Battery prices

General conversations about BMW E28s and the people who own them.
Post Reply
Mike W.
Posts: 26872
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: California Whine Country

Battery prices

Post by Mike W. »

The E36 seemed to be cranking just a touch slower in the AM, so I checked static voltage and it was down about 12.3. Oops, time for a new volt box, ideally before I was out there with jumper cables at 5AM. :brick: Seems like the past couple of times I've had to buy one it was a Jackson more than the last one. But this time it was $115??? OK, long term prices aren't really bad considering I was paying $40-50 in the 70's for a decent battery. But enter Walmart and I enjoyed a good decade of $30-35 batteries. Then one was $50. Then one was $70. And now a buck fifteen??? Like I said, long term it's not really out of line, but it's tripled in the past 5 years or so. :shock:
wkohler
Posts: 50921
Joined: Oct 05, 2006 11:04 PM
Location: Phönix, Arizona, USA
Contact:

Re: Battery prices

Post by wkohler »

Doesn't the E36 have one of the long group 92 batteries? Those have always and will always be expensive. Still, I get what you're saying. I won't mention Costco (they don't have that battery anyway) since last time I did, you got mad at the concept of warehouse clubs rather than considering that $80 for an Interstate with a really good warranty is a great price especially when the equivalent is $120 through an Interstate dealer.

As with everything, battery prices are going up while quality is going down.
djazz
Posts: 2541
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: Foat Wuth, Texas

Re: Battery prices

Post by djazz »

wkohler wrote:
As with everything, battery prices are going up while quality is going down.
Have you had a Reese's peanut butter token lately. Roughly the same size package but said packaging probably out-weighs the candy.

Condolences on the battery.
Blue Shadow
Posts: 10195
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: SE PA

Re: Battery prices

Post by Blue Shadow »

Image
Mike W.
Posts: 26872
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: California Whine Country

Re: Battery prices

Post by Mike W. »

Blue Shadow wrote:Image
Interesting. I'd thought about that briefly, then dismissed it thinking lead was cheap. Not that cheap I guess. Looks like they are probably using it as an excuse/covering themselves after probably losing their shirts back in 08 or so.
VW+bimmer=bliss
Posts: 850
Joined: Nov 25, 2007 10:18 PM
Location: Racine, Wisconsin

Re: Battery prices

Post by VW+bimmer=bliss »

When we had the nasty polar vortex weather up here it claimed my old batteries life and I had no choice but to get a new group 92 and it ran me $130, and that was after I gave them the core.
We also have a 9.75% sales tax in Chicago and a tax due to the fact it is a lead acid battery. :shock:
Karl Grau
Posts: 9708
Joined: Mar 10, 2006 7:34 PM
Location: Sandy Eggo

Re: Battery prices

Post by Karl Grau »

I bought a battery for the M5 a couple of weeks ago. It was NAPA’s house brand and was $164.00. I would have preferred an Interstate but is was $226.00 (although ahab found one for $180.00).
Blue Shadow
Posts: 10195
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: SE PA

Re: Battery prices

Post by Blue Shadow »

One other aspect of the increased price of batteries is that they are much better now than in years past. Used to be a 1 year exchange, 48 month warranty and those are hard to find now. 3-yr replacement, ~80 months seems to be the norm. That is nearly twice the battery so the per month cost is about the same as when we were dropping those 4-year jobs in our cars years ago.

And as with anything that goes up in price instantly when supply is tight, the reduction in price as the supply loosens is MUCH SLOWER.
John SCB
Posts: 1866
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: SoCal, on the Beach.

Re: Battery prices

Post by John SCB »

After almost 9 years, the Mexican made Kirkland battery in the truck cranked just a wee bit slowly yesterday. So I picked up this 42 month Interstate at Costco today for $89.00. Manufactured in the last two weeks. I have no idea where it's made. Hope it's nearly as good as the last one.

Image
foamy
Posts: 1524
Joined: May 29, 2007 6:39 PM
Location: North Branford Connecticut

Re: Battery prices

Post by foamy »

i have not bought battery in years. when my batteries die i take it to autozone and ask to swap it with another battery from the pallet of core batteries. just check em with a volt meter and every time i always find one with close to 13 volts if you don't mind changing the battery more often u can get batteries for free.
garageboy
Posts: 2479
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: New York City
Contact:

Re: Battery prices

Post by garageboy »

Hi all. I did a bunch of searches, and decided not to start a new note. This is informational. After all the searching, I'd love to relocate my battery to the trunk too. The battery life of modern batteries kinda sucks. At least those made for Sears.

So the other night I was visiting a friend, and as is often the case, I don't turn off the parking lights if it's a short (20 minutes or less) visit since the battery in my E28 is strong... until it isn't. I discovered my "Sears Gold 48 series" battery, with a 36-month free replacement warranty, lasted 44 months. My friend's doorman gave me a gentle nudge down the street, I jumped in, and the car easily roll-started. Just replaced the battery today... never a 5 minute job because I have to clean everything and make sure there isn't any rust developing in the battery tray...

Sadly, I replaced it with another Sears Gold 48 battery, and will put on my calendar to start paying attention around August or September 2023. $165 with tax.

Here's a rare case where I bitch about the E28 and applaud the E39, but my 530i's trunk-located Varta battery has lasted as long as eight years, when it was a maintainable battery where I could remove it and top off the water inside. I guess I'm not bitching about the car,f per se, although the engine compartment, even with a properly vented battery is a very harsh environment in an E28, and the trunk of a properly vented E39 battery is the ideal location for a battery. I think Sears batteries now suck. Actually, sourcing any parts for my E28 nowadays sucks.

Just sharing my thoughts... :)
a
Posts: 12469
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: Marshfield ,MA

Re: Battery prices

Post by a »

Modern cars, including the E 28 are regulated to 14.1 V. Loss when sitting is ~ 20 milliamps , A couple wks of sitting will discharge enough so that battery is always low. Batteries don't like that. I use a cheap float charger, that trickles 1/2 amp until it reaches 14.25 v. $4.99 at Harbor Freight. Using one of these on any newer car periodically is said to extend battery life. I have a new WM type 24 in the Fridge that I use on and the type 51? I have bodged into the Rat. This reminds me to plug it in :cool:
vinceg101
Posts: 4802
Joined: Jun 20, 2007 2:40 AM
Location: Los Angeles, CA

Re: Battery prices

Post by vinceg101 »

How pertinent.
E28: My 2 year old Bosch (aka Exide. I think it was an H4?) was depleted so much and accidentally drained down empty one too many times and just couldn't hold a charge anymore (I have been trying to find the actual source of the parasitic drain, I suspect the audio system but with a weak battery it's been hard to tell). Back then I actually wanted a Bosch AGM battery to replace the previous Bosch H4, but even though it was listed on PepBoys' website (they were the only retailers selling Bosch), it was nowhere to be found. They were in the process of phasing out Bosch and switching over to Champion (Johnson Controls). It was important to me for some odd reason to see "Bosch" on that battery when I opened the hood, but this time around not so much. So I went with the Champion H7 AGM this time. I have an AGM in the E39 and it's been terrific (see below).

[I'm also not happy with Exide as a company since they left a large area of East LA a toxic wasteland and is now put the city on the hook for millions after they filed for bankruptcy and abandoned the cleanup. I'm not naive: battery manufacturing is a very dirty, messy business so there is going to be toxic cleanup needed no matter how well they do their jobs, but to block cleanup and hide in the courts and poison generations of disenfranchised innocent inhabitants just to protect your bottom line and investors is reprehensible. If I can protest somehow even in a small way I'll do it. There, I said my peace, stepping off my soapbox.]

I shopped around to all the local retailers and even online sources, but for a number of reasons, I stuck with a large retailer with lots of stores across the west in case I have to do this again (or heaven forbid if I'm on the road to OR or AZ, there are PB's everywhere out here). I'm not a Costco member anymore so it wasn't worth renewing just to get a battery.
Image

It did force me to upgrade my CTEK battery tender to one that has an AGM setting (evidently AGM's work differently than traditional batteries :dunno: ). I have a larger amp alternator so I don't think the car will have any issues with keeping the AGM charged. It's been in for a few weeks and is still fully charged, so I'm back to tracking down the drain.

E39: The regular Bosch that came with the car when I bought it in 2012 died back in January of 2016 and I upgraded it a Bosch Platinum L4/94R AGM. It's been in for 4.5 years and hasn't even hiccuped once despite it sitting sometimes for over a week without being touched.
Image

Of course the E39 had a new alternator installed at that time so I would hope the electrical system is running at 100%.

But yes: costs. The standard Bosch for the E28 back in 2018 was over $150; AGM's are that much more expensive. The Champion was +/-$190 out the door on sale (list price is +/-$230). Luckily the previous one was under warranty so I essentially got the new one for the price of a decent bottle of Tequila. The E39 battery I believe was over $230 I think back in 2016 (I'd have to dig up the receipt) but now PepBoys is showing the Champion equivalent cheaper than the E28 version. Go figure.
Last edited by vinceg101 on Nov 03, 2020 8:12 PM, edited 1 time in total.
Mike W.
Posts: 26872
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: California Whine Country

Re: Battery prices

Post by Mike W. »

a wrote: Nov 03, 2020 10:02 AM Modern cars, including the E 28 are regulated to 14.1 V.
No, I've found regulators for E12/28 batteries are more or less random and the spec'd range is 13.6 to 14.5. I always went thru my collection and found one close to 14.5. Even had one in an E12 that was 14.6.

Batteries do live a longer, more sheltered life in the trunk, but to me it's a wash as it takes up a valuable half a cubic foot of trunk space. When we go on vacation (if we ever get to do that again) the trunk is always packed to capacity, if not over. I've been known to take pictures so I know how to pack for the return trip it turns into such a jigsaw puzzle.
krhodes1
Posts: 131
Joined: Jan 23, 2007 11:46 PM
Location: Westbrook Maine

Re: Battery prices

Post by krhodes1 »

a wrote: Nov 03, 2020 10:02 AM Modern cars, including the E 28 are regulated to 14.1 V. Loss when sitting is ~ 20 milliamps , A couple wks of sitting will discharge enough so that battery is always low. Batteries don't like that. I use a cheap float charger, that trickles 1/2 amp until it reaches 14.25 v. $4.99 at Harbor Freight. Using one of these on any newer car periodically is said to extend battery life. I have a new WM type 24 in the Fridge that I use on and the type 51? I have bodged into the Rat. This reminds me to plug it in :cool:
This! If any of my cars are sitting for more than a couple days, it gets a charger on it. My two olde Englishe Crockes have permanently mounted chargers. The last battery in my Spitfire was 15+ years old when I replaced it, and I only replaced it because it was the wrong size and I finally got around to getting the right hold down bits. I got 9 years out of the original battery in my e91 3-series, which is all but unheard of on those cars. I do use better than HF chargers on the BMWs though.
cek
Posts: 9206
Joined: Mar 18, 2013 6:25 PM
Location: Durango
Contact:

Re: Battery prices

Post by cek »

This product that comes with the Blackvue dashcams has the circuitry to detect that the main battery is below a certain voltage. It should be possible for the product I'm imagining to do something similar to switch to the secondary battery...

https://www.amazon.com/BlackVue-Vehicle ... =ceklog-20
Image

This product does what I want, but I'm not smart enough to understand how long it would last if it were only servicing ~20-50ma vs the ~1A the camera takes while recording.
https://www.amazon.com/Blackvue-Battery ... =ceklog-20
Image
tn535i
Posts: 5585
Joined: Jul 14, 2006 1:30 PM
Location: Middle Tennessee

Re: Battery prices

Post by tn535i »

What sort of battery cannot hold a charge for two weeks? We've gone on two week vacations leaving a car at the airport and I never thought twice it wouldn't be fine when returning? Both my M6 and the e30 have little bit older batteries now and neither is driven lately so I move the charger between them now and then, maybe monthly. They both start fine last I checked.

I do believe in 'testing' my batteries when they get older. If it's more than 5-6 years old I may even try to kill it with multiple restarts and lights on with no time to charge in between. If it can't last more than about 8-10 cycles with the lights on and I measure or sense it dropping down I replace before it leaves one of us stranded. My daughter's 2013 was approaching 7 years on original when she was home last and while it seemed OK it got replaced just casue that's way easier for me to do while she's home and the car is in the driveway then when she calls me stranded somewhere this winter asking who she should call and where to go to get a new battery because her car won't start. So if you ran by my friendly Interstate guy and grabbed a core with 12.5+ volts on it that was me :)

The best I ever recall from a basic battery was 8 years. I think it was a Wal-Mart purchased Champion and I was shocked it made it that long. I generally like Interstate for the warranty and Network but I've only needed it a couple times in 30+ years of using them.
RetiredDoc
Posts: 1316
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: Aiken SC

Re: Battery prices

Post by RetiredDoc »

I have been through similar battery threads recently on most of cars, trucks, tractor, and generator boards I participate in. A common post is a condemnation of a particular label of battery based on failure of a single battery - my Diehard failed after 5 years, so all Diehard batteries are crap, for example.

As an old, obsessive guy I start shopping for a new battery at the first sign of failure. Some batteries, like John Deere tractor batteries are notorious for sudden, unexpected death, so I keep a replacement on hand, maintained on a Battery Tender. Other vehicle batteries I buy based on time in service or at the first sign of a hesitant engine turnover. All the new batteries are on Battery Tenders until needed.

This lets me take the time to find the best prices. Latest acquisitions were both Exide Extra AGMs, one for my Lexus, and one for my home generator. with a list price of $182. Home Depot locally discontinued them and they were both $109. At the same time they were selling Battery Tenders at half price, so I bought the 3 that were left.

Not everyone has the luxury of a shop with storage space to keep batteries on hand at home. At last count I have 9 vehicles or other engines which use batteries, so I try to plan ahead.

Cores are a constant shuffle. No one has ever turned down a core battery for not being the same size as the one I am buying.
Mike W.
Posts: 26872
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: California Whine Country

Re: Battery prices

Post by Mike W. »

tn535i wrote: Nov 04, 2020 2:12 PM What sort of battery cannot hold a charge for two weeks? We've gone on two week vacations leaving a car at the airport and I never thought twice it wouldn't be fine when returning?
Agreed, as long as the battery is decent, it's never been a problem. I will allow I might have a little apprehension on return, but never a problem.

I too have started replacing batteries preemptively when they get old. Especially in the wife's car. :laugh:
John in VA
Posts: 5278
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: Leesburg, VA

Re: Battery prices

Post by John in VA »

tn535i wrote: Nov 04, 2020 2:12 PM What sort of battery cannot hold a charge for two weeks? We've gone on two week vacations leaving a car at the airport and I never thought twice it wouldn't be fine when returning?
These days you have to worry about critters chewing the soy-based wire insulation if you leave your vehicle for any amount of time!
tn535i
Posts: 5585
Joined: Jul 14, 2006 1:30 PM
Location: Middle Tennessee

Re: Battery prices

Post by tn535i »

John in VA wrote: Nov 04, 2020 4:24 PMThese days you have to worry about critters chewing the soy-based wire insulation if you leave your vehicle for any amount of time!
Or in our case the engine knock sensor in the middle of the engine V under the intake manifold where it built a nest. Florida vacation at inlaws and the car only sat 4 days or so. And that insulation was even printed rat proof... right :roll:
Blue Shadow
Posts: 10195
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: SE PA

Re: Battery prices

Post by Blue Shadow »

tn535i wrote: Nov 04, 2020 6:13 PM that insulation was even printed rat proof... right :roll:
Unfortunately the rats can't read.
RetiredDoc
Posts: 1316
Joined: Feb 12, 2006 12:00 PM
Location: Aiken SC

Re: Battery prices

Post by RetiredDoc »

John in VA wrote: Nov 04, 2020 4:24 PM
tn535i wrote: Nov 04, 2020 2:12 PM What sort of battery cannot hold a charge for two weeks? We've gone on two week vacations leaving a car at the airport and I never thought twice it wouldn't be fine when returning?
These days you have to worry about critters chewing the soy-based wire insulation if you leave your vehicle for any amount of time!
I recently put a new Optima battery in my truck, but my wife called me in for dinner before I connected the cables. I forgot about the project for a few days, and opened the hood to find the positive post had been chewed all the way down to the battery case. All that was left was a pile of lead shavings. I suspect squirrel.
Post Reply