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Purchased a 6 volt battery two years ago and it had a three year warranty. The battery failed two months ago....it had one dead cell. Took the battery back and with the warranty I only had to pay $20 and I got a new battery. It was the exact same battery as the one that failed previously, however, instead of a three year warranty now the same battery only has a one year warranty.

JYD some manufacturers do a full replacement within the original warranty but the replacement unit is only has warranty for the remainder of the original unit. Other manufacturers restart the warranty with the replacement unit.
Tony

The manufacturer of the battery changed their warranty policy recently and all of their 6 volt batteries now only have a max. one year warranty.

Given my track record with batteries if it's going to fail I'm confident it will fail in the first 6 months...

Just going to be extra careful with this one.

Mostlly, the warranty protects the manufacter not the buyer. The better battery names are generally the best for the money.

Just my opinion.

Charlie

I believe there are only a few (3-4) major battery manufacturers in the US. The warranty does help protect the manufacturer as well as the buyer. Having sold hundreds of batteries very few were actually defective while many failed due to lack of maintenance or improper maintenance or installation. Many fail to read the installation instructions until after the battery fails.

I just got a new 6 Volt Duracell battery for my 1933 Master this past summer. The specs have the highest cranking amps of any 6 Volt battery I could find and the price was great.

I got it at Batteries Plus Bulbs.

The car cranks over better than it has for years and I have owned this car since 1971 and gone though quite a few batteries over the years.

The only Duracell 6v battery I find is for a golf cart. It doesn't list CCA but amp/hours, not the same animal. Do you have a link?

I have an optima and talked with them about it also talked with Deltran about the Battery Tender and would it work. they are a GOOD MATCH.

I hope to get good time out of mine.

Tiny, here is a Link to the "batteries plus bulbs" 6 volt battery that they say fits the 6 volt Chevrolet ==> https://www.batteriesplus.com/battery/sli/bci-group-1/sli1

The Exide I bought for my Dad`s '30 truck died just past the 6 month warranty period. I may try this Batteries Plus battery, although the Optima Red Top has my attention.

I put an Optima Red Top in my 32 4 years ago and it is still working fine. The Optima 6V cranks the starter like it was a 12 Volt.

I wish Costco sold 6v batteries other than deep cycle here. Anyone ever checked in the USA to see if they can order in?

I buy my 12v batteries and deep cycle at Costco. You can buy the biggest battery you can stuff in the vehicle and they don't care what the original was and will accept any old battery for the core charge. The dates are clearly marked and you can pick the most current one. The prices are very good and Consumer Reports usually rates the quality quite good.

The best part is the warranty. The last few I bought had a 5 year replacement, 100 month pro-rated. I had a couple fail over the years just shy of 5 years. I simply took to customer service and said they were bad and they said ok and that they don't waste time testing for sake of customer service. They checked my receipt and gave me a 100% refund and sent me back into the store to buy a new one which also came with a fresh 5 year, 100 month warranty.

Tony

Sorry it took so long to get back to you. I had not looked at this thread since I made my original posting.

Like I said I got the Duracell Group 1 6 Volt battery from Batteries Plus Bulbs and just did a search of "Group 1" on there website.

https://www.batteriesplus.com/search?q=Group+1

Except for the CCA I believe I got all the other specs from a different web search.

I'm missing something here. Some of you say that the new battery spins the engine over better than any other new battery they've ever had. I don't see how a 6V battery can do any more than supply 6 volts. You are not going to get a faster spin like you would if you used a 12 volt battery to start the car.

I think some are cheating on their experience. Maybe. Anyway if you clean the cables and the contacts when you install the new battery, your are going to realize higher voltage to the starter - but not more than the 6 volts it is rated at.

Also, the life of a battery is somewhat dependant on the use of it. The more you use it the more fig newtons it is going to use up. This reelative high use of the battery is going to result in less longivity of the battery.

Chipper is our resident chemist. Where is he in all this? One little nibble at the start is all. I'm sure he will back me up.

Charlie

BTW: What brand of 6 volt battery does one get at Tractor Supply. I thought they carried Exide. That should be a pretty good battery given their long history in the industry.

I think the key to battery longevity is the freshness of the battery. The 6 volt batteries we use are not the fastest movers in the store. A year of sitting on the shelf is not good for the long term life of a lead acid battery. Also, automotive batteries are not designed for repeated drain / charge cycles like a golf cart battery, so if we let them run down and recharge often the life will be short. I believe battery tenders help with this problem. The use of distilled water and regular maintenance does not hurt.

I am stuck on Delco and have had good luck as long as the battery I started with was fresh.

