I've run a site search and also searched elsewhere. I see batteries listed for our car in either size 24 or 34, yet some batteries in either size are listed as not fitting.

One poster here said a DieHard fit his car (though it was a half-inch shorter than perfect), but it was unclear from the post whether it was a 24 or a 34. That thread also said some owners have run into a problem with batteries that were too tall to fit under the hood.

Who has bought an aftermarket battery that fit properly in your RL, and what is its EXACT name and size code?

 

I have replaced mine several times
Currently have Bosch Group 78DT
you have to make sure that the top of the battery is flush except for the terminals, i.e., no cell caps sticking up

 

https://acurazine.com/forums/2g-rl-2005-2012-76/i-005-signs-dying-battery-863206/

 

Damn, 007, you've been around this block ahead of me!

 

when it comes to batteries, I always opt for the highest CCA's with close dimensions and I make it fit.

Right now I am not running the lower tray and the "cover" is bowed up to cover the battery but its 850CCA

 

This keeps getting curiouser and curiouser.

I started looking into my options. It looks like all the brands -- Sears DieHard, AutoZone Duralast, and Acura's house brand -- are all made by Johnson Controls, though I'm not positive of that (no pun intended).

Apparently there are at least 4 quality grades. From bottom to top:

3) 550 cold-cranking amps, black case. Acura $110 (36 mos), DieHard $80 (18 mos).

2) 795 cold-cranking amps, black case. Differently engineered versions are sold for "North" and "South" as DieHard Gold, $111 (36 mos).

1) 775 cold-cranking amps, "absorbed glass mat" (the latest durability technology, touted as the next big thing), translucent case. DieHard Advanced Gold AGM, $141 (36 mos). AutoZone Duralast ($156) seems to slot into this neighborhood, too.

Sears also offers a "Platinum" deep-cycle, 850 CCA model for over $200.

Here's where it gets weird. Consumer Reports did their usual gruellingly anal testing of various batteries, at different cost levels. Their conclusion: They couldn't generalize across brands, because performance in each given brand varied wildly by size. In addition, some of the DieHard "absorbed glass mat" models -- touted precisely for their ability to stand up to a lifetime of shock and vibration -- developed case cracks in different samples across two different batches.

In my size (a variation of Group 24), here was the performance summary (Acura brand was not tested):

DieHard:
Life, above average
CCA, average

DieHard Gold (North)
Life, average
CCA, above average

DieHard Gold (South)
Life, above average
CCA, excellent

I wondered, how could Acura offer a long warranty on a lower-spec battery when Sears wasn't? Answer: Apparently the lower-spec battery lasts longer. (So, how can Sears offer a longer warranty on the shorter-lived battery? Evidently, just as a marketing necessity made up by the higher margin on the sale.)

And if the South battery tested better in every way, why do they even sell the North one? I assume, because the South battery somehow isn't engineered to stand the cold. Thinner case for bigger plates, maybe? Who knows? Anyway, I live in the North, so if I get Sears, I get what I get.

 

Marketing is 100% correct, IMO most of the warranties you see on parts is for marketing.

Supposedly, the South "hot climate" batteries have less plates to help disperse heat.

Personally less plates means less lead, common sense says thats bad.

 

The majority of car batteries are made by 3 manufacturers - Delphi, Exide and Johnson Controls Industries. Delphi makes some EverStart models sold in Walmart and ACDelco. Johnson Control Industries makes Duralast seen in Autozone stores, Diehard - sold in Sears, Kirkland - the Costco brand, Motorcraft - which Ford sells, Most EverStarts, Optima, and Interstate. Exide makes Exide batteries, Champion, & Napa

I believe Johnson Controls own around 90+% of the North America battery market.
I know that Exide Battery filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy back in June 2013.

 

You got it. More CCA = shorter life. Sears is surely banking on their customers losing their receipt or forgetting the purchase details 3 years down the road.

I spent $2 more for a pair of lifetime warranty scissors that broke after 8 years. Instead of tracking down the receipt, sending in a warranty claim, and waiting on a replacement, I just coughed up $7 for another pair. :ibcoolstorybro:

 

By coincidence my battery started showing bad signs about a week ago (non-telescoping wheel about half the time)
Finally got a chance to have it checked today. Bad. Only been 16 months, so got a free replacement. Pretty sure same thing happened on the battery before. So, not sure I would recommend Bosch, but they have a 3 year free replacement and I've gotten 2 replacements for free. Not sure they were supposed to give me this last 1 free since the total life of the first 2 combined was probably over 3 years.

I should be good for another 16 months

 

I replace my battery every 3 years no matter what condition it is in. I always use the OEM battery from the dealership which is designed for my specific car. That way I never have to worry about the electronics. In my case spending extra money equals piece of mind.

 

Update: Went Acura brand. Didn't have time to find out whether or not somebody else's battery fit the car.

 

Can't go wrong with that.

 

Don't know if the Acura brand battery is the best/strongest/longest lasting but the two times I've had to replace it before its time, it was hassle free. Once at a prorated discount, once free. Didn't have to worry about receipts, etc.

LL

 

Our new Hondas were fitted with Panasonic batteries at the factory.

Record was the one in the Prelude; build date was Sep-99 and I finally bottled it & changed the battery last year!

The replacements are made by Yuasa.

 

Heavy, didn't you say in another thread that the replacements are made by Johnson Controls (as DieHard apparently is, too)?

 

In North America yes. Across the pond, no.