Battery insight solicited
 

It's about time for a new battery for my '82 300D. I have been using Sears Diehard, but they are getting expensive. Some of the parts houses sell a similar looking battery for $40-50 less than the Diehard. (Plus, I try to avoid Sears and their sheister tactics whenever possible.)

Point me in the right direction, please.

IMO go with Optima, I got one and never looked back!

Autozone Duralast.

Just bought another one for the '87.

$70 for an 84 month warranty that's good anywhere in the country without a receipt (only your telephone number). Group 49.......made perfectly for the vehicle.

You'll pay 75% more for an Optima...........think it will last 147 months?:eek:

Why go with anything else?

FWIW, Consumer Reports a year or so ago, found a Pep Boys battery to be the best. Duralast is good too.

I second Autozone Duralast... if only because local Wal-Mart and Costco don't stock MB size batteries. Not sure if my vote matters since I don't have to deal with temps below 40*F.

I'm curious to know PEH's thinking on battery value.

Sixto
87 300D

Who did you figure I got my idea from............??:D:D

My Interstate 770cca lasted ~4.5 years.

I've heard years ago that car batteries are made by only two manufacturers and then are sold by various retailers. Anyone hear this also?

After a little research, I came to the realization that most of the common store brand names are all made by the same company: Johnson Controls. Included are Sears, Pep Boys, Autozone, Advance Auto, Wal-Mart, Murrays, Costco, etc. They also make OE batteries for a number of auto manufacturers.

Some vendors, however, offer a better warranty than others on what appears to be the same battery.

Read about it here:
http://www.autobatteries.com/brands/index.asp

I have a group 49 from advanced auto in both of mine, mostly because it's the closest place to my house. They are cheap (about $70-80, I think) and they seem to last a few years, just like any other battery. I managed to kill one in less than a year (due to a bad alternator) and they replaced it for free, no questions asked. Unless you want the correct benz battery from the dealer, I don't think there is much difference between brands.

yes. mine has 103 months on it and it's still going strong. plus, it does not leak. whenever i swap it to a new-to-me car (i think i'm on #7?), i install new battery cables with brass marine-style terminals and never have to worry about corrosion at the battery on that car again.

Well, you've got another 44 months just to get to the breakeven point.

Good luck with that.

i've broken even several times over with never getting stuck with a dead battery or no start situation resulting from corrosion. :kiss:

MB Battery, delivered via roadside assistance - $142.90 (2yr full warranty...1000CCA's, Made in Spain)

Knowing you can call the number in the your glovebox when stranded at night in the middle of Florence, KY on a Saturday night at 9pm while on the way back from Florida in the middle of March? - Priceless :D (ok its a bit long... ;) )

Thats where I got my battery....my 1.7 year old DieHard International gave up on me, but it was mainly my alternator's fault....I later replaced a very very worn out 55A alternator with a nice new 65A rebuild. HUGE power output difference. :D

I had a MB tech helping me at a shell station in the dark in less than an hour after I called. For free. How awesome is that??? This was this past march.

Good testimony!

So, WHAT is that number??? I've heard about this service, but haven't seen the number. Also, is the service dispatched via some other roadside service or does MB have their own contractors?

I would suspect the heavier battery would have the most capacity. Battery plate surface area is a big part of what determines AH ratings. Larger plates would have to weigh more.
Also, go for the most recent manufacture date. I couple of yrs ago I was at Wal Mart and watched a customer return a battery. It was the top of the line wal mart batt. A knowlegeable employee used a device that measures the battery's internal resistance to check its condition. It gives a relative value of "cranking amps" and sure enough, the returned battery was not up to snuff.
He checked the new one, no good at meeting its spec. Another new top of the line battery also didn't measure up. As I watched I ask if he would check the cheap $29 battery. Several of them all measured up to spec. They also had more recent manufacture dates. I concluded the more expensive ones stay on the shelf longer, cheaper ones turn quickly. Who knows...

I'd go find a fresh "Interstate". They have always performed well.

A cheapo solution
 

A local battery rehab place, Battery Nation in Miami on NW 27th Ave just north of 135th St., sells Varta, Interstate, and other fancy brands of rebuild batteries in Mercedes sizes at $29 each. I started using them when I had a Hyundai Excel that tended to eat batteries (this stopped when I added a second cable between the battery and the alternator).

A new Interstate for a MB costs over $90. My experience is that of four rehab batteries, all have lasted within a few months of a new Interstate and one exceeded it by a year. None have leaked. This place will check the alt and battery for free, and will not lie about how you need that new battery if you don't. Honesty of the sort that DieHard has not had for decades.

.
Anybody have any experience with those anti sulfiding, and balance charge, battery chargers ?

Thank You
RichC
:joker:
.

1-800-FOR MERCEDES (800-222-0100)
Frequently displayed on a decal inside the glove box door.

Both. The dealers have an roadside assistance vehicle. Or they use a contractor if a dealer is not convenient.

Rich, We did some research on those things. A good friend of mine has done some test and I think his results are on the web somewhere. I'll look.

Some of the best car batteries I've ever had came from a rehab guy. "The Battery Man" in Dallas. I think he had to close due to local zoning or something...
I had a few of his $24 batts last more than six yrs. Wish he was still around.


