I'm starting to think that my recent crop of electrical problems is due to a bad battery. The battery is now ten years old and I let it sit for as much as nice months (at which point it was dead...).

I took it into a battery shop and had it tested, but I did not like the shifty guy that tested it. At first he blocked my view of the test meters and swiftly told me it was dead and I needed a new one. Obviously he has an incentive to move new batteries out of the shop... so I thought it kind of shady...

When he did let me see the two meter levels, one was reading 200 (amps?), and the other was reading like 4-Volts... seemed like he could turn this nob though (the amperage load probably?) and change the readings on those nobs.. and I must admit I'm unschooled on what proper test readings should look like.

Anyway... I figure it's about time for a new one anyway. Can anybody suggest a decent brand of battery at a decent price? I've seen those "optima" brand ones with the distinctive round-cell look and red and yellow tops.. are those worth the price...? I haven't even priced those yet, but it seems like I've heard that those are the high-end quality brand...?

The dry cell battery sounds as though it has a lot of advantages. As far as acid types go, Consumer Reports does a lot of battery tests and most recently the top contenders have been Duralast (auto zone) and Diehard (sears) You can look up the winners and then check out pricing. As far as spills go an acid neutralizing mat at about $5 placed under the battery will go a long way to protect the sheet metal from corrosion. For long term storage a small battery charger made for the purpose will keep your battery fres in good order. I have 3 Schumacher brand chargers that have run almost constantly for the last 3 years w/o any trouble. All purchased on Amazon for under $25. They shut off when they sense the battery is fully charged and likewise turn on when they sense a voltage drop. They will not charge a dead battery, though, only maintain one in good shape.

I recently replaced a Napa Power 65 (part # 6024) in my '65 Amazon with another of the same. The one I replaced was 6 years old. It ran me $60 US. Fits perfectly.

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92 245, 1965 122 Wagon, past:95 850 Turbo, 92 245, 88 245, 82 245 Turbo, 71 164e

I'm *ignorant* as to the type/size battery you need. This is more of an FYI response.

Interstate Batteries oftentimes has a dealer in a region which sells blems. Blems are those that get returned when customer decided 'wasn't the battery - just needed a new alternator' or some such reason. They are new but can't be sold as new. I suspect other brands of batteries have similar distribution patterns for new/returned batteries. The blems by Interstate have a 1-yr warranty.

All but one of my Volvos has blemished batteries in place, which I paid about $30-35 for, and have at least 3 years on them.

G

So... I ended up getting a pretty standard deal on a standard lead-acid battery. I don't have the money for an optima or odessey at this date.

This seems to have cured some of my problem with re-charging and restarting after running once that I was having. It wasn't fuse-one as I was originally thinking it might be.

Hello,

I prefer and sell a dry-cell battery called Odyssey.

The PC680 is the size of motorcycle battery and is the 1 that is most popular.

The warranty is limited to 1 year, no proration exchange.

But the 1 in my every day driver is over 5 years old and still going strong and the 1 in my brothers 142e is even older.

You can step up to the PC925 which comes with a 3 year, no proration exchange, which means if the battery fails during the warranty, you get a new battery for free, shipping is not included.


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Eric
Hi Performance Automotive Service (formerly OVO or Old Volvos Only)
Torrance, CA 90502

Hmm, that sounds interesting... is there any weight savings to be had with a motorcycle dry battery...? They sound a little smaller and lighter than a regular wet-cell car battery...?

Hello,

The Odyssey 680 battery does weigh about 1/2 that of the Optima or a standard lead acid wet battery.

But that is not why we recommend the Odyssey battery.

The fact that the batteries does not and will not leak any acid is why we like them.

Repairing battery boxes is a &^%*ed job and to do it right is labor intensive.

So we highly recommend them before and especially after a battery box repair.
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Eric
Hi Performance Automotive Service (formerly OVO or Old Volvos Only)
Torrance, CA 90502

Hi Eric,

How are you going about mounting the battery in the vehicle since it's so small?
Does it end up looking out of place or ????????

I like the sound of no acid leaks.

Thanks,
Sam

Hello,

To begin with, my supplier of Odyssey batteries has several types of custom hold down brackets for most of their odd sized batteries.

Most are simple and are not too expensive.

But they also have billet polished aluminum hold downs kits that cost a lot more, but look very nice.

I can use the stock Volvo battery hold down for my 122.

My brother opted for an aluminum sheet metal bracket that had to bolted to his existing 140 battery tray to retain his Odyssey 680 battery.

I have not installed any Odyssey batteries in a PV yet, but the next larger Odyssey battery is similar in size to a standard lead acid battery.
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Eric
Hi Performance Automotive Service (formerly OVO or Old Volvos Only)
Torrance, CA 90502

Thanks for the info.
I think I'll switch to a battery like this when mine dies. I think it still has quite a bit of life left though.

There are only a couple of battery makers in the USA. Everyone stamps their own name and colors on them. Call around your town and get prices. Just make sure it fits the battery tray correctly.

A 'good' battery is around $100.

If you intentionally let the car sit, unplug the battery to keep it from running down.

Klaus
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Why are Volvos so endearing? Its just a car.