Century batteries are 25% off @ Supercheap Auto.
Decent price if not the best, during this winter time.
Century Batteries 25% off (e.g. Century Ultra Hi Performance Car Battery 75D23L MF $179.99) @ Supercheap Auto
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PopCounty on 27/05/2021 - 10:26 supercheapauto.com.au (1977 clicks)
Last edited 27/05/2021 - 18:33 by 1 other user
Last edited 27/05/2021 - 18:33 by 1 other user
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Price is currently saying $318.95 on ebay, that's an expensive battery! Are there no cheaper options for your car?
I had 10% off ebay GC's
they also have ebay discounts now and then too
Only 290 then? Bargain!
What's the equivalent price in the century?
Ah, answered below. Is the quality that much better?
@Jackson: Quality? Seems to be better? It's Made In Japan, just like the car.
Will know in many years time.
Original Mazda battery (made in Japan) has lasted me 5 years and 6 months.
@Turd: I've actually got the original Nissan battery in my car, it's been in there since 2013 at least, maybe 2012. No issues at all so far, make me wonder how long it will last
I also bought one of these when there was an eBay 10% off code available, $287.50 delivered in 24 hours. Great seller.
For reference the equivalent Century Battery (Q85) is $267.99 in this sale.
I'd pick the Panasonic over the Century any day of the week in terms of quality, even at a price premium (ok, perhaps not double.. but certainly at 10-15% more..)
@jason andrade: Same, I have had 4 Century, even had one replaced under warranty, very poor cold-weather performance, change to Panasonic and they are fantastic. A Japanese car needs a Japanese battery, it makes sense to me and proven in real life. Forget about Century batteries as they just don't seem to last.
Century Q85 MF for my Mazda was $300 everyday at Supercheap. 25% off would be good. I see that now that it's $275 but not part of the 25% discount. Weird. I ended up buying mine through Cov's at less anyway.. https://www.supercheapauto.com.au/p/century-century-iss-acti…
This one if you wanting the century q85 - https://www.supercheapauto.com.au/p/century-century-iss-acti…
MF one slightly higher
Which Mazda's model need this? My Mazda 3 can use OP's battery.
It’s not the same quality as the GS YUASA 36 month warranty Japanese unit fitted from factory in Japan. They typically last 4-6 years. They don’t sell that blue one in japan unless I can be proven wrong
The Panasonic Q100?
Yeah my original mazda 3 battery lasted me 5.5 years! :o
Is this a good brand? I never brought a battery before, mostly they change it while doing service. Would like to try to save some money.
Yes I recommend these over the supercharger and other home brands that the auto stores try to flog, especially if you have any aftermarket electronics in your car like cameras, bluetooth, alarms etc.
Yes remember to start your car and leave it in idle before changing the battery. otherwise codes might pop up
Before attempting to disconnect and reconnecting the battery from the vehicle, ensure all electrical equipment is turned off including the ignition system, air-conditioning, lights and radio. Remove the keys from the ignition and if the vehicle has a Frequency Operated Button (FOB) with keyless entry, the FOB should be kept at least 2 metres clear of the vehicle.
https://www.centurybatteries.com.au/technical-support/how-to…
Be aware a local battery store or auto electrician probably has better prices than other stores on sale. (Just pick a decent brand.)
I bought an AC Delco (US manufactured). After the guy quoted over the phone I asked how much to deliver because mine was so dead the car wouldn't drive so I was wondering if a bus went past his workplace. No extra $ to deliver it 20km (so 40km round trip), fit, and dispose of the dead one and that was when he had plenty of auto electrical work on he could have been doing instead. It's been several years, I hardly drive the car, but it's still going great. And I don't remember the price now but I do remember it was cheaper.
Also depending on your car type they probably have more skilled float maintenance of their batteries, as well as a higher stock turnover than SCA/Repco. (Meaning you're less likely to get a poorly-maintained and/or sulphated one from sitting on the shelf for ? months.) I've seen SCA staff charging a battery on the display shelf with a cheap charger. Not a confidence-building sight. i.e. If they couldn't be bothered removing it from the display shelf to charge it, it's unlikely they planned to access the individual cells to test their specific gravity (there would be physically no room to do so unless planning to balance the battery on their palm). Of course that doesn't mean ALL auto stores are that lazy/inept, but it doesn't bode well.
