Battery problems, oh my! Interstat

OMG! Like, wow. That makes a HUGE difference. Now, he's legitimate. I am sooo relieved (please note sarcasm inserted here).

 

At least he did one and didn't go belligerant on this thread

 

Great advice. Thank you. A voice of reason is hard to hear on this board with all the self proclaimed moderators shouting.

 

This thread is at about 2 volts and no amps..........drained.

 

FYI a bad voltage regulator can and will drain a battery just as quick.

 

Thanks for the comprehensive reply.
I disconnected the battery,and am letting it charge until it goes 100%, then will test it tomorrow, to see if it holds a charge.
It would have been a lot easier if the Firestone/Interstate store had tested it for me.
On Monday I will contact Interstate again and let them know of my disappointment in their customer service. I think it would probably be hypocritical to continue to use an Interstate battery after I prove this one bad.
Thanks to all for listening. I still believe my "rant" is justified, and worthy of sharing.

 

Where I work we go through 20 plus batteries a year. Everything from 8D's to automotive. Transit is murder on batteries. Have had good luck with the Optima's, Previous post about Deka batteries is dead on, excellent battery.
Personal experiance with Interstate was very bad, leaked like crazy, Interstate said alternator problem, I knew better. This was in a diesel Blazer with two batteries, leaked so bad they ruined the headlamp harness below one of the batteries.Rusted out the trays also. A pair of Delcos solved the problem, no more leaks. Motor supply where I bought the Delcos said he sold more battery trays due to Interstates than any other brand.


B

 

Number 1 cause of drained batteries(***uming the vehicle charging system is operational) is oxidized terminals.
The first thing I do when confronted with a dead batttery condition, is remove the cables, clean the battery trerminals and inside cable ends. Unually, problem solved.
Oxidation can be your battery's worst enemy. that, and loose cables.

I have never had a problem with Interstate batteries and have found them to be as good as any.

Firestone has a habit of over stating their charges and insisting you need parts when you do not.
There are other Interstate dealers, just do a search of the internet for Interstate dealers, or consult your Yellow pages.

Good luck!

 

3 Best places to get a battery are (1) Wal-Mart,(2) wal-Mart,(3)Wal-Mart. No, I don't work for them.

 

I am an Interstate dealer and the only thing that they have required from me and my customer was the sales receipt. Only to prove how long it has been in use. Yes, there is a code on batteries that tell when they are made, but not when it was sold. There are some places that put a sticker on them when they come in the door to tell when it was received.

Never have I had a problem with a warranty, as long as it was within the time frame.

 

i stock and sell interstate batteries and have been for twenty years. great batteries. i run them in every car and truck i own. i can honestly say in that time period i think i've had to replace 2 batteries for customers. no questions asked, and i never will. the driver actually comes by the shop every 2 weeks and restocks any batteries that have been on the shelf to long. i have also never charged a person one red cent to test or even charge a battery for them, just a courtesey thing if you ask me. and **** firestone, their the biggest thieves out there.

 

There is a special proceedure for charging AGM (Optima) batteries when they are below 10 volts or so. In the article on such charging, they also recommended this proceedure for a dead lead acid battery. Proceedure is: hook up a fully charged battery in parallel with the dead battery (like you would hook them up if jump starting). Now connect a battery charger and let the dead battery come up to a full charge. May be worth a try. I have an Interstate battery in the daily driver that is at least 8 years old and it seems to never fail - even if it sets for a month or so.

 

I've been happy with Kragen Auto Parts. Bought a battery and after 2 years, it wouldn't take a charge. Walked in with the old and came out with a new battery, no questions asked, free of charge.

 

I have had terrible luck with Interstate batteries the last few years, to the point where you couldn't run fast enough to give me one. Don't know what's happened to them, but they have gone straight to hell.

 

Firestone ****s, that's probably why the sell Interstate......They make a good pair.

 

Not saying they are the best batteries available, but I have had great luck with the ones Costco sells under their own name.

Most have given decent duration to their life span. Had problems with a dead cell in one, took it back to the store service desk with the paper work. No questions asked, didn't even test it, just here is your money back and sorry for the problem.

Even if they aren't the best battery out there, the ease of dealing with them for service and/or replacement is worth it.

Canuck

 

I need twelve Interstate battery caps for four Interstate deep-cycle batteries. and
after emailing with customer service for four days to no avail Interstate finally told
me to contact the manufacturer ..........US Battery. I'm going to contact them Monday.

Here's a link to the Interstate Dealer Locator;
Click here: http://www.interstatebatteries.com/cs_eStore/DealerLocator/Default.aspx?ZipCode=&DT=201103191808080792

 

This discourages one even further from purchasing from Interstate, but what happened that you need 12 caps?

