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11-16-2004, 09:49 PM | #1 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 63011
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Portland, OR
Vehicle:2002 WRX Sedan WR Blue Pearl |
OEM Battery Life
I've had my WRX for a little over three years. About a week ago it started to
have a little difficulty cranking over in the morning. Today I had some work done on the car, and they had to jump start it when they were done. Come to find out, most of the water in the battery was gone. The guys at the shop told me that Subarus have cheap OEM batteries, and that driving short trips also depletes the water from the battery. I do mostly short distances (less than 10 miles). Are either one of these statements true?
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11-16-2004, 10:00 PM | #2 |
Scooby Specialist
Member#: 16147
Join Date: Mar 2002
Chapter/Region:
Tri-State
Location: Westchester County
Vehicle:no more turbo 11 Outback, 17 Impreza |
I'm really dissapointed in my OE Subaru battery that came with my WRX. It was tough to start the car during the coldest days last winter. On the other hand, my 2000 Volvo S40 started up right away last winter. For this year, just swapped my OE battery with an Optima Red Top. When I took the OE battery out last week, the water levels still looked good.
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11-16-2004, 10:15 PM | #3 |
Trust no one
Moderator Member#: 11170
Join Date: Oct 2001
Chapter/Region:
Tri-State
Location: NYC
Vehicle:02 RAV4 MT 15 WRX/11 CRZ |
The OE battery has marginal capacity to begin with, about 325CCA. They don't do too well in very cold climates and failures have not been uncommon. I too replaced mine with an Optima, well before it actually crapped out, because I was not happy with its cranking performance in the winter.
It's possible that mostly short-trip driving could result in more water loss due to the fact that the battery would be charging more heavily. However it's also a possibility that your alternator is overcharging, which would also cause water loss. It would be a good idea to check this before replacing the battery, to be sure that a replacement won't be damaged. You can check it by connecting a voltmeter across the battery, while the engine is running you should see approximately 13.5-14.5V. If you see 15V or higher with the engine warmed up, the alternator may be overcharging. |
11-16-2004, 10:59 PM | #4 |
Scooby Specialist
Member#: 32684
Join Date: Feb 2003
Chapter/Region:
SWIC
Location: Maricopa, AZ
Vehicle:2015 STi Ice Silver |
I replaced my OEM battery after about 2 years of use.. didn't absolutley NEED to, but I couldn't pass a deal up... replaced with an Optima Yellow-top... couldn't be happier...
-Shane |
11-16-2004, 11:50 PM | #5 |
Scooby Specialist
Member#: 44912
Join Date: Oct 2003
Chapter/Region:
SWIC
Location: Phoenix
Vehicle:2015 RC350 Black |
I had my 99 rs oem battery for 5 years before it started slowly dying.
That's 5 years in winter and 2 complete discharges. |
11-29-2004, 12:10 PM | #6 |
Scooby Specialist
Member#: 51163
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: northern virginia
Vehicle:02-5 02WRXwgn &05FXT sedona & cayenne red |
3 yrs for mine --now have Optima redtop for coming winter.
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11-29-2004, 01:42 PM | #7 |
Scooby Guru
Member#: 12329
Join Date: Nov 2001
Chapter/Region:
TXIC
Location: Austin, TX
Vehicle:2o15 WRX Ice Silver |
My original battery lasted 8000 miles. I replaced it with a Sears special (Diehard, I think it's sold as...), and it's been 24,000 problem free miles.
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11-29-2004, 03:03 PM | #8 |
Scooby Guru
Member#: 44168
Join Date: Sep 2003
Chapter/Region:
SCIC
Location: In your pant[ie]s.
Vehicle:2017 Silver Forester with not enough lights... |
2 years, 48k miles, rare sub-freezing weather (so cali), worked fine so far.
You guys ever think of replenishing the water in the batter when it gets low? Just unscrew the cap and bring it back up to the line with distilled water. Simple battery maintenance. [i'm thinking of going with a braille lightweight battery next year] |
11-29-2004, 04:07 PM | #9 | |
Scooby Guru
Member#: 31511
Join Date: Jan 2003
Chapter/Region:
SCIC
Location: Carlsbad, Ca.
Vehicle:2003 GD2 GM4 BP9 www.ITNRally.org |
Quote:
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11-29-2004, 04:16 PM | #10 | |
Scooby Guru
Member#: 44168
Join Date: Sep 2003
Chapter/Region:
SCIC
Location: In your pant[ie]s.
Vehicle:2017 Silver Forester with not enough lights... |
Quote:
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12-02-2004, 11:52 PM | #11 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 16686
Join Date: Mar 2002
Chapter/Region:
MWSOC
Location: Warrenville, IL
Vehicle:2010 Mazda 3s GT 5dr Black Mica |
2.5 years and 40k on mine and I switched to the Optima Red Top before temperatures got too cold. The difference is amazing, I no longer fear morning start-ups or getting stuck in the school parking lot 30 min. from home every day after class.
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12-06-2004, 03:42 AM | #12 |
Scooby Guru
Member#: 70252
Join Date: Sep 2004
Vehicle:05 STI blue |
where can u get a HO alternator? cuz im having problems with my light weight battery rite now.
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07-20-2005, 05:04 PM | #13 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 4550
Join Date: Feb 2001
Chapter/Region:
SCIC
Location: Santa Barbara
Vehicle:2002 WRX Wagon #4321 |
I realize this is an old thread, but I dug it up on a search and thanks for the info. My OEM battery just went bad on my MY02 WRX and I was looking for some info that would support my theory the battery just sucks. Off to get a new one, perhaps these Optima Red Tops that are suggested.
Thanks |
07-20-2005, 05:23 PM | #14 |
Scooby Guru
Member#: 44168
Join Date: Sep 2003
Chapter/Region:
SCIC
Location: In your pant[ie]s.
Vehicle:2017 Silver Forester with not enough lights... |
You could try this one:
http://www.odysseybatteries.com/battery/pc680mjt.htm It's gotten some pretty rave reviews for it's reliability (even in extreme weather temperatures) and it's about 25lbs lighter than the OEM battery. |
07-20-2005, 05:49 PM | #15 |
*** Banned ***
Member#: 16200
Join Date: Mar 2002
Vehicle:OK buy Nates beans westcoastroasting.com |
Braille's have been reported, here, failing and having poor life and performance.
I've never heard of an Odyssey battery having issues that weren't due to accident/abuse/stupidity of the owner....Mine will have been in daily service for 3 years as of SEP05....NO issues. |
07-27-2005, 06:12 PM | #16 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 4550
Join Date: Feb 2001
Chapter/Region:
SCIC
Location: Santa Barbara
Vehicle:2002 WRX Wagon #4321 |
Got the Optima Red Top Group 35 from remybatteries.com, the exact one I got is here:
http://www.remybattery.com/350/shope...at=166&L2=&L3= $88 + shipping (which was $26 to CA) but still better then anything else I could find locally or online. The battery went in super easy and appears to be nicely engineered all around. Scoobymods.com has a nice writeup on how to install if you are wondering. It's covered a lot in other threads, but as a reminder do not get the 35/75 battery by Optima that is carried at Sears or Costco because of fit problems. The one I linked above goes in and you are done in 10 minutes. Thanks for the help. |
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