Acdelco brand is from Detroit but the batteries supplied locally are 100% manufactured in South Korea
No Supercheap in WA stocks the Century Q85 which has a 36 month warranty
No delivery, and its a common battery … sounds like most Mazda's and both of our Subaru's use them.
SC need to get better stock for items they dont ship.
The Q100 above is $319 + $65 shipping (with 24 month warranty), the imaginary Century Q85 for $268For batteries in Perth look at Goodchild Enterprises @ Cockburn Central
Made in Japan exactly like the original battery
Good Price for the Q85 for $267.99. I don't need it but I want to buy it and just… leave it for backup?
Don't need it atm dont need it atm dont need it atm
They have these sales often, but I guess that doesn't help if you have a dead battery and there is no sale on at that moment in time.
Do car batteries store well? I'm anticipating mine will die within a couple of months.
Car wouldn't start after I had the radio on for ~10 minutes without the engine on.
Your battery is on its very last legs. I wouldn’t bother storing it, get one now and replace it ASAP before you have bigger problems.
No they don't. Car batteries are meant to be used (and by that I mean lots of starting current, in a short time, then recharged) or they can become sulphated. Also read my comment above as it also applies to batteries sitting on the shelf of auto stores.
Incorrect they have 6 month shelf life with no maintenance or charging required
@Nikomcf: They obviously won't be dead/useless, but no I'm not wrong. If you're going to assume perfect conditions, a retailer who understands storage temperature, battery maintenance and testing procedures, etc then sure. Going by the staff conversations I overhear in SCA stores I doubt I know any.
So let's face some reality here… in the real world it's not going to happen in 99% of cases.
For a start lead acid batteries self-discharge a few % per month. No problem for many people, in heavily-populated areas, who own a recent model Ford/Holden/Toyota because there's (probably/maybe?) a high turnover of stock. But not necessarily and not at every store.
e.g. The Bondi SCA is obviously going to turn over more stock than out Western Sydney (or worse, Mount Isa), because a greater percentage of Bondi folks buy a new car every 1-2 years.
No store is going to do any kind of internal visual inspection then discard a battery that rarely sells which shows sulfation. At best they're going to charge a shelf of batteries per month, then check their voltage (if we're lucky) and specific gravity (if we've won the SCA store lotto). So any degraded/unmaintained/uncheck battery will still be sold. How would the customer know?
The fact remains it's not a good or sensible idea to leave a fully charged lead acid car battery, sitting on a shelf, unused, with no maintenance testing or charging - for months.
Sealed ones do fair better but all LA at least BEGINS sulfating (which increases the more discharged a battery becomes)… and once that coating is on the plates, it's there to stay without applying a desulfator, resulting in reduced capacity. Meaning the battery may have a "6 month" or even 12 or 24 shelf life, but it doesn't mean it's in the same peak condition as one that was dry yesterday, charged with acid, water added, and charged/tested to full capacity.
Then there's other situations like someone in a store who does do maintenance charges, but leaves them charging for hours eating away the plates. The plates in car batteries are thin. Eat enough away through rigorous charging, and again you've lost capacity - forever. When I'm in SCA the toddlers they employ are fiddling with MMM on the car stereos, talking about how drunk they got Friday night, comparing tatts, and twirling the earrings in their face. Hardly someone who cares about the line of batteries on the rearmost shelf of the store.
In other words we're both talking generalisations. And generally car batteries are meant to be used. Not stored. Not sitting idle. Fit, crank, drive, recharge asap. This is just fact. Check any online guide.
e.g. The first result I clicked on:
https://batteryguy.com/kb/knowledge-base/what-is-the-shelf-l…
Quote:
"A SLA (Sealed Lead Acid) battery can generally sit on a shelf at room temperature with no charging for up to a year when at full capacity, but is not recommended."
"A sealed lead acid battery generally discharges 3% every month."
"If a SLA battery is allowed to discharge to a certain point, you may end up with sulfation and render your battery useless, never getting the intended life span out of the battery."
