My 03 Corolla is the first car I've owned so I'm not familiar with car issues but lately it's been cranking really... 'weak.' About two days ago the cranks sounded like they had asthma, but it still cranked the same amount as when it sounded healthier, two or three cranks and it was good, even though it sounded quite weak. Today I go to start my car and it takes about 8 REALLY slow cranks to start, I try turning on my wipers to see how slow they go and it's pretty damn slow so I'm thinking it's time for the battery to go, any additional input? Thanks guys. (Don't know age of battery xD)
If it is the OEM battery it doesnt owe you, their should be a date code, can you find it?. What brand of battery is it? You can get it tested if your not sure, but that sounds like a bad battery, assuming the terminals are not corroded.
If you have an Autozone, Kragen, etc, you can get the battery charged and tested for free. It may take an hour or two to charge so be aware of that.
There is usually some manufacturing date printed on the battery. It can be coded as a letter and number where A is January, and then 03 or something for the year.
When you said the wipers are slow, do you mean the engine was on or off?
Best value for batteries is Costco Kirkland brand and Walmart Everstart Maxx. Interstate Megatron Plus rates highly also; Interstate Megatron, however, is not so good.
Always remove the negative terminal first and connect it last. Pretty much every metal part of the car is connected to the negative terminal and if you try to take the positive terminal off first and accidentally touch some metal part, it is possible you can cause some damage or injury. By not having the negative connected when working on the positive terminal, there is no danger of shorting unless you touch the terminal.
It's a Duralast DL-35, I didn't find a date code in regards to being with letters and a number but after pulling it out of the tray it sits on, there's a green sticker the size of nickle about that says '11/08'. I never got the original date from the previous owner and it was amazing throughout the winter, would the 11/08 be the date it goes bad or the date they manufacture it?
When I turned the wipers on, the engine was off.
Thanks for the info touringcamry, would changing the battery myself be as simple as unhinging the neg. first, then pos, removing whatever holds the battery down, cleaning the terminals, and simply putting it in, connecting the pos. and then the neg.?
A three year old battery in Ny should not be weak unless something is draining the battery. Since you have it out, can you get it tested at autozone and clean the corossion off the terminals and battery clamps? Might want to check that all of the lights go out when the doors and trunk are closed.
Yea all the lights are out and I slammed the trunk shut last night to make sure, winter is coming and the temp. has dropped from a normal 50-70 at night to a cold 30-50 now so I'm going to change the battery regardless for the winter season.
I know touring listed a couple of suggested brands for value but I'm gonna stick to Duralast for this next one, any opinions on the red/gold tops?
Go with the gold, more CCA in the winter and bettery warranty, it is really a no brainer. I think you get ten dollars back when you return the old one. When picking out a new gold one, check the date code, go with October or September of this year, nothing older. Clean the clamps and battery try and buy some 99 cent battery washers and you should be good.
It's a Duralast DL-35, I didn't find a date code in regards to being with letters and a number but after pulling it out of the tray it sits on, there's a green sticker the size of nickle about that says '11/08'. I never got the original date from the previous owner and it was amazing throughout the winter, would the 11/08 be the date it goes bad or the date they manufacture it?
When I turned the wipers on, the engine was off.
Thanks for the info touringcamry, would changing the battery myself be as simple as unhinging the neg. first, then pos, removing whatever holds the battery down, cleaning the terminals, and simply putting it in, connecting the pos. and then the neg.?
That is the correct way to change the battery. If there is some whitish-blue powder, be aware that is acid so you don't want to get it in your eyes and prob should avoid prolonged skin contact. If it does get on your skin, it will be best to brush it off rather than flush with water.
To clean the acid: Pour some baking soda in a pail and add water to make a paste. Apply it to the powder and it will start fizzing. Lit the fizzing subside and then flush it out slowly with another pail of water or a hose.
I recommend eye protection when working on the battery regardless.
Clean the terminals with a wire brush or some sand paper. Really you only need to clean the contact surface and it's probably best to do that part right before reconnecting to the new battery to avoid oxidation. You can clean other rust or corrosion off if you want though.
Quote:
Originally Posted by PhoenixFaction
Yea all the lights are out and I slammed the trunk shut last night to make sure, winter is coming and the temp. has dropped from a normal 50-70 at night to a cold 30-50 now so I'm going to change the battery regardless for the winter season.
I know touring listed a couple of suggested brands for value but I'm gonna stick to Duralast for this next one, any opinions on the red/gold tops?
Duralast Gold is fine, higher CCA and longer warranty is always good. For $10 difference, according to Autozone's website, it's a no brainer.
Reason I suggested Costco and Walmart earlier is because they are consistently highly rated by Consumer Reports and they are very competitively priced compared to anything else out there. Everstart Maxx and Duralast Gold are rated about the same and towards the top but the Walmart one costs less. The Costco battery is rated towards the high-middle and is the least expensive of the three. So when I said best value, I didn't mean they are inexpensive so-so performers; I meant they are good batteries that are very competitively priced compared to similar batteries.
Costco Kirkland, Walmart Everstart Maxx, and Duralast Gold are all excellent batteries, you cannot go wrong with any of them. They are manufactured by the same company anyway...
If you want even higher CCA, see if you have space for a 24F size battery. It is about 1 to 1.5" longer. Check Autozone's website for measurements of the 35 and 24F size battery.
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2007 Camry 2.4L 5M
Last edited by touringcamry; 10-05-2011 at 04:05 AM.
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