15 years ago, I worked at the parts store and changed a lot of batteries. Motorcraft batteries would usually last 5+ years. The side post a/c Delcos in the gm's where junk. Replaced 1-2 year old batteries all the time. My dad had a 91 f150. The motorcraft battery lasted 14 years! On the flip side of that, the last two vehicles my wife had, a fusion and an edge, the batteries were about 3-4 years old when they went bad. So I would say they aren't holding up as long as they use to. But as previously stated, there is a lot more asked of them these days. As far as where to get them, opinions vary, and as much as I hate Walmart, that's where I get mine. They are cheapest around, I've had good luck with them, and there is always a Walmart nearby if it does go bad under warranty. My Walmart lawn mower battery is on its 5th season, and I don't use a trickle charger and have never checked the water level.

 

Ron do you have any idea on how shelf life might work for a new battery? I know a lot of batteries are shipped "damp-dri" ; they are charged at the factory but the end user purchases electrolyte and installs and activates the battery. They still need to be charged prior to use, but these can last years in the damp-dri state and put into service.

How about an already flooded battery. If it is kept fully charged, does the clock start at the point of manufacture or when placed into service? That is, would a new battery kept on a tender but never used be junk after 5 or 6 years?

I've heard they can "moss over" on a tender if they don't get some serious amps run through them now and then. I've also read stationary lead-acid batts can last 20 years. Heat and vibration in a vehicle really takes its toll.

 

I'm far from a battery expert, so I can't tell you much about the mossing over on a battery tender, and someone that knows more may correct some of my details but..

Retailers know about how many they are going sell of a certain group size in a week. If the stock is kept rotated correctly, a battery is not going to sit on the shelf more than 2/3 weeks. I never once experienced a dead battery off the shelf. A new battery should hold a charge for a long time(a couple months at least) because the plates are new and have no build up on them. Running a lead-acid battery way down shortens it's life dramatically because of the chemical process that happens and build up on the plates. This is true even on deep cycle batteries, but they are built to handle it better(why they are heavier). This is also why you should keep golf carts on charge anytime they are idle any period of time. I did a lot of research on this when I was messing with golf carts a couple years ago, but it's all fuzzy in my mind now.

The only dry batteries I've seen in the stores are motorcycle/atv batteries, and yes they have to be charged before use.

 

Thanks! I have heard it's better to purchase from a vendor that has good turnover so fresh stock.

 

Hate to admit it but the two longest lasting batteries I ever had (boat and auto) were Walmart Never-Starts.

 

Well, so much for motorcraft batteries still being good. My wife's escape is 5 months old and has 3500 miles. She went out to take my son to school and then head to a doctors appointment, the car will not start, needles on the gauges just vibrate a little. Nothing was left on and it's only been parked since Friday. I guess they are just as much junk as the a/c Delcos gm was using a decade and a half ago.

 

my original Motorcraft ( Ford ) battery is still doing fine....


8/2011 is when the truck was put into service. and the truck has 145,000 miles.


you just got a flawed one.


there are only 4 major manufacturers .. of automotive batteries in the world... LOOK IT UP.

 

ILL TAKE YOUR WORD FOR IT CHUCK!!!!

 

+1 on that. I worked in a battery plant for a short time. Only difference was the stickers that got put on them.

 

I retract my statement on the motorcraft batteries being junk. The dealer put a new battery in it yesterday, it was in fact completely dead showing 0 volts. I had them do the first oil change while it was there. My wife got in it today and called me, said it smelled like oil. I told her it just from being in the shop. She then text me and said its coming through the vents. She stopped at the car was and when she was vacuuming the back, she saw my oldest sons phone charger cord smoking at the floor mat. It must have been grounding through the carpet. It had burned a quarter size hole in the carpet and was melting the rubber. She pulled the phone charger out and burned her hand pretty good. This was a name brand phone charger from us cellular. Lesson learned on leaving them plugged in.

 

At least your truck didn't catch fire especially with your family in it

 

It was my wife's escape, but could have been any vehicle, and yes, glad my family is ok, my 2 year old was in the back seat. Also glad it didn't catch fire in my garage and take it and my truck out with it.

 

Wow.....I swear I have gone round and round with my wife and kids about this...indoors and out in the vehicles.

Glad it was a happy ending

 

Motorcraft batteries tend to be very good. If you have problems with batteries running down try an AGM battery. They hold a charge longer and can handle being run down w/o shortening their lifespan.

 

Hello!

I just swapped out my MC factory original battery a few weeks ago. It went dead on me 2 twice in the last 2 months and 3 times since last year. 2 times with the multiple entries in the truck and the one time I ran a portable compressor too long. The battery itself was approximately 5 years old. Since my wife and I inherited a 92 Ford Taurus with a fairly new (installed in 2015) Interstate 850CCA Megatron, I said sure why not. The MC battery is rated at 650 CCA. With the truck lighting up like a Christmas tree every time a door is opened, the higher amps will be better for this. I figured my "love" for Interstate might be redeemed as I never had good luck with them. However, I hope my wife's grandmother might be looking over us with this one as she was the one who owned the car.

As for the MC battery, it turned out one of the cells was bit low on water. My father added some distilled and called it a day with a charge cycle on the charger. The battery tested good and was placed in its new home, a 92 Taurus.

Good Luck!