"If you are going to store sealed lead acid batteries on a shelf without charging them, it is recommended you store the batteries at 10 degrees Celsius or less."
"The top charge should be for 20 – 24 hours at a constant voltage of 2.4 volts per cell."
Is it more likely they: a) have checked what their battery charger outputs, or b) just plug in the same $30 charger we've used for the last 5 years.
That site was about SLA. Standard lead acid batteries (with visible holes in the cell caps) will the be the same or worse.
Other sites say 15 degrees instead of 10. I've never been to a SCA store with employees shivering at 10-15 degrees C just to keep our future car batteries in peak condition. And if they up the store temperature discharge rate increases.
e.g. At 25C discharge jumps to 10%. Not a huge concern, but in Australian summers it's not uncommon to be above 30C. I'm not sure what the discharge rate is at 30C, but according to https://www.upsbatterycenter.com/blog/safely-store-lead-acid… at 40℃ discharge is close to 40% after 6 months. (It's recommended not to go below 70% before recharging.)
There's plenty of good info out there to mitigate all this. e.g. https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/how_to_store_bat… But the fact is, 99% of staff in auto and other variety type stores aren't going to learn, let alone bother applying that knowledge. Which is why I recommend battery stores. Their staff are nearly always older and often the business owner rather than just an employee recently out of McDonalds. They know how to use test equipment to check and maintain batteries. They have to compete with variety stores and sales like this one, so they know they''ll quickly get a bad rep in an area if they don't know their stuff and their batteries fail, because batteries is their main income. They don't have dozens of batteries flooded sitting idle ready for sale (they load electrolyte as needed, as stock shifts).
So while variety stores like SCA are a largely unknown purchase, battery retailers are a much safer bet. I've found they're often still cheaper even when auto/variety stores have some sale on.
Oh and forgot to say… lots of car batteries die when winter hits. Not sure where you are but it's started getting cold where I am, so it's probably about to strand you.
That said it could just need a decent recharge. You should buy a battery charger, charge it up, leave it 24 hours then go get it load tested at a battery place. Basically they apply a high current drain on the battery and any faulty cells (about to fail) will show up during the test. If you get a new battery read my other comments here, but basically charge it once a month, check water level, and consider fitting a battery desulfator.
You can just do a quick and dirty test by checking overnight battery voltage, then turn on headlights, radio, fan etc for 2-3 minutes (engine off)…turn everything off and check battery voltage again…if its below 12.6v its on its way out if a trickle charger doesn't bring it back and keep it in a healthy range of 12.6v+ at any time. A healthy battery should hold a charge above 12.6v for at least 2 weeks at a time before needing a float charge or a decent drive to maintain the cells. BUT you can get away with a battery holding a charge overnight (12.6v and above) as long as you're driving regularly. At some point you will lose CCA capacity and if it gets low enough, it won't be able to crank your engine over. You need at least 1/10th of your cubic centimeter engine capacity in cold cranking amps, for a diesel, double that number.
You can also do a crank test and watch the voltage, if it drops below 9v she's already on the way out or soon enough to be a goner.
@Oofy Doofy: Yeah pretty much except with that last line, I had a voltage drop once due to a rotting battery cable and/or poorly-connecting terminal.
I'd just replaced the battery a few days earlier, it showed full charge and good specific gravity with a hydrometer. But the car was behaving like it was flat during cranking and showed a voltage drop!? Had a closer look found years of acid had creeped under the insulation. Fitted a new cable and no more problems. Afterwards I pulled the old insulation back and acid had crept inside by about 2 inches. So I'm not sure if the voltage drop was acid ingress or just a flogged out terminal that couldn't tighten quite enough after years of remove/replace.
Got 1 the other day offer it ends of this month..they also have $1 member ship with $10 cash back
Perfect timing. Thanks OP! Saved another $15 using 8% off supercheapauto giftcard through Suncorp rewards
Even with a 25% discount these batteries are well overpriced. Try your local independent garage.
Do you know anywhere cheaper, I want buy one
Try your local independent garage
Maybe the case for you. Prices for these batteries are even more bloated at my local mechanic shops.
At least you gave them a go, always better to try independent and locals before the bigger guys. I just know that supercheap auto are always expensive on Century batteries. My local mechanic shop are often $50 plus cheaper than them.
