So my car was sitting in my garage for a little over 2 weeks not being driven since I had to wait to get my slipping clutch fixed. ($!) I try to start it up to finally bring it to the mechanic the other day and would not start at all! Had to jump start it. My AP1 is 7 years old now and still has the same battery. Is it recommended to replace it by now? I have 56K miles by the way. Does WalMart sell any good ones? Which batteries are good to have if I have a sound system too? Im kinda on a budget too though. Thanks.

 

7 years is excellent life for the battery. You want a group 51 (not 51R - the terminals will be backward). Stay away from the Optima Yellow Top if you find it, it should be ideal for a heavy duty sound system but there are serious quality issues with that battery and many here have had them fail over and over.

 

Thought I read that battery is a Consumer Report recommended battery.....

 

Yellow top battery quality has significantly gone down. They are completly hit or miss now. If you get a good one, your set, otherwise if you get a bad one expect it to go dead within a month or two. Not worth paying a premium price for a crap shoot.

 

what's your recommended brand and source?

 

Mine lasted almost a year before dying abruptly.

 

Walmart Ever Start batteries are good quality and made by Johnson Controls. I think they also make Die Hard batteries. I recently got one for my Altima and it had a longer warranty than many others. Plus you can exchange at any Walmart if you have problems down the line. Just enter the Walmart in the side entrance at the auto/tire center and avoid the crowds.

 

I've used WalMart batteries and always been pleased, especially considering they are half the price or less of a lot of the other batteries out there. The warranty period they give is good and WalMart gave me no hassle what so ever when I did need to exchange one after 2 years. When my factory battery goes bad I'll be heading straight to WalMart with $40 in my hand.

 

how much they run about?

 

I read somewhere once that your battery loses about 1% of charge per day if you don't use your car so maybe you can use that as a guide as to whether it's bad or not.

I noticed on this site:

honda parts cheap

you can get a factory battery for $55. seems like a good price. can they really ship a car battery in the mail and is the stock battery any good?