Here we go...

Introduction - Battery Desulfation

http://www.dallas.net/~jvpoll/Battery/aaDesulfatorSurvey.html

Jim has a nice 84 white 500SEL I bet he would let go cheap. It just sits in his garage. Been there for 10yrs I bet. I believe its battery was the DUT.

Been thinking about calling the 1800 For Mercedes
My battery died luckily its in tha garage.

My only question is I heard they dislike servicing the Euro models.

Also my 2 yo Diehard battery is a INTERNATIONAL
its down becasue the car was not used much in the 2 years.
I charged it once but only got it half charged
Not even sure if it will take a full charge anymore
It might but this having the battery problem is a real pain

Wondering what is different on a international battery & thinking they may not have one easily available...

Any ideas?

Seems like a good way to buy a battery especially if you need it...

Price seems fair too

The best battery for a diesel MB is the top of the line Group 49 Interstate battery. It's got 850 cranking amps and most of the others, including the Die Hard are around 750 and sometimes less.

My diesels all have the same full-size battery that completely fills the battery tray. Among the cars that I've had, there were Interstate, Die-Hard, and Autolite.

The Group 49 battery is a little smaller isn't it? Is there a "group" number for the full-size battery?

Ken300D

I only know about the Group 41 (shorter and about 20% smaller) and the Group 49. OE is G49.

The Group 49 battery is a little smaller isn't it? Is there a "group" number for the full-size battery?
Ken300D[/quote]

The Interstate Group 49 and Group 93 batteries are the same dimensions. - they are the big batteries. The Mega-Tron Plus is 850 Amps and has an 85 month warranty. I used to use Die Hard but they stopped making the big battery for awhile and now their Group 49 is only 805 Amps and they list for $129 - the Mega-Tron Plus is about $15 less.

i recently had to replace the battery in my 91 300D had an interstate in it 4 yrs old.I went to Autozone and bought their Duralast i cant say anything about the inside of the battery but for what its worth the outside is exactly the same as the one i took out except for the color.Could be they are made by the same factory,One thing i do like about it is that it has removable caps so i can add distilled water when needed,i really believe this adds to the batterys life in hot climates. My $.02 Don

I have used that MB service as well..no matter how many owners, still FREE for you..My Battery is from Oreilly's auto parts. 75.00 950 cranking....

Dakota

Since you are in the South..
 

See if there are any Douglass battery dealers in ATL. They've stayed independent as a company for many years and they're known for fork lift and equipment batteries. I've used them and never had any complaints.

Interstate absolutely sucks - avoid like the plague!
 

When I bought my 300SD (Guderian) in San Antonio, I was living in Abilene TX. The car came with a brand new Interstate battery. After two weeks the starter would barely turn. I tested the starter, it was fine. Charged the battery for two hours on high on a Snap-on charger, swapped it into a Suburban, the Suburban wouldn't start

I took the battery to the Interstate dealer in Abilene, Texas. They said they charged it and tested it and said it was fine. Went back home, put in the Interstate battery, Guderian wouldn't start. I jump started the car with the Interstate in it and went back to the Interstate dealer. Defied them to start it on the Interstate battery. It didn't. Swapped in the Suburban's battery that I had in the trunk, it fired up immediately. After 45 minutes of charge on the Interstate, they put it in and the 300SD wouldn't start. They told me it was a problem with starter, but as an act of good faith, they would credit me 25% on a new battery, so I would only have to pay $105.00 for a new one. Yeah right.

I went to O'Reilly's, got a new battery for $69. Guderian started right up. Took the car back to Interstate and showed them how it started immediately. Asked for the $105 refund. You can guess the answer. "You must have changed the starter." Pointed out the starter had the same 20 years of dirt that the rest of the engine did. "It's not our problem." No refund, no replacement, just the claim that their battery was still good because their test said it was.

Four years later the O'Reilly battery still holds a charge better than I would ever expect. Like six weeks between start-ups.

The funny thing is, I recently read an article about how Interstate is run by devout Christians who want to bend over backwards to serve their cusomers. Like Aich Ee Double toothpicks. The biggest bunch of lying jerks I've ever dealt with in the automotive world. I wouldn't buy an Interstate battery if they were a penny apiece. On second thought, I might buy them for metal value.

While we are on the topic of batteries I just checked mine (low on water) and I noticed there is no hose connected to the overflow. The PO replaced the battery before I bought the car and I guess they never replaced the hose. My battery has the vent facing the front of the car. There is no hose, I can put one on but where do you route it? I already saw some water/acid driping out right on to the hold down plate.

Did you get an Optima for your gas or diesel Mercedes? I wasn't aware they made one that had the CCA and also physically fit our diesels.

The original batteries were vented throught the caps, so there was no "plumbing" built into the car to accomodate the newer style batteries with sealed caps and an alternate vent.

I fashioned a "sump" out of a small, square-shaped pill bottle and attached it to the front side of the battery with double-sided tape. I placed some of that synthetic pill bottle stuffing material in the bottle, then saturated it with battery cleaner to neutralize acid. Along with adding a few vent holes to the bottle cap.