I would rather spend the extra at SCA and avoid my local mechanics, they are dodgy and unreliable.
@magic8ballgag: Fair enough. I would rather support my local mechanic who is reliable and trustworthy
@KLoNe: Why?
Parts are sourced online, and most of the maintenance/repairs I am able to do myself, with scheduled logbook servicing completed at local dealerships.
Not many mechanics have batteries on hand, certainly not a wide selection. Most are probably phoning an auto electrician to drop one off when required. That's who I'd be phoning instead, auto electrician or a store whose majority business is selling batteries.
If u member i think u get more cheaper the one is bought was online original cost $175 but got it for $130 the cheapest i have seen was $169 on othe sites
$130 is cheap for this battery
I'm really keen on a new battery for camping - only really for charging devices instead of a sustained load from a fridge. Would this suffice? Not sure if 12A/6V really matters for this usage?
that's a bit overkill for that purpose. Just get an AGM in smaller capacity, maybe 50Ah so it won't break your back. Even if you're ready to spend that much, get the 80Ah AGM from kmart so you don't have to worry about spilling acid. I used the kmart one for camping running fridge and charging a few stuff and it only use 50% capacity in about 3 days.
These are great value for the above purpose, just remember that in order to get decent life out of AGM batteries
don't drain below 50% unlike lithium LiPO4 where you can safely drain down to 20% and battery will weigh 1/3 of
these at a much higher lifespan and initial cost too.
Your device chargers are probably 'power bricks' or cables that plug into USB ports. So they probably either plug into a power point, a cigarette lighter socket, or a USB port… and their output is probably ~5V DC. Some of your chargers may still work with a 6V source, but it's almost certain some won't and will need 12V DC input. So you might be better with something like this: https://www.jaycar.com.au/12-8v-7ah-lithium-deep-cycle-batte….
But first think about what total capacity battery you'll need. Make a list of all your devices, listing how much power is required, for how many hours, for how many days. That will give you a total minimum required battery capacity (without any recharging required).
Next problem is lead acid can't supply all it's capacity or it will die a quick death. It's commonly claimed lead acid should only be discharged 50% then recharged or you'll kill them fast. But I saw on youtube a guy in the industry went looking for the source of this oft-parroted claim and found little to no source. Then he did some testing and found the safe discharge depth of lead acid should be even lower. I forget now how low it was but I think it was 40, maybe even 30%. I do know it was low enough to turn me off using lead acid for the motorhome I'm planning.
What I'm saying is, with lead acid you basically have to forget that something like 60% to 70% of its capacity exists, because if you keep dipping into that discharge region, you'll kill the battery much sooner.
So as a rough guide, work out total capacity needed per day, times that by how many days (e.g. 2 or 3-day weekend), then check that is equal or less than 40% of the total battery capacity. This will tell you the MINIMUM capacity battery required. If you can afford a battery with more capacity than that, do so.
e.g. If you found that all your devices, lights, etc needs 40A over 48 hours (a 2-day weekend), then you'd need to make sure 40A = 40% (or less) of the total capacity of the lead acid battery. So you'd need a minimum 100A battery (40 amps = 40% of a 100 amp battery).
Then you need to decide how to recharge it because lead acid batteries ideally should be recharged asap.
That said, if it was only to recharge a few phones, run a couple of low power LED lights for a few hours per night etc while camping for a 3 day weekend, I might try a solar panel first. Leave it connected to the car battery 24/7, recharge devices from the car battery during the day while the sun is out, and only use lights at night. You could fit a low-voltage cutout device to the car battery. If the battery voltage falls too low it disconnects everything being used so there's enough to start the car. Time to go for a long drive to recharge the car battery (and decide what more to invest in).
Even at night solar panels can charge a little. But leaving it connected 24/7 is more because it will be charging again the moment the sun comes up. Note its position at sunrise and sunset, then adjust panel orientation from a few to several times throughout the day for the most power output. At night point it to where the sun will be next morning.
And larger is obviously better because you can't achieve the specs they quote. At best you'll have less output than they quote, for a few hours, worse if it's cloudy. If you wanted to do this cheaper and depending on vehicle space, I often see secondhand house solar panels on Gumtree. Being secondhand they will have reduced output.
