Something Different

Work for telstra in the top end . I just changed 2 x 38 amp hour 12 volt batteries from a radio site. They still worked fine but as we could only reach by chopper it is easier to install now before they do crash unexpectably...13 .5 years old

Not bad in my opinion. I think having constant solar charging is definately the key to longevity.
cheers

I read somewhere a year or two back that a fella had a battery out of a wartime (2nd world war) aircraft that was still functioning.

We just changed the original battery out of our Corolla (10/03) 180,000 km's, cold starts were sounding a bit sus, but cranked ok otherwise, best not to have the wife starnded if it packed it in! The battery was a Panasonic.
Geoff

Good Onya Bob"....My Landrover Ute has the same battery in it from when i bought it,, 11yrs ago., My best was in a VJ valiant that i purchased New, the original battery was in it when the car rusted away around it 18yrs later!. It would still crank the motor without a problem


Cheers Axle

Hmm,
Looking back through the log books of the 80, the Fist battery last 8 years, I replaced the second one three years ago and it had to be replaced withing 20 months. The fourth is doing ok I guess, Just recently added a second under the bonnet, we'll see how long they last.
Wiper blades, Maybe a bit anal here, but I change them each rego time.
Cheers

G'day,
We had a Steiger Tractor (Big diesel) that used 4 x 12 volt Delco batteries back in the early 1990's it had the same batteries for 13 years. Tractor only used for two months of the year full time then parked until following year, and rarely started in off season. When we had to change the batteries eventually, we were told by autoelectrician that they nolonger build batteries the same as this as the manufacturers decided they weren't selling enough batteries so they shortened their life span!!
However old Steiger tractors used batteries for starting, and that was about it, whereas new tractors (and other vehicles) have a myriad of computers, gps, clocks, etc all drawing wee amounts of power when the ignition is off and I sure this helps shorten life.
Just my two bits worth...
Cheers Corrugate

My personal experience/opinion is that either batteries are manufactured and "sized", as in "fit the smallest and cheapest" to keep the new vehicles price and the cost of a replacement battery as low as possible. In my humble opinion the largest battery that can be fitted and the highest state of charge that can be maintained when stationary for long periods will double at very least the life expectancy of any battery. New vehicles with lots of lovely on board electronics seem to shorten battery life by being too small to start with and continuously drawing small amounts of charge even when stationary.

Cheers
Pop