Car Battery

[Sanj]

Hello Chaps,

Wondering if you guys could help me out,

It started this morning, I had a few days off so I didnt really drive the car much, I normally do 100miles a day in it.

Went outside, turned the car on, it didnt fire up, got a jump start from a friend of mine and managed to get going.

I got the battery checked out by a local garage and apparently the battery was completely flat, anyway was advised to drive it around for a while which I did.

The car seems ok now but im still a little concerned.

The engineer still coudlnt find a problem with the battery.

should i be concerned ??

the battery is 6 years old

I have a C240 year 1999

The engineer though i had left something on overnight but I am usually quite carefull.

Does anyone know where i can get a cheap battery from ??? apart from going to the $tealership ??

any idea how much it costs as the battery is huge !

any help much appreciated

Sanj

 

[andy_k]

any battery that has lasted 6 years is doing well so you've had your moneys worth from it.

For a replacement try Halfords - their batteries are as good as any and have three year warranties on them.

Andy

 

[grasmere]

I did a lot of research Sanj a few months ago - halfords came out best price for a calcium too.

Also check out Costco if theres one near you . . . bosch silver something

 

[TOPMERCS]

Hi Sanj. I agree with grasmere, i have bought about 3 batteries from costco for myself and some mates,bought the bosch silver now they give u 4 years warranty, and their prices beat almost all in the market, including eurocar parts and german and swedish.
Try them alternatively try www.eurocarparts.co.uk, there might be a company called "car", try them there is a good chance they will be somewhere near u.-Good luck

 

[pluggers]

I had a battery from halfords a few weeks ago,Set me back a measly sum of £50.

 

[LazyBob]

Yup - cold weather always weeds out the weak and ill batteries, sort of survival of the fittest for batteries.

Halfords Calcium doo-dahs seem to be fine and come with a four year guarantee, which won't get your car started if it gives up but at least means you won't need to shell out another 60 quid or so for a new one.
They don't seem to come with a vent pipe extension so keep your old one (if you have one)

 

[andy_k]

the bonus of buying from Halfords is that they are nearly always local - if your battery dies in the warranty period it's no great trek to get it replaced.

We've had a leisure battery replaced by them and they were great - showed the receipt and a new battery was handed over immediately, no questions (such as "why did you accidentally leave it on the charger and boil it dry thus warping all the plates and knackering the battery?") asked.

for once Halfords get my recommendation

Andy

 

[Will]

I reckon the best batteries going used to be the Samson 'Lifetime Warranty' ones. My father bought one about 10-15 years ago and has had a handful of replacements over the years (was in a car that didn't get a lot of use!).

Likewise, when I was 18 I bought an immaculate one-owner 2.8 Capri. Perfect car with low mileage, but the 'Lady Owner' had stopped using it for a month or two once she had bought her new car.

Needless to say that the battery was on its way out. The day after I bought the car, the battery was knackered. Checked it out and it was a Samson too, looked through the paperwork and found the documents for it.

Quick call to the local parts center and they replaced it for me free with no quibbles!

Now that is good value!

Will

 

[Hartzpartz]

I've just bought a Bosch Silver 74 amp hour with 3 year warranty form GSF (German Swedish French) for £45 + vat. Cheaper than anywhere else I know (Camberly Auto Factors quoted £59.95+vat for the same battery!!).

Their website address is www.gsfcarparts.com (as you may already know?)

Other than that, give Partco a try. Far cheaper than Halfords.

Regards,

Stefan.

 

[sparkyspost]

Sanj,

On a slightly different approach, if the battery appears to be working fine now, then why not buy a battery charger, or a portable jump start.

On another car, I had a problem with the alternator, where the supporting bracket snapped so the alternator wasn't charging, so eventually one morning it didn't start.
After having jumpstarted it to get going, I was able to recharge the battery using a cheap battery charger for <£15. The battery is still going strong a year later.

Buying one of each of these could save you money down the road, and as they are portable / independant of you car you can use these for your friends family should they need them!


Having said all that, I've never tried to jump start an MB, and they are a much larger battery. So check the power rating of the battery charger.


Anyway, I think the guys have given you a good headstart on a new battery should you decide to buy one.

Cheers

Sparky

 

[glojo]

Sanj,

On a slightly different approach, if the battery appears to be working fine now, then why not buy a battery charger, or a portable jump start.

Hi Sparky,
Your advise is definitely worth considering, but a six year old battery has given good service. If the car refuses to start away from home, away from friends etc. It might well cost more than the price of a new battery just to get started.

Bye for now,
John