60kms x 2, the light came off. Since then was fine until this week. Weirdly, it came up on one drive but off again. Did that for 4 days. To be safe, I bought the battery which is the same price now $205.50. I think I should replace it this time around.

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