Battery Life.

[Heat]

A quick question for those of you who bought your trucks new...

How long did the batteries last before you started noticing a slow down of the starter???

I've noticed the past few mornings that it's a bit slower of a crank then usual... Right now the truck is a little over two years old and I'm wondering if it's not getting about that time for a battery replacement... Granted, here in Arizona, the heat just kills batteries in short order but I thought I would throw this out there for discussion... I'd be thinking that I would replace them with Optima red tops when the time comes....

Ken....

[Raul@Stealth Automotive]

mine lasted almost 3 years.... and i got 2 optima batteries waiting to be put on as soon as the replacements go bad

[Evil Eye]

Ken,
Mine are still originals (2005) and I noticed about 6 months ago that they were slowing down, too! I kept expecting them to kick the bucket over the summer, but I took them in to Napa and Interstate a couple of times and they said they were still good, even under a load. (Granted, they can't load them like our beloved PSD, but still). Anyway, I'm probably going to bite the bullet here pretty soon and get some new ones. Have you priced out the Optimas yet? Where are you looking to purchase them?

[Performance Oil Products]

Another reason for the slower cranks the past couple of days is because our morning temps are now in the 60's and not 90's. Thus your oils viscosity is much heavier and this makes your engine turn over much harder. Mostly batteries in the diesel won't die until winter because of the extra strain of turning your engine over and the glow plug working much harder. You would be surprised what a god 5-30 or 40 wt will do to your morning starts.

Shawn

[Heat]

Hey Shawn, I was thinking the same thing but I usually use the remote start feature on my alarm system in the morning to start it... You know, let it warm up a bit while I'm pouring my coffee and off I go... The past two mornings it didn't start... Basically the remote feature will only crank for so long... I'm almost betting the glow plugs aren't done warming up when the thing cranks it... It's supposed to be 20 seconds but I swear in the morning it's nowhere near that.. Interesting though in the afternoon if I use the remote start it seems to take forever before it cranks it ...

I've used the remote feature since I've owned it and it has never failed to crank it over ...

Anyway, The Optimas are available most anywhere.. They're 150 bucks at Autozone for the red tops... 3 year free replacement with a 7 year warranty .... I'm thinking they're worth their money....

Ken....

[CHAD5.0]

I bought my truck new in Feb. 2002 and just replaced the original batteries last week. I guess 5+ years on original batteries is pretty good.

[Heat]

Sounds pretty good Chad... I'm not sure which one is worse on battery life, 120 below zero or 120 above ... I'm betting the heat is killing mine but I think I'll try the remote start this afternoon on the way home and see if I get the same results... If so then it could be more to do with the alarm computer then the batteries... We shall see...

Ken...

[Performance Oil Products]

Hey Ken, try to start without the remote start in the AM. If it starts good you may need to add more delay time into your alarm.

As for batteries check out costco they have a great price on them. You will always find with colder temps your truck will be cranking slower, again due to the resistance of heavy oil. You can also have your batteries tested, maybe 1 of them is low.

[rajharley]

I have notice mine doing the same thing these last few mornings. We are getting down to about 50 Degrees in the mornings here now. I have the original batteries in mine. unbelievable I know but they are old. I am headed back east to ohio in 8 weeks so changing out for a new set of batteries is a priority for me. I think I am gonna change out the Glow Plug Relay while I am at it since they are pretty cheap.

[Heat]

Yep, I am going to check the remote start this afternoon when things are warm... The delay on the remote start feature may have changed somewhere along the lines for some reason so I'll time it this afternoon... I just don't recall it cranking slower like it is now last time the cooler months were here but then too I've slept since then ...

Ken....