If just the solar panel charging the car battery wasn't enough because the cutout keeps kicking in, maybe then it's time to add a (li-Ion?) battery.
Or if you wanted to do it on the cheap or as a test, some car wreckers sell batteries (about $30 last time I looked). You could buy 2 or 3, fully charge them a couple of days before the weekend, then recharge stuff from those instead of drawing from your car battery. If there's no price difference, I'd try to get the 'sealed' type (which aren't really 'sealed' but at least they don't have a hole in each cell cap allowing water to leak and/or spit out during charging). Watch some youtube videos how to open them, check their water level, refill, and recharge them because sealed ones still lose water. I'd probably store anything lead acid in a plastic box too so any potential electrolyte spill doesn't eat stuff in the car.
The drawback of course is their weight, and those aforementioned awful specs.
Anyway, keep in mind car batteries are designed to provide HIGH engine cranking current, for a SHORT time, then they're meant to be fully recharged pretty much immediately (ideally). Whereas deep cycle batteries are designed to provide LESS current (but still considered high), for a SUSTAINED period, then recharged. So when you use a car battery like you would a deep cycle battery, it can quickly kill it.
Also consider adding a battery desufator/desulphator device. Don't cheap out on this because as they've caught on, cheaper/nastier versions have appeared, and as always you get what you pay for. Reading other peoples' experience with these, they can return some batteries to as good or even better than new. Everyone would benefit from one of these. And fitting one to a new battery is obviously better than to an older one after some damage has already been done.
Whether you chose standard car batteries, or deep cycle, an optional add-on is a battery isolator. You wire it in, and the car alternator then charges both the car cranking battery and the camping battery. This means the car battery is only used to start the car. (An isolator usually allows you to start the car from the secondary batteries too if needed, but the idea is they normally stay separate so you're never caught with a flat car battery.)
Lithium-ion can utilise much more of its capacity. So a very rough example might be a Li-ion of the same capacity as a lead acid, can provide close to double the output the lead acid can without significantly damage.
From there things start to get complicated/expensive.
Another option is super capacitors. They cost more initially but they weigh much less than batteries, last many times longer than lead acid and several times longer than li-ion making them cheaper over time. They can be recharged much faster too. Many batteries are recharged by pumping high current in first, which tapers off over time, falling to a maintenance trickle toward the end. So you might have solar panels or a generator able to supply heaps of amps, but most of it goes unused because a battery charger switches to a trickle.
Super capacitors on the other hand can be recharged at high current fast. A generator that needs to run for hours to recharge a battery might only need to run a couple of hours (saving more money in fuel).
It doesn't sound like you need to go that far though.
That's a hell of a response - thanks a lot. Some extra info on my setup - I have a CTEK MXS5.0 charger for at home to keep these things topped up nicely. Also have a 150W solar panel while in the bush. I've always just used old decommissioned batteries from work ranging from 7ah to 100ah just with alligator clips straight on for my LED lights but am after something a little less fiddly. Have also picked up alligator clip to 12v cigarette lighter for this. So am already pretty well equipped to get something that will fit the bill.
Upon further thought, the idea of getting a battery under 12V is ludicrous so I will scrap that. I am fairly certain I would like something at least 50ah, probably 100 would be ideal for the week long trips as well as adding contingency down the line for the inevitable additions.
After all that it seems like I probably want a higher capacity AGM that I do my best not to discharge too much, or bite the bullet and spend the money on lithium. Would that be an okay surmisation?
Yeah with your past experience and needs you describe, that sounds a solid solution. Just ensure you have plenty of capacity to get your money worth (long life) out of the battery, or alternatively, the ability to replace a hefty amount of charge.
Mind you, if I had a source of used batteries, I would probably buy or make up some kind of plastic box, insert whatever battery comes up at work, and fit charge and power output connections to the outside. After you bolt cables to a couple of batteries inside, everything is plug and play on the outside until a new battery is needed. But mucking about with second hand stuff gets tedious after a while too. Sometimes it's just better to buy new and enjoy less hassle.
