Propickup Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/105105
BUYER'S GUIDE A buyer's guide to heavy-duty pickup batteries; upgrade options for OEM replacements By Allan Tarvid B atteries. We can't live without them in our pickups. When are working fine, we never give them a second thought. When the batteries go bad, it's panic time. But those dreaded dead battery situations can be avoided if you pay attention to hints things are going awry in your pickup's electrical department. Hint number one of a battery's impending demise is an engine that turns over more slowly than usual during cold starts. Hint number two is a noticeable dimming of the headlights moments after you turn the off ff engine off. The average heavy-duty OEM battery ave a e h avy-duty OE d y heavy-duty EM ou o five ears with p ope maintewi lasts four to five years with proper maintece. T ife if nance. That life span can be shortened, of life pan ca be or course, with repeated use beyond which it is designed. For instance, maybe you roll down the windows after the engine is turned off and listen to an amped-up stereo while you work, or leave the headlights on to light up a job when you run out of daylight. Or maybe you run HID or high-power driving and headlights, or use the winch a lot. Those are the types of power drains the standard battery doesn't handle well. REPLACEMENT FACTORS Unfortunately, some sneaky batteries keep th r failing a g ec right up u til y r ght g unt their failing health a secret right up until you t nt th it n noth ng ha pe s thi happens. hin app h turn the ignition key and nothing happens. en it's t Then it's time to get them replaced. he hem e e them replaced. If you need only a little more electrical power, the first and easiest solution is to see if a cranking battery with more capacity is available to fit your truck. The main capacity rating for OEM batteries is cold cranking amps (CCA). The CCA number indicates how many amps a new, fullycharged battery at zero degrees Fahrenheit (F) can deliver for 30 seconds without falling below 7.2 volts. The bigger the CCA number, the longer the battery will crank your engine and the longer you can run a few accessories with the engine off before you risk starting problems. Battery size and location are also important factors to consider; installing anything beyond a standard replacement battery can be tricky. Some pickup's battery cables are only be long enough to reach positive and negative tiv p e ed tive posts locate where they are on the OEM located bat b te nd ins stal s battery and instal installing a non-OEM model may call fo modifyi a f od call for modifying the cable connections. y p If your pickup is still under warranty i it' als it's also a good idea to talk to your d deale dealer's service manager to make ure n re sure nothing you plan to do imp pacts your warranty coverage. You may also be able to find dee ad deep-cycle or dual-purpose Abso Absorbe Absorbed Glass Mat (AGM) batteries are ar sealed are seale and maintenance-free – you never never add water and no messy venting eve through caps through ca means no fuzzy gunge on ro ou terminals and terminals an clamps. ermin mi 76 PROPICKUP Buyer's Guide 2012