amolvb

I ignored the dealership warning a couple of months back warning me that my battery could die anyday (low cold cranks left ~ 60%). The car is driven ~ 20 mi/wkday. Y'day it refused to start. What is the recommended course of action - jump start my car and take it for battery replacement? I checked the prices - Walmart has an EverStar battery for $40. Sears has a 575 cold cranks Diehard Weatherhandler for $65 + $13 installation or a 640 cold cranks Diehard Gold for $90 + $13 installation. The dealership is asking for $145 (including $90 for the Acura battery). They could not tell me the cold cranks on the Acura battery. Is it OK to put a different brand battery? Any suggestions/recommendations welcome.

fsttyms1

id say go any where you want for a battery. Unless you l;ive in a cold climate or have a large stereo there is no real need for expensive battery. Just keep inmind you get what you pay for. I would try to keep the cca within what the factory asks for.

joe80055

Go Diehard, works like in charm in both hot and cold climates, you could do the installation yourself, it's not that hard at all. save yourself the $13.

SatinSilverTypS

iTrader: (1)

i agree with both of them. after i got my car back from the bodyshop last month it would take longer than normal to turn over when i started it and the alarm was acting up. i knew i was going to have to replace the battery this fall anyway though since it's 5 years old. i went with a diehard and i'm happy. i've actually always used die hard batteries except in my SHO. i used interstates in that but i don't think they were better really.

the walmart batteries got good ratings in consumer reports if i recall but when i called around asking about the CCA it seemed that the sears battery was more of what i wanted. the acura battery was overpriced at my dealer.

SSTS

amolvb

Thank you all for your advice. Even I was leaning towards Sears. This seals it for me. I will have to read up before I change it for myself

Any idea what is the recommended/minimum cca for the TL to help make me the choice between the two Diehards @ Sears? I am sorry I couldn't find this on the Acura site and the car and the manual are stranded in my wife's office garage (that's where the car gave up).

Also, I have read couple of sites about jump-starting the car. I am worried about the excessive drain on the booster car. Is that a big deal or should I invest in an AC jump-starter. The reason I ask this question is whether the AC jump-starter will work if I charge it up at home and then drive out to where the car is. If it won't, then I have no choice but to use the jump cables and the second car. Any recommendations?

joe80055

Okay, to start off, just the standard diehard battery's good enough, I've been using one in my Toyota Avalon for years and it's still going strong, and the battery I have in my TL's been there 2-3 years before I bought it a year ago. It's still awesome. All you pretty much do is
wear insulated gloves
get a toothbrush you don't need
unscrew the brace that holds the battery down
loosen the terminals connected to the battery
take out the battery
replace it with the new
clean the terminals with the brush
replace everything and tighten up.. and then.. just.. vroom! Takes only 5 mines to do a "$13 job". lol

As for the booster car, the person's car's going to be running while you start yours so there's don't worry about them. Just incase, get yourself a decent portable starter; a good one usually runs from $40-70. Go to Sears, they have excellent ones there, plus you have the warranty and a shitload of time to return them if you don't like them so you're all set. You can practice using it by practicing on your old battery while it's still in the car, that's how I learned how to use my set I mean hey, you wouldn't want to be stuck in the middle of no where hicksville right? LOL

amolvb

Thank you Joe80055!! I am all set to do this myself now :-)

Thank you all!!

joe80055

It's all good