Buyer Beware:- Acdelco Dodgy Batterys

mrfordfairmont · 01-08-2010, 09:36 AM

hi everyone
i purchased a acdelco battery from aussie auto enoggera(great guys and great srevice.
i am on my third battery in the xd in 10 months, i have been through alternators and have had them tested and it not the alternator as i have a 100amp at the moment, i put the battery on charge the other day and the battery charged so i swiched it off anf the lights on the charger go down fast top to bottom in minutes.
i droped in and spoke to aussie about the battery and aussie order a new one under warrranty and advises me it will be there at 2pm the next day.
2nd day:- get there after 2pm next day no battery so i give aussie the battery so it can go back and aussie give me a loan battery and aussie say tomorrow it should be there ok all good. acdelco gave aussie the excuse "it a warranty claim, we are not making a special trip"
3rd day :- give aussie a call and still no battery and acdelco gave aussie the excuse "it a warranty claim, we are not going to the northside for 2 warrantys batterys" and aussie told them it better be there tomorrow.

4th day:- i ring battery is there finally so i picked up battery and aussie is not happy with acdelco and advise me if this battery fails he will be making acdelco pay for another battery for me.

so please DON'T BUY ACDELCO BATTERY THEY ONLY LAST 3-6 MONTHS

ams77 · 01-08-2010, 10:11 AM

mine has lasted a year and still cranking away on the gt strong. Just bought another one for the clevo xc. I have trickle charges attached that I use intermittently ( a few days on a few days off) and run the engines each week. Not sure if this is the right way to do it though.

yift · 01-08-2010, 10:49 AM

i would suggest to get an auto elec to go over your electrics before bagging the batteries. i know many people using these batteries without failures, most of them are over 3 years old. by the sounds of it your alternator may be faulty intermittently by sending voltage spikes to the battery and burning out a cell or two.

Kryton · 01-08-2010, 11:18 AM

So you have one dud battery and your making a whole thread about how crap AC Delco batteries are...............

Im willing to bet that your car is actually the issue, not the battery itself.

LTDHO · 01-08-2010, 11:49 AM

mrfordfairmont, mate it's you or your car. I have never had an issue with these batteries. It's speak to your supplier before blaming the product.

Interceptor · 01-08-2010, 11:49 AM

we have them at work, only had one warranty claim in the last 12 months

Pinkbits · 01-08-2010, 12:20 PM

Just to prove you wrong i just went and connected mine.
It is in my coupe, been sitting there for 5 months but has the memory wire to headunit connected continuously.
And guess what? It started first go.

A visit to an auto elec would be a good idea.

Kryton · 01-08-2010, 12:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrfordfairmont

i am on my third battery in the xd in 10 months

And your still trying to blame someone else.
That speaks volumes right there.

Jim Goose · 01-08-2010, 12:55 PM

Why did you have to put your battery on charge in the first place???
If your battery goes flat and the alternator tests ok, then you have a relay or similier which is faulty and flattening the battery while the car sits.

Simple things like a faulty switch in the boot if you have a light fitted there can cause the light to remain on all night.

A 100AMP alt?? er...Why?
Are you running some massive boom box set up?
If thats the case id recheck everything there too, especially if its been hotwired directly to the battery.
A high power amp left on all night will flatten things quickly.

Just a thought...

svo supporter · 01-08-2010, 02:13 PM

Every battery company has issues every now and then with batteries, hence giving a warranty.

I'll admit there service in replacing the battery has a lot to be desired, but I don't think bagging the product itself has alot of merit with this thread.

pottery beige · 01-08-2010, 02:22 PM

cheap crap battery in my XA is going on 5 years.....
gets disconnected when parked up.....

galaxy xr8 · 01-08-2010, 02:42 PM

I had an AC Delco maintenence free bat in my XW for about 5+ odd yr's, and it never seen the road, I used to go into the shed every few week's and charge it for a few day's and then let it sit, toward's the end of it's life it did loose charge but for 5+ odd yr's vertually just sitting there, it did damn well.
I have recently just replaced it with another batt (Century) but now I have a C-Tek continous charger , which if I had of had with the AC Delco, it may have lasted longer.

Fordman · 01-08-2010, 04:12 PM

Is it the right battery, you would be amazed how many people get an insufficient battery for there car.

irish2 · 01-08-2010, 04:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim Goose

A 100AMP alt?? er...Why?
Are you running some massive boom box set up?
If thats the case id recheck everything there too, especially if its been hotwired directly to the battery.
A high power amp left on all night will flatten things quickly.

Just a thought...

I have a 120 amp alt. It was $5 more expensive than a 60 amp. It's a no brainer.

irish2 · 01-08-2010, 04:30 PM

To the OP. A repeated failed battery is usually caused by overcharging or over voltage conditions. If the battery is drained down it will still charge up fine, but it will not hold charge if it has been damaged by overvoltage.

mrfordfairmont · 03-08-2010, 09:47 AM

This is my third battery which has **** up due to a dead cell

Kryton · 03-08-2010, 10:55 AM

Which is due to your car draining the battery and subsequently killing.

302 XC · 03-08-2010, 02:27 PM

I would be getting the electrics checked out ,regardless of battery warranties
I can get a flattish battery that wont start a wittle 4 banger and kick start a clevo
Either wrong battery for the job (wrong CCA)
OR
An electrical fault
3 warranty batteries seems suss

The Monty · 03-08-2010, 06:03 PM

Ive had three flat tyres in 6 months, the last one was a goodyear. DONT BUY GOOD YEAR AS THEY ARE CRAP DODGY TYRES!!!

End sarcasm.

yift · 03-08-2010, 07:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrfordfairmont

This is my third battery which has **** up due to a dead cell

dead cell in a battery = over/under charging, power drain dodgy starter motor drawing too much current, bad earth etc etc etc

like i and many others have said GET YOUR ELECTRICS CHECKED OUT NOT JUST THE ALTERNATOR.

**Jastel** · 03-08-2010, 08:02 PM

Been using them in the taxis for a year or two now

Average age of dying is 4 months

Which sounds bad but is normal for a taxi - no warrantys allowed

They are OK for their price IMO

Yellow_Festiva · 03-08-2010, 08:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jastel

Been using them in the taxis for a year or two now

Average age of dying is 4 months

Which sounds bad but is normal for a taxi - no warrantys allowed

They are OK for their price IMO

A taxi battery lasts 4 months on average?? Thats nuts. I guess with the