@[Deactivated]: I have recently installed this
https://www.kogan.com/au/buy/toughland-acemor12v-300w-solar-…
solar panel level flat on the roof of my van in between two roof racks with a gap of around 1cm-2cm between roof
and panel. It is connected to a Redarc BCDC1225D 25A charger that has a MPPT solar regulator build in.
https://www.redarc.com.au/dual-input-25a-in-vehicle-dc-batte…
I am testing things out with a small AGM 37AH battery and monitoring the charge/draw/usage with a Renogy Battery
Monitor with a 500A shunt. Now you can hopefully visualise my set up, my question is what amount of Watts/Amps
am I exping to get out of this panel going into that set up in current Autum/winter South Queensland full sunshine from
mid morning through the afternoon. The maximum I have seen is around 70W and usually 40W-50W in full sun with
no extra draw appart from the Redarc and battery monitor. I never thought that going by price and size of my panel it
would be 300W, but maybe 200W-250W and then hoping to get at least 100W=150W into my battery in full sun
around midday. What are your thoughts, solar is all new to me.
@ozhunter68: With specific equipment questions you're probably better off checking/asking on Whirlpool. Someone may have purchased the same model/s. Use the search field first as your questions may have already been answered (and it's always good for a read-through to collect answers to all new questions you never wanted to know you had LOL).
https://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum/143?g=371
You probably know the BCDC1225D is suitable for battery capacities 75-200AH. Not sure what the effect would be by having 37AH. It could mean anything from not recognising it at all (obviously not in your case or it wouldn't be charging), to spitting out some error code or going into some kind of protected charging mode, or even just overcharging due to the circuit design. (For example if the circuit has some kind of battery capacity sensing and/or just assumes the battery is at least 75AH because they told you so in the specs, it might restrict charging, or even forever charge it attempting to drag the capacity up but being unable to). At that price level you'd like to think that wouldn't be the case, but…?
As for what you can get out of a panel… Yeah, LOL. Sun angle, manufacturer practices/methods of obtaining and quoting output, shadows, clouds, dirt on panels, etc all adds up to: "strap on a blindfold and fling a dart".
I'm not as up to speed as I should be either. Since BP stopped making their quality panels I lost interest for years, so have only looked at bits and pieces lately. I need to research again too. The old rules probably still apply though… assume manufacturer specs are 3x or 4x exaggerated, calculate your minimum power needs, then buy as much more Watts output and AH storage as you can afford/fit.
It's not much help, but look for others with the same/similar panel and compare their experience. You expect manufacturers to be as 'elastic' with their figures as they can get away with. But if your panel seems noticeably lower in output than other peoples' experience with the same or similar model, maybe send an email to the charger/monitor manufacturer (or users of them) to ascertain if the lower output/capacity battery isn't doing something weird (as before, reducing output because one of the system components can sense the low battery capacity, etc).
You probably already know stuff like the Sun is lower in the sky in winter. So if you're able to, adjusting panel angle throughout the day (left to right hourly is best, but also raising/lowering for Winter/Summer) can raise output some. Maybe some kind of locking frame that can be raised/lowered. Clean it frequently. Every mA helps. If the panel is fixed in place you're at the mercy of whatever it gets. If you're space-restricted but would have more panels if you could (like on a small van), maybe add sliders under/over the first panel, and 1 or more stacked into the same footprint. i.e. Unlock and slide them out when parked. Or maybe one of those fold-up ones in nylon pouches.
As you'd know, getting your power requirements as low as possible can be easier/cheaper than adding more panel/battery too.
@[Deactivated]: I've been down the path of using used batteries for so long now and I just want something that's reliable really. I'm thinking something like this is more what I'm looking for, with the eventual addition of a full housing to make connections easy. 75ah usable should be ample I feel. Plus I love the built in voltage reader - as this will spend long periods not in use having this easily checked seems like a great selling point.
@Hinee: Been offline the last few days.
Normally I avoid products with inbuilt gimmicks (the V meter in this case), but the fact that's a LCD display AND it turns off shows a manufacturer (finally?) put some thought in.
i.e. In many cases a cheap (or expensive) multimeter would do better anyway (more accurate/reliable). And while LCD displays use a minuscule amount of power (I've had LCD watch displays last 7-8 years on one button battery with a lot of use including the tiny light bulb), I suspect the V test/multimeter part running 24/7 would be a greater drain… so they added an off button.
