Alright guys, so looking at the general consensus here, it looks like Interstate and Diehard Platinums are getting the most votes, with the Diehard having a slight edge...

 

I use the yellow everstarts at walmart.. they are made by johnson controls and there are walmarts everywhere if I ever have a problem with them..I think they were $85 each with exchange

 

That is a good price. I want to say that my cost on them is something like $95 from Interstate through our account.

 

What kind of warranty you get on those?

 

3 year exchange , 7 year prorated

 

Same question!! Man Andy, that engine bay is incredible. Work truck? Are you kidding? Mines a daily driver and I baby the hell out of it and my engine bay looks nothing like that. Please tell us what you use and how you keep it so clean. Hat's off brother.

 

You spray everything with it? Do you wipe it down or just spray and walk away?

 

Thanks.
I do a 50/50 mix with water and Adams VRT.
Then I spray it down and then a quick wipe of the larger things and I'm done.
As I said only about 15-20 min 2-3 times a year.
If you stay on top of it it is real easy.

 

I have never heard of Adams, I will have to look it up.

 

Their waxes are the best that I have ever used.
Adam's Premium Car Care - Cleaners, Waxes and Polishes Made in the USA

 

The best thing about the Walmart battery is getting a replacement 24/7 at any Super walmart in the country and probably Canada.

They build Super Walmarts EVERYWHERE, even in rural areas. We have a 100,000 sq. ft. store in Cody (population 10,000), Wytoming.



I don't know about you guys, but I've never had a battery failure in the service drive of a Ford dealer, or an auto parts store. Oddessey dealers and Sears stores are not on every corner. If a Walmart battery craps out in Yellowstone National Park at 2:00 AM on a Sunday, your insurance towing coverage will pay for a flat bed to the Walmart in Cody and you'll be on your way.

If you have Platinum s, your tow to Cody will be covered and you'll buy a couple of Walmart batteries to get you to the nearest Oddessey dealer for warranty replacement.

 

i also have the EVERSTARTS from walmart.Ill say wasnt what i would have liked to put in but they were the chose i had on a sunday night.800 miles from home.

 

There are 8 Interstate dealers in Cody, WY. But if you buy Interstate, Odyssey, Deka, or even Optima, your chances of needing a battery 2:00 AM on a Sunday are way less. I've never had a battery die without warning. I've noticed it was going bad at least a month before it was unusable. Added to the fact a diesel normally has two batteries I'm not really seeing your point of view.

I've driven home from Las Vegas twice (100+ miles away) without a working alternator and an Optima Redtop. Once was at night in a Honda Prelude, the other was during the day in a Toyota pickup.

 

I had a set of Optimas that lasted less than three years, and they weren't totally dead yet, but where I live now I can't afford to wait until they're totally fried. I replaced the OEMs in Feb with the Optimas, and last Oct (about 2 1/2 years) put in a set from the farm store around here (Orscheln). For $75/each and 850 CCA I didn't figured I could go wrong too much.

 

Obviously, you've never shopped in Cody. Only three of those dealers stock batteries, none are open on Sunday, six are closed on Saturday and one location is a private residence. On closer inspection, one isn't even an automotive battery dealer.

Just what in the heck do you base your assertion of "needing a battery is way less" on? Maybe your need for a replacement battery at 2:00 AM on a Sunday is less because you're sleeping and never drive at that time. I have never read any study that shows AGM batteries outlast flooded batteries. They might in Alaska, but certainly not Arizona or Death Valley.

The biggest difference between batteries is warranty. Speak with any battery engineer and you'll find out that within a battery range, all batteries of a given capacity are virtually identical. The one year warranty Duralast is just about the same as the three year Duralast. The difference in price is an insurance premium to cover the extended warranty.

An Interstate battery is no better than a Motorcraft or Walmart or Costco battery. I personally know more people who have made warranty claims on Optimas than any other battery. Sure, AGM is better for mounting upside down or the beating inccured during the Baja 1000, but I try not to catch too much air offroad with my F250. It's too heavy to drive like a prerunner.

My personal experience tells me that a well maintained flooded battery is just as reliable as AGM. I've had two friends with F250s stuck in my driveway with bad Optimas.