How Long Did Your MOPAR Battery Last?

Discussion in 'Dodge Challenger General Maintenance' started by SRT-Tom, Jan 9, 2014.

  1. Less than 3 years

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  2. 3 years

    1 vote(s)
    16.7%
  3. 4 years

    3 vote(s)
    50.0%
  4. 5 years

    1 vote(s)
    16.7%
  5. 6 years+

    1 vote(s)
    16.7%
  1. SRT-Tom

    SRT-Tom Well-Known Member Staff Member Super Moderator Article Writer

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    How Long Did Your MOPAR battery Last? Mine is 4 years' old and is starting to have trouble with the freezing temperatures.
     
  2. Storm Rider

    Storm Rider Full Access Member

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    Mine is 3 years old and doing well.
     
  3. 10DYRT

    10DYRT Full Access Member

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    3 years almost to the day, it actually developed a pin hole leak, had battery acid
    all over the trunk under the spare tire. What a pain cleaning that out with baking soda
    and water , then rinsing and drying. And this happened in January, actually asked the
    dealer to check the battery in October as I was having an issue while it was cranking
    with gauges going nuts and also lost interior temp control and A/C, excessive corrosion
    on battery strap buckle. The service writer said that was normal. (BS was my answer)
    Put in a new battery, pulled the fuse for A/C and heater control, all is good since.
    I use a completely different dealer when there is even a question I need answered.
     
  4. SRT-Tom

    SRT-Tom Well-Known Member Staff Member Super Moderator Article Writer

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    Theoretically, batteries should last longer in the trunk because they are not exposed to high engine heat. Heat and vibration are the biggest causes of battery failure. That's why more failures occur during the summer.

    Here is an informative article on the causes of battery failure:

    When the active material in the plates can no longer sustain a discharge current, a battery "dies". Normally a car (or starting) battery "ages" as the active positive plate material sheds (or flakes off) due to the normal expansion and contraction that occurs during the discharge and charge cycles. This causes a loss of plate capacity and a brown sediment, called sludge or "mud," that builds up in the bottom of the case and can short the plates of a cell out. This will kill the battery as soon as the short occurs.

    In hot climates, additional causes of failure are positive grid growth, positive grid metal corrosion, negative grid shrinkage, buckling of plates, or loss of water. Deep discharges, heat, vibration, fast charging, and overcharging all accelerate the "aging" process.

    Approximately 50% of premature car battery failures is caused by the loss of water for normal recharging charging due to the lack of maintenance, evaporation from high under hood heat, or overcharging. Positive grid growth and undercharging causing sulfation also cause premature failures.

    Normally well maintained and properly charged deep cycle batteries naturally die due to positive grid corrosion causing an open connection. The shedding of active material is an additional cause. If deep cycle battery is left discharged for long period of time, dendrite shorts between the plates can occur when the battery is recharged. The low resistance bridge in the shorted cell will heat up and boil the electrolyte out of the cell causing a high volumes of hydrogen and oxygen. That is why proper venting and ventilation is so important when recharging batteries.

    Approximately 85% of premature deep cycle and starting batteries failures that are not recharged on a regular basis is due to an accumulation of sulfation. Sulfation is caused when a battery's State-of-Charge drops below 100% for long periods or under charging. Hard lead sulfate crystals fills the pours and coats the plates. Recharging a sulfated battery is like trying to wash your hands with gloves on.

    In a hot climate, the harshest environment for a battery, a Johnson Controls survey of junk batteries revealed that the average life of a car battery was 37 months. In a separate North American study by BCI, the average life was 48 months. In a study by Interstate Batteries, the life expectancy in extreme heat was 30 months. If your car battery is more than three years old and you live in a hot climate, then your battery is probably living on borrowed time. Abnormally slow cranking, especially on a cold day, is another good indication that your battery is going bad. It should be externally recharged, surface charge removed, and load tested. Dead batteries almost always occur at the most inopportune times. You can easily spend the cost of a new battery or more for an emergency jump start, tow or taxi ride

    Most of the "defective" batteries returned to manufacturers during free replacement warranty periods are good. This strongly suggests that some sellers of new batteries do not know how to or fail to take the time to properly recharge and test batteries.

    Above article courtesy of batteryfaq.org
     
  5. jediknight

    jediknight Member

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    If this is specific to Mopar batteries and not necessarily to Challengers I assume my comment is acceptable in this forum. When I traded in my 2005 Dodge Dakota for my Challenger in September 2013 the original OEM battery was still sitting in the engine bay- still going strong after 8 years. Can anybody beat that?
     
    Last edited: Jul 13, 2015
  6. ziatonic

    ziatonic New Member

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    6 years

    Figured i would chime in on this thread. Mine is still going great after buying the car in March 2009.
     
  7. dC.mx

    dC.mx Full Access Member

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    5 years old and still doing good. Car has been sitting all the winters so it's good thing it's still alive.. :)
     
  8. daryl.matlock.9

    daryl.matlock.9 New Member

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    I just traded my 2010 SE for a 2015 R/T never had a problem with the battery in the 5 years I owned it
    Bought and traded with original battery
     
  9. spyhard

    spyhard Full Access Member

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    When my Challenger arrived from the factory. The battery went dead after 7 days.
    Took it to the dealer and was replaced with a new one. Have not had a problem since.
     
  10. Wizard of Iz

    Wizard of Iz Full Access Member

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    Factory battery is still in my '11