How Long Did Your Factory Battery Last?

[ok_dqc02]

My Dakota is now 5 years old. Should I start to consider replacing the factory battery? When did you replace yours?

[trevor]

Mine's a 99 and had the factory one in it up till about a month ago (about 8 years). I'm pretty sure it would have gone for quite a while more, but I replaced it trying to fix some problems, and on advice from a mechanic who said it wouldn't start in their lot at -30c...nothing starts then.

My truck had over 200000kms on it...I think the use of the battery maybe more important than just the age of the battery.

Our Ram used on the farm has gone through I don't know how many batteries, but it is started then stopped, over and over and over, and idles for long periods of time.

[viperkota]

mine is almost 4 years old and i have killed it three times. (the little window has gone from green to black....back to green several times) excellent battery...but heavy as hell

[davensj]

Mine`s an 2001 (build date 12/00) and my is still going strong. My wifes Neon is an 2002 and her`s lasted 2 years.

[ucimaplaya2]

when i got my truck used, a new battery was installed recently. im guessing the stock one was in before that one. So it was changed before the truck turned 4 years old. But then at some point about 2 years ago, that battery died on me so i bought an optima to replace that piece of junk.

[Anthony]

It lasted almost 7yrs, it started dying so I changed it about 1.5 months ago

[bwdakrt]

Mine is an '01 and still has the original. Had no problems as of yet (knock on wood).

bwdakrt
2001 Dakota RT CC BW (1 of 1,671)

[hlheavyd]

just replaced mine on friday

Nothing like getting off work after a 14 hour day, to hop in your truck and it wouldnt turn over... GRRR :rant: :cussing:

[SteedstER]

Mine lasted three years. I don't know why it didn't last any longer. I did a load test because it was running like crap. Failed badly. Maybe it wanted to be in heaven with my transmission that had left the month before @ 37000 miles. HA HA

[doobie]

well mine lasted about 2 mnths after i bought the truck. the stereo killed it at the time.
good thing i work at a battery place i have no excuse for a battery to go dead in any of my cars.
but the normal life span of a battery 5 years but it depends on the use of it. if it just sits around not being used is worse on them then being used everyday. another big factor is if it is kept inside or not like in garage or sumthun.

sounds funny but take for example if u put ur riding lawnmower inside during winter or put a small charger on it it will usually last about 2-3 years. but if it sits outside in the elements winter and whatnot they usally only last alittle over a year. that why warranty on seasonal batteries is so small.

[Diabloed]

Man you guys are lucky! I bought my truck brand new in late '03 the battery only lasted two weeks at the most!




swapped it for this:
http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/12/web/408000-408999/408568_45_full.jpg

Had to get a new yellow top about a week ago. It was a year or two old when I put it in the Dakota.

[fastdak]

just replaced my oem last week. 6 years aint bad.

[venturesomerite]

got the oem and its still good. I have a 97 so that makes it 10 years old. :banana2: I also have a 2 10's that get used everyday. :woot: so it's under load regularly, and even with the single digit temps here lately i have no problems. looks like it's just luck of the draw.

[mopar318]

I just replaced mine this summer..and it was the orignal from 1996.. :twothumb:

[dakota g33k]

i haven't replaced mine yet. truck is 3 years old, and has been parked with the battery disconnected since last august (no trickle charger since there isn't a power outlet anywhere near the storage unit :cussing: )

we'll see if it turns over when i take it out of storage... if not, it's getting replaced with an optima red top

[modain]

My QC was built in April 2002. Still has the factory battery. Showns no signs of old age. :drive:

[Bad_banana]

I went 5 years on mine, just replaced with new optima. Was pushing about 3000watts with reg batt and alt, guess the cap saved the batt from running out of juice earlier. Never had any problems, just wouldn't start one day and then wouldn't hold a charge. 5 years for constant strain from OEM battery, i love it!

[AFDakRT]

Mine died at the end of December at 93,000 miles.

[Mopar4Life]

Funny you asked...I just installed my third one today. The first two were Mopars, this one is a DieHard gold, 27. I like it a lot, it improved my sound quality (radio) and my spark in ignition. The starter spins fast too.

[razman131]

My Dakota is now 5 years old. Should I start to consider replacing the factory battery? When did you replace yours?


mine lasted roughly 5 or so years... 99-04 so ya. might be a good idea.

[GoFastGray]

truck #1 was a 01' V6 and it lasted till 2005' probably because of my sterio system i had in it.
My truck battery in my 2001 R/T just went bad :rant: :cussing: :rant: :cussing: so 4 years truck one and 6 years truck #2

debating on getting optima.... it's charging as i speak so i might just say F'k it and get an optima anyways :jester:

[9t9-5.2]

My OE lasted three years, replaced it with a red Optima. I need to check my receipt for it, and have it tested because I fired the Dak up for the first time in three months and the Optima was dragging real bad.

[aristeidis]

mine lasted 6 years

[WhyteChocolate]

Mine is on about 3 or 3.5 years. Died about 3 times for multiple reasons. Only once was my fault. Apparently it has a bad cell, but is still good enough to run. All I need to do is keep my jumper box in my truck for another month or so and I'm good.

[Jasoon]

My stock battery lasted 3 1/2 years. Replaced it with a battery from
O'reilly, and that battery died 1 month before the warranty was up (very lucky), so now I'm on my 3rd battery in this truck.

[ColoDak]

My factory one lasted almost 3 yrs, well, right up until I ordered my winch. Since it only had posts on the top, I was pretty screwed. I have been running an Optima Yellow top dual post since '03. I will be replacing it before next winter, had to have my charging system tested recently and the only problem they found was the battery was a bit low, and the truck had been running for an hour before being tested. I have learned also that I should have gone with a Red Top instead of a Yellow Top

[rimfire,22]

My Dakota is now 5 years old. Should I start to consider replacing the factory battery? When did you replace yours?


ok_dqc02,

Yeah after 3 years of service I'd consider replacing it. You got your moneys worth out of it. batteries are funny as they all have their own separate life span. In your case it lasted a long time so be happy you got your money out of it. My first one wasn't so lucky as it only lasted 3 years then droped like a rock fast!!! My second battrery was replaced free from the dealership as it was still under warranty. Fron your point on now the odds of battery failure goes up. Consider your max life of the battery no more than 6 years.

rimfire,22

[Rob454]

Mine lasted a coupel of years. then it jsut died. Slow cranked one time then it flat out died. I got a wally world battery and it lasts abotu 2 years but they have a 3 year replacement guarantee so I get a new one ever two years. The battery dies because i simply dont drive the truck enough anymore.
Rob

[aspen79]

Replaced my original in 2005, it was still good but decided an almost 10 year old battery was on borrowed time. I think it was original anyways. It had an AC Delco when I bought the truck in 1998, date code on battery is 08/95 which is the same month the truck was built. Strange part is, I still have that battery and it's been on a shelf under the bench for 2 years now. Couple weeks ago, just for the heck of it, I did a load test on it. Tester said 12.38 volts and 580 available cca! It has not been on a charger or anything like that either. I did replace it with a MOPAR battery, if for no other reason than it says MOPAR on it, and looks "right" in a Dodge.

[hskrRT]

Battery in my '99 lasted 1.5 years, and then died one day without warning. Drove it to work, and two hours later went out and wouldn't start. Don't know how long the battery in my '00 lasted it had been replaced when I bought the truck. '07 Dodge Caliber, battery lasted 12K miles(about 10 months).