geko29

On sale is ALWAYS a relative term, in the most literal sense. It is relative to the normal selling price of that particular item. It doesn't matter if the normal price is $1 or $1M.

At the time, the one I bought was marked down from $200 to $187, and I was able to apply a $50 coupon on top of that. If I had to buy one today, I would go to Autozone, because my size AGM is $200, vs. $220 for the exact same battery at Advanced Auto.

SW17LS

Brands dont mean a whole lot in the modern era when it comes to batteries. Almost all batteries are made by 2 or 3 manufacturers. This "Die Hard" battery is the exact same battery as AAP's AutoCraft batteries, which are the same as every other JohnsonControls battery.

Bykfixer

As a flashlight enthusiast I learned that many of the popular US made CR123 batteries come from the same factory. Yet not all are exactly the same. Energy storage differs in some. Ability to hold steady voltage with massive draws differs in some.

I guess what I'm getting at is the buyer needs to read up on things like how long the battery can last if one uses it to power a portable vaccum or inflate a tire without the car running or how well does it handle powering a starter motor on a very cold engine.

But that too can vary within a brand too. Take DieHard as an example. You have silver, gold and platinum. So does Autocraft but does the AutoCraft have the same cold cranking amps? To some in say North Dakota that can matter. In Key West Florida, perhaps not unless you are trying to fire a high compression engine. I had a DieHard keep failing on me years ago and eventually the guy at Sears asked me about my engine. They had sold me the "size" to fit my car but it was underpowered. I paid them a few $ to upgrade after 3 or 4 replacements to fire up my high compression engine and I never had another issue.

So there may be times you purchase a battery based on the specs and not the warranty or brand since as it has been said, many are made in the same factory anyway.

geko29

Yes, they do, they are the exact same battery. Same SKU number at AAP and everything. I posted a picture above from my purchase of one. The static text in the email says it's an AutoCraft Platinum AGM (because that's what it was at the time), but the picture is of the DieHard variant, because that's what they sell now. Clicking the link in the email brings me to the page for the current DieHard Platinum AGM version of the SKU.

Kennyr44

Good information. Who has had a battery last a very long time? I have seen customer’s batteries last 8 years and still working.

Felix

I had a Die-hard battery in my 390 Fairlane yrs ago, worked great. Had a couple Interstates as well including one in the rx. Also had a oreillys batttery which was made by East Penn.

flipside909

There are two main suppliers for batteries in the US...Exide or Johnson Controls. Johnson Controls Power Solutions sold and is now Clarios. They manufacture:

Interstate
Toyota True Start under Interstate
Lexus Genuine Battery under Interstate
Costco under Interstate
Die Hard
Duralast

just to name a few.

grabber2

I agree that brand is not that of a big deal when it comes to battery. Most are refurbish anyway, so their performance varies even it has the same part#.

I went with the Walmart EverStart Maxx for the LX after watching this review. It is only $90 compares to the other one going for $200+. It is working so far so good.


btw....LEXUS wants $1,700 for their OEM battery
https://parts.lexus.com/t/Lexus_2014...0/battery.html

sunpadre

The old Die Hard batteries were very good and all that I used for a long time. Until they started to not hold up anymore and I had to switch to other makes. Hope these new, resurrected ones are made well. I will probably try one out next time I need a battery and see how it goes.

MrRuffles

I don’t believe all DieHards were made by Johnson Controls. I remember looking at batteries a couple of years ago and, here in the Northeast at least, there were DieHards that were made by EastPenn/Deka (you could identify them by the EP in their model number).

natman

The original Toyota battery in by 2002 GS 300 lasted 9 years. This is especially impressive given that when my mother owned the car, it was the original car driven once a week by a little old lady. During the two years before I took possession of the car, it was driven twice each year. Very hard on a battery, but this one took it without even needing a recharge or a boost. When it finally gave up the ghost, I considered another one, but being a dealer part it was twice as much as a premium aftermarket battery, I wasn't sure it would be the same manufacturer and I wasn't going to subject the battery to the same abuse, since the car is now a daily driver.

I bought Die-Hard batteries for 40 years until I needed the replacement for this one. Then I realized the warranty would last longer than Sears was going to be around, so I bought something else.

Byprodrive

iTrader: (1)

At one time Johnson Controls made most of the auto batteries in the USA regardless of the name on the battery.
I used to drive past the main Johnson Controls battery manufacturing plant in So.CA & you could smell the acid they used.
The entire property has been condemed now.

I bought my 1st car in 1978, a 1971 Firebird Formula 455. It had a J.C.Penny battery with a lifetime warranty. When I sold the car after I wrecked it, I kept the battery & put it in the next 1967 Firebird I bought, when the battery started to fail I exchanged it for a new one. When J.C. Pennys closed their auto centers Firestone took over the battery warranty I would remove the battery & take it to Firestone to exchange for a new battery, I did this one more time & left the battery in that car when I sold it to buy my Porsche. since then I recently had to replace the battery in my GS 350 because it died in a Walmart parking lot luckly. I bought their best battery that came with a 10 year warranty non-prorated !

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

sometimes the “it just keeps working so I’ll keep using it” method ends up not being the best approach though. I’ve posted the below before a few years ago so just pasting it in

Och

iTrader: (3)

That is crazy. I lost a few electronic devices such as remote controls when old batteries leaked inside them, but a totalled car is on a whole different level. Speaking of batteries, I remember on older cars, back in the 90ies, battery terminals and wires attached to them would corrode over time and had to be periodically cleaned with a wire brush. This really doesn't happen anymore, is it due to newer battery tech?

mmarshall

It was actually a special tool...I still have one in my tool kit, but. like you, I rarely if ever use it any more.....don't need to. For one thing, it screws up the computers and memory too much nowadays when you disconnect the battery. And, like you say, the terminals don't corrode as much.

Anyhow, it was a two-part tool (two-in-one) You pulled the cap off and used the top portion to clean the holes inside of the terminals.....and the lower part to clean the (+) and (-) battery-posts.