I would still compare price and capacity elsewhere just to be sure it really is a good price. Thanks to sneaky (bordering on dishonest) retailers, I've learned to always assume I'm being lied to and/or deceived about something. I'm not saying they are. But I would check if it really is a good price, whether there's a reason for the discount instead in their favour instead of mine. e.g. That it's not marked down because they sell stock reaching the end of its shelf life cheaper to get rid of it. You might still choose to buy it even if it was. But I'd like to know if I'm likely to get a year less life because it had been sitting on the shelf a year longer than others I could buy. I'd just like the full story. Even if there is a 'negative', doesn't mean they'll reveal it though.
What are people's plan for buying a car battery? Do you swap old for new now, or do you buy now and keep for later when the old dies?
Feels like a million dollar question how much longer my current battery will last for.
Same question on my mind! Do i just keep it in the boot for when the current one dies?
If you hit 4 years you can swap it but sometimes they last longer so it’s a gamble. But much cheaper than getting stuck somewhere in rain/heat/dark etc.
meh, battery will show symptoms when it start to die so once it starts playing up in the morning or after 1 week in the garage then you will have a few weeks to get a new one, worse case just buy a jump starter or a cable.
You shouldn't buy and store lead acid batteries for later. They're designed to be used: high current, for a short time, then recharged, not stored.
First you should own and use a battery charger once a month. (Driving only replaces a surface charge due to powering the engine, lights, etc.) And consider permanently fitting a "battery desulfater". The day after recharging the battery get it 'load tested' at a battery place or auto electrician and they will tell you if it's on its way out.
Could you please recommend/link to a good value battery desulfater as this is new to me but sounds good to have.
Sorry for the delay I've been in hospital. I didn't want it to stop me from posting about desulphators, but I had hoped no-one would ask that LOL because I began researching again for myself a month or two ago but found so much junk versions for sale now, that when something else came up I put it aside for later.
When they first appeared they were designed by people who submitted DIY projects for electronic magazines like Electronics Australia, Silicon Chip, MAKE Magazine, etc. There were only a few units available so the differences were clear just by reading the article/s. Contributors of those magazines have a habit of testing, researching and improving the designs, so the projects are often great. Many get turned into kits sold at places like Jaycar. I thought they had a DIY desulphator kit but couldn't find it on their site. I just phoned them, and no, they don't stock one anymore. (They tried to recommend 'battery conditioner solution' that they sell. LOL, that's a pass.)
While I can't give you a specific model, I can narrow it down a lot. First you'll need to think about the different types, which one you want. e.g. Some battery chargers have built-in desulphators. I plan to buy a stand-alone zapper/desulphator that is permanently installed in the car (assuming someone still makes one, but they should). I've tried to commit to such things in the past (like the ones built-into battery chargers). Months pass and I don't remember to do it. And I tend to think most people would be the same. So one that's permanently connected, that is powered the battery itself, is much better.
Anyway, you need one that has that "sensing circuit". It automatically adjusts the voltage and frequency as sulfation gets progressively removed from the battery plates to dissolve back into the electrolyte solution. You want this 'smarter' feature because dumb/cheaper/nastier types will just send the same voltage/frequency to every battery the same, 24/7, forever. Those can do anything from only making you a little poorer, to overheating and reducing overall battery life instead of improving it.
So as with everything, avoid the cheapest ones, reduce your options to ones with that sensing circuit, narrow again to what you're prepared to pay, then type the model number of the few narrowed options into a search engine along with words like "review", "comparison", etc. That's how I'm going to start my research again, anyway.
They do 40 month warranty now
perfect timing. the battery in my backup car just died.
You need a charger that can do a float & trickle charge. Once the battery drops to 12.6v, hook it up and get it fully charged.
its been on charge for days.
she dead.I get an additional 10% off through work so I'm ok with $162 for a new battery.