Dave

Fresh would be a big factor indeed. Doesn't seem that long ago that automotive stores used to store the batteries dry. When you bought it, the battery either came with the acid in a small container for you to add or the store added it from bulk stock as you waited. I bought a bunch of batteries dry years ago and then bought a gallon of acid at Napa. It was neat to have a dry battery, add the acid and instantly you could start a car with it.

Ability to crank over the engine is more related to the available current than the voltage measuring 6.X volts. A tired battery could have a weak cell or sulfated plates and still measure close to full voltage but may not provide as much current as a fresh battery. Same idea as a AAA battery vs a D cell battery. Both are 1.5 volts but the available current is less on the smaller battery...

A couple months ago I started a thread regarding battery leakage. It has been two months and still no sign of any water or vapor on the battery near the fill caps. It's probably time to take a voltage reading and give it a charge but I have concluded that charging completely has solved the problem. I believe that because it was left for a year without charging that lead sulfates had formed to the point where they were shorting out the plates. I charged it for a week at a slow rate and have concluded that the lead that had sulfated out was restored to the plates and the shorting eliminated. I agree with Dave39MD about starting with a fresh battery and when buying I try to check the date codes .

During my 10 years doing roadside calls which included flat battery I found the the average battery life was between 4 and 5 years for most brands (possibley the same manufacturer) in vehicles used almost daily. The batteries that didnt last have been less often used and only for short runs.
Tony

My 1951 Chevy sits the majority of the time and the 6 volt battery that I had two batteries previously lasted 10 years. The last 6 volt battery that I had (same brand of battery) lasted only two years. The 12 volt battery in my 1968 GMC (which gets driven two or three times a month) is an Interstate battery and it has been in my truck for 11 years and the battery still starts the truck instantly.

JD,

That is amazing. Really. Could it be owing to your vehicles having good grounds, strong starters, and being finely tuned? If, so, then the battery doesn't have to do much work or even sustained work. In that case, even a weak battery will preform nicely. It is when the battery has to turn the engine against a poor starter or weak grounds, etc, that the proof of the pudding lies. A wek batter will start to fail after just a few revolutions of the engine.

With good connections and strong starter a weaj and failing battery will last much longer than one that has relatively higher demands put on it.

I wouldn't take your 11 year old battery on a date where fireflys provide most of the light. You know.

Best,
Charlie

Here are some of the specs I got off the internet for various 6 Volt Group 1 car batteries. Take your pick, but you may pay the price. You may also be able to find the same brand Group 1 batteries from other stores at lower prices, but this is what I could find without spending more time.

As I recall, several batteries ago (15+ years ago) I had an Interstate, but I don't remember it being significantly more than a Duralast or Exide so I do not under stand why the only one I could find was so expensive. I do remember back then that it was hard to search for without the Interstate part number so this could be a different Interstate group 1 listed here.

Cold Cranking Amps (CCA) are at 0 deg F, and Cranking Amps (CA) are at 32 deg F. Not all Reserve Capacities were at 25 Amps, some were at 20 amps, while others did not specify the amps.


Duracell (Batteries Plus): 640 CCA, 785 CA, Reserve Capacity 130 minutes, $ 81.99, 1 yr free replacement warrant.

Duralast (AutoZone): 575 CCA, 715 CA, Reserve Capacity 160 minutes, $96.99, 1 yr limited warranty.

Exide (Tractor Supply): 625 CCA, 750 CA, Reserve Capacity 160 minutes, $79.99, 1 yr limited warranty.

Interstate Workaholic (Fastenal): 640 CCA, 768 CA, Reserve Capacity 130 minutes, $190.52, 6 month free replacement warranty.

Optima (AutoZone): 800 CCA, 1000 CA, Reserve Capacity 100 minutes, $187.99, 3 yr limited warranty

PowerStride Battery (powerstridebattery.com): 500 CCA, 625 CA, Reserve Capacity 215 minutes, $149,97 with free shipping for limited time only, 1 yr warranty inc free return shipping.

My question would be are most of these batteries in stock dry and filled when they are purchased?

All of the six volt batteries that I have purchased in the past were already filled, fully charged and ready to go before I purchased them.

Most car batteries I have seen in the last 20 years are filled and charged from the factory, the exception is the smaller motorcycle battery arrive dry with the acid in a container in the box.
Tony

At my local battery shop, motorcycle and ATV batteries come either dry with the acid in a container or the batteries come filled and fully charged. We have two choices. However, the batteries that are filled and fully charged are more expensive, but it is worth the money not to mess with the acid and then charging the battery.