I believe that my batteries may be toast in my 2006 Super Duty. I was driving the truck daily up until Christmas when I was able to get my 96 F150 back together after an accident a year or so back. I never bought the 6.0 with the intention of daily driving but I did for a while. Anyways, this fall I would notice that when I would go out in the morning to warm up the truck it would only show about 11 to 11.5 volts on the Scan Gauge. I thought then that the batteries were probably getting weak.

Earlier this week I went out to the garage and put the batteries on a slow 2 amp charge. It showed fully charged after 6 or 7 hours. I didn't get to try to start it then. Today I placed the charger back on for 4 or so hours and when it showed to be fully charged I opened the door and turned the key on to let the glow plugs warm. The buzz sound started our fine for about 5 seconds the slowed way down and the odometer and other lights on the dash began to flash. The voltage on the Scan gauge dropped from 11 to 10 down to 9.5 to 8 then finally 7.5. I just cut the key off and called it quits for today.

I say all this to ask, is this for sure a need for new batteries? I believe so. Also, what batteries do you recommend. The previous owner replaced the batteries about a year before I got the truck, and I have owned it since July of 2013. The truck sat quite a bit with the previous owner and I only put about 5-7 thousand miles a year on it pulling our drag car trailer. It only has 57,000 on it now. He had bought some Motorcraft 850cca batteries in it from O'Reilly Auto Parts. Should I stick with these? I thought about getting some Everstart Maxx 850cca batteries from Wally World. I have had good luck with these on other vehicles.

Also, I may go ahead and upgrade the alternator on this rig. What amp should I get? I only run phone chargers and maybe a GPS so my power draw is not that great as far as that stuff is concerned. Also, it is a power window and power door lock truck.

Sorry for such a long post, but I know that sometime all off the details are need for you guys to make an informed reply. Thanks in advance.

 

charge them and leave them disconnected from the truck for a while. the truck could be draining them by a stuck relay or bad pcm staying on or something.

 

Could also be a bad connection. Clean and tighten all the battery terminals and check the ground cables before dropping the $$ for batteries. A load test can be done at the Parts store to confirm they are bad. Be sure to load test one at a time, disconnected from each other.

If you do need batteries, there's many different opinions but I have good luck with the DuraLast Gold (actually yellow) batteries. One of the few reasons I go in an AutoZone these days.

 

I agree with Rusty. Not so much that the Duralasts are the best on the market, everything is debatable, but if you have a problem across the US they are everywhere and open 7 days a week. A better warranty does no good if they're closed or 50miles away.

 

Probably the most true and profound statement I have seen in a while. LOL

 

You mentioned the Walmart MAXX batteries. Those are my personal go to batteries. 3 Year No Questions asked Warranty is great too.

Josh

 

My '03 has Costco's Kirkland brand batteries. They are made by Interstate, which is the best battery you can buy. IMO. DD

 

I always thought Interstates were the best... So far, I am proving out they have a great warranty.

Bought a pair of MTP65s in fall of '08, had one bad and replaced both in '10, another bad one replaced in '12 (they would not replace both), the other one in '13 (still not replace the pair), another one in early '14. Had them checked recently and both are fine.

 

I've had a pair of Duralast Golds in my truck since Feb 2011. Only had them out once to wipe them down when I was cleaning under the hood. I got a battery maintainer/desufator from Ed (ficmrepair.com) a while back and I do hook it up if I know the truck will be sitting 3-4 days or longer. I think that's important no matter what batteries you're running.

 

Thanks for all the tips and suggestions. That is what I like most about this site. I checked terminals and everything but in the end the batteries would just not hold a charge. I broke down today and bought two new Everstart Maxx batteries from Wal-Mart. They have a great warranty as Josh already stated and it seems as thought there is a Wal-Mart no matter where you are. I put the new batteries in a few minutes ago, turned the key and fired right up. I have owned the truck since July 2013 and I have never seen over 14 volts on the scan gauge. Seems as though the batteries may have been weak for quite some time. I guess since the truck sits often during winter, I will put a charger on them every Saturday, since that is my one day I am able to fiddle around the house. Anyways, I just wanted to update my thread and let you all know that the problem is resolve. I thank each and everyone of you for your input.