What he means is get a trickle charger for a battery that does not get used regularly. Completely depleting the battery really shortens it’s life span, which is why people buy trickle chargers for motorbikes or cars that don’t get used frequently
@pwnd: oh right, no this was because i had left my lights on a few too many times. my (profanity) not the lack of use that lead to me dead lead :-P
Which one fits Mazda 3 MY2014? I think my battery finally comes to end of its life, as the engine cannot start at the first time and the sound is like battery running out.
supercheap have this awesome setup where you put the rego of your car in and they tell you what parts are compatible with your car… give it a go. it saves a HEAP of time.
found it. thanks
I've tried so hard to like century batteries as they are made in Australia but my last 2 deep cycles have been absolute rubbish. They haven't lasted 2 years even when babied.
Apparently they have upgraded a lot of their battery range and extended some warranties so their quality hopefully has improved.I remember reading somewhere (I think it was OzBargain) that the batteries are mostly made overseas then shipped to Australia before a small final task is done to the battery in Australia to make it "Made in Australia". I can't verify if this is true though.
Could be adding the lead plates and acid, but that's 95% of the battery just there.
Most Century batteries are not maintenance free, u need to check the acid level periodically. The design is such that u have to really remove the battery and open a plastic cover and then open the caps on each cell to check the level and its not easily visible from the sides. Overall it is not a great design. In a way they tried to make them look like maintenance free batteries while they are actually not.
Anybody know how long the sale is for. Wondering whether to pull the trigger online now, or go home and check exactly what battery is in the car now. For some reason it’s saying two different shaped batteries fit my 86 petrol LandCruiser…
It’s vaid until 30th May. Do check the battery in car to make you understand how this has been doing for past so years. And based on that u can decide which one to go for. I did the same.
FARQ! the batteries for my car are over $400 and no discount
What do you have there, a Tesla?
Audi S3
Ah, the Audi tax. Been there…briefly.
That's ridiculous. There's probably another that will fit but might need the cables replaced the first time if the current ones cannot reach the battery posts because they're orientated differently. Apart from that, it might be worth looking at a supercapacitor replacement. (Look on youtube. "Supercapacitor car battery".)
How long does it take for the SCA club credit to appear in the account?
arghh … sale doesnt cover the century battery i needed.
Will this work on a Mazda 3?
My car is having issues starting aswell. When I turn my car off to go to the shops and come back 15mins later, it will fail to start first go and then when I try it to start 2nd time it will start very weakly.
Any help is much appreciated.
Supercheap Auto have functionality wherein u can put ur rego and this will get your vehicle details. Once set, you can search for century batteries and this would only show the relevant ones for u. I guess U have to go under ‘my garage’ option there to set the rego.
do you know how much they charge to install the battery?
$15 and that gives you 6 months additional warranty. While checking out, you have option to add that installation part.
if you have roadside, eg nrma, they come out and install for free!
Century battery warranty not worth the paper they're written on. They will find any excuse to not honour warranty.
Have you had a warranty claim denied by them? What excuse did they give?
Figured I'd share the results of some research I had to do for my Golf Mk6 with a 000 915 105 DE OEM battery* installed that needed replacing.
SCA didn't seem to have a good match and a lot of the online battery configurators gave results that didn't meet the specs of the OEM battery or were the wrong physical dimensions, but I managed to find the Exide XDIN55HMF at Beaurepaires that seemed to be a good match.**
When looking to price match against a Bunnings price of $179, they ended up charging $168 for the battery plus their $11 fitting charge. Total cost installed of $179.
For comparison, the dealership was asking $420 for a new battery including fitting.
*Full specs: 12V 61Ah 330A DIN 540A EN/SAE/GS
**I am not a mechanic, so I can't guarantee this is a suitable battery. The technician at Beaurepaires was willing to install it, and my car is running fine with it so far.All you have to meet is the CCA my friend, 1/10th your engine cubic centimeters in CCA (at a minimum), and double that if you have a diesel.
Other than meeting that simple criteria, you can go as big a CCA capacity as you can reasonably fit in your battery tray.
Can anyone help me decipher my battery code?
It's stamped A7DE, which I've come to understand means "afternoon shift, 7th April 2022" This is obviously wrong…
For you looking for Q85 batteries for Mazda's
I bought a Q100 from https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/184024262448 Works well as is Panasonic N-Q100/A3 Made In Japan