 

Re: the high fee for having a battery checked. From experience I'd say it was due to the high number of individuals having batteries checked there and not buying one when theirs showed bad. Or s****pers having batteries checked to see if they are good before hauling them off for s****. I've spent more than one hour diagnosing a car for free and then having the potential customer drive off down the street to a discount parts house to buy the part. I have a friend with a parts house in town right now who has a problem with a couple of locals carrying used alternators and starters for him to test. It's just a couple of guys doing it but some weeks he ends up checking ten alternators for those guys and they haven't bought a rebuilt or parts from him yet. There is two sides to every story and every situation.

 

i'm pretty sure there is only about 3 or so battery manufacturers.......so almost all are re branded.

interstate has gone down hill big time, the shop i worked at used them exclusively in the 90's and early 2000's, next place i went to had interstate and the quality was poor (lots of failures) and service was poor also.

 

I have four Interstate deep cycle batteries in my motorhome that came with Speed Caps as pictured below. Some leak a bit and I want to replace all twelve with individual caps.

 

I see now.

 

and the best warranty in the industry as well as the best servicing dealers.

 

Who makes or sells a good 8 volt battery?

 

I'll have to give that Optima charging procedure a try. All I can say is I have seen MANY dead Optima's that won't take a charge. I'm going to give that a shot.

I too have had **** luck with interstate batteries. Will never buy another.

 

If you don't want to ever deal with corrosion, self discharge over time, and want the highest cranking amps per pound of battery weight, then a AGM (absorbed gl*** mat) type of battery is the only way to go. The first picture is a 15 lb Odyssey that has been starting my ride for 16 years.
I use AGMs in a lot of applications because they are the only lead acid battery that is both a cranking battery and a deep cycle battery. You all know that even a new flooded lead acid battery, if you run it flat about 10 times, it is a goner. Some of you folks that have to winterize your rides will like the next feature, and that is the lowest self discharge rate of any cranking battery, less than 1/10 of a flooded. This means no need for a trickle charger or even a boost charge in the springtime, just turn the key, cause after 8 months of sitting it has retained OVER 90% of its charge. Any questions, feel free to ask. The below picture is my hot rod scooter powered by (4) AGMs in series for 48 VDC to a 700 amp controller. This death trap of a scooter can out pace my Corvette to 40 mph.

 

i bought my battery last spring at that "other" auto parts store... wally world. couple weeks ago while getting it ready for the warm weather driving season, the battery had taken a **** on me over the winter. wally world replaced free of charge, no questions asked and for no money to boot. so, i guess walmart isnt all bad.

 

I hate to back Wally World, but the battery in my GF's DD went bad summer before last. Bought one at Wally world, put it in and all was well. Got back from Florida last spring, hooked up the battery and it wouldn't start. Took it back to Wally World, and after a little back and forth, walked out with a new one, no charge ($ not volts). Last summer, car wouldn't start again. Took the battery back to Wally World. This time they didn't even test it; just checked the batch number and sent me on my way with a new one. Seems they had a defective batch of batteries. It was a lot of trouble, but I did get 2 replacement batteries for nothing. Seems the batteries are ****, but the customer service is OK.

Also, I had the good fortune on getting a heavy duty variable AC power supply from a friend a couple of years ago. Added a $4.95 40 AMP rectifier from Radio Shack, and had a variable DC power supply. when the 6 volt Optima in my '51 went dead over last winter, I couldn't get it to take a charge. After checking on the H.A.M.B., I dialed it up to 7.2 volts, and put it on the optima. After 15 minutes, the Optima showed 12.2 volts, so I put a regular charger on it. Never had a problem after that. BTW, I built the DC power supply to "ZAP" Nicad cordless tool batteries. Set it to twice the rated voltage of the tool battery and hit it for about 5 seconds. 1 out of 3 batteries come back all the way, another 1/3 come back to use for a while, and, well, you now know which ones to dispose of properly. Seems that the cadmium in the cells produces tracks through the insulating layers in the cells which shorts them, and "Zapping" the batteries burns these tracks out and if you're lucky, brings the batteries back.

 

Nobody's mentioned Sears Die Hard batterys,I know,I know Sears and Sawbuck, but I've had nothing but great luck with them,and I use the word Luck because it's a cpapshoot today to get anything any good, but Ive got 5 in use now some have gone 7-8 years in my HAMB freindly cars. I belive the secret to long life in a battery is to remove them in the winter time and disconnect them if not used much in summer.Sears has a great nationwide warranty to.

 

Hi Toughnut, et al.

I'm James with Interstate Batteries. I know I'm a little late on this thread, but I do want to help you if I can.

Firestone does carry Interstate Batteries products, but they have their own policies regarding testing and fees. If the battery has our name on it, you can get warranty service at any of our dealers and Interstate All Battery Center stores, and most of the time it shouldn't require any testing fee.

Just for my own clarification, did the Firestone person say the $30 charge was just to test the battery, or was it to test the total electrical/charging system? And did you say they wouldn't even look at the battery without charging you this fee?

Also, do you remember who you talked to with Interstate customer service?

Thanks for voicing your opinion on this forum -- it enables us to get better and do right by our customers.

James
socialmedia@interstatebatteries.com