Battery Tender Needed if Ferrari is Driven?

Covered by warranty, always thinking the extreme south Florida heat may be a cause ,
Dealership says it's a common occurrence here.

 

I regularly used Interstate batteries and a few years ago someone told me they weren't as good as they used to be. The following is a recent post from a Lexus forum. I haven't verified the information, but the member who posted it has added very credible posts in the forum.

"BATTERY BRANDS, MAKERS & PERFORMANCE

In 2019, Project Farm posted a YouTube video comparatively testing-out six different major brands of car batteries: https://bit.ly/36ZAi7y . My read of it is that, among the four non-AGM batteries, the Walmart EverStart Maxx/Gold Group Size 27 & O'Reilly SuperStart Premium Group Size 27, tested out as best.

I see a lot of positive chatter on these boards about Interstate. And I agree that Interstate USED to be a top-tier, five-star battery brand. I bought them for many trouble-free years. However, over the last five years or so, several mechanics have warned me off current Interstate product. And here's why.

The classic Johnson Control batteries were good product at fair price. But eventually their corporate strategy took a turn. During the 2010s, Johnson Controls accumulated the manufacture and/or licensing of almost every well-known American car battery name brand. That includes snagging (former) high-quality brands such as Interstate & Optima, as well as Delphi, DieHard & AutoCraft (both AdvanceAuto), ACDelco, Duralast (AutoZone), Champion (PepBoys), EverStart (Walmart) & Motorcraft. Meanwhile they steadily migrated all their production to Mexico to be built on-the-cheap. Then, in late-2018, Johnson Controls, with low manufacturing costs vs. high-quality/name-brand revenue streams on-the-books, cashed-out its Battery Division entirely, selling it all off to an "asset management company," dba as 'Clarios,' for $13 billion. Being an 'asset management company' instead of being a 'car battery company,' Clarios bean-counters will likely be looking to 'improve the financials' so they can flip the company down-the-road for a profit. And that will likely lead to even more cheapening of product.

This is why you see a once-premier brand such as Interstate, that used to sell as a premium product off corner-cap metal racks at so many retail auto repair shops, now being sold primarily at deep-discounter Costco.

Sure all those places will likely honor the warranty on the Clarios batteries they sell. (For Costco Interstate, btw, the battery is marked as such and you must return to Costco, not Interstate, to obtain warranty service.) But given the scenario above, the chances they will malfunction or fail within-warranty is surely much higher (than it used to be).

On the flip side, the O'Reilly SuperStart family of batteries is one of the few brands NOT affiliated with (the former) Johnson Controls. Rather it is a product of East Penn Manufacturing. East Penn is not run by accountants and financial-types looking to turn a quick buck. It's a 75-year-old, privately-held, family-owned battery builder running a 2 million square-foot factory in Berks County, Pennsylvania … so the owners have their own skin deep in the game. East Penn also builds-out auto batteries for NAPA and markets its own auto battery brand, Deka. Historically, East Penn also built Duracell-branded batteries for Sam's Club & Batteries+Bulbs… but I am not 100% sure if that is still true today.

So my recommendation is: get a SuperStart and keep a copy of your receipt in the glove box. Then make a quick pit-stop at your local O'Reilly unit 2 or 3 times a year and have them test it out. If they find it failing, you'll get a new one installed free & fast on-the-spot under warranty. Shortly after the warranty expires, just purchase a new one and have them pop it in. Rinse & repeat as needed."

 

Interstate is only battery my ff doesnt eat

 

I've had an Interstate in my 612 since 12/8/2017, so I'm satisfied. I can't tell what's in my FF because it is so covered up. Whatever it is, it's at least almost 2 years old.

 

I love project farm so much

 

Buy interstate 3 years warranty, replace every 34 months..

 

Got my interstate battery from Firestone want it replaced under warranty. Firestone now tell me
they only now stock Diehard I’m skeptical..

 

Installed today should it start life on a tender..

 

Yes ..it will ensure that is at top charge (sometimes new batteries sit for a while and need a little more juice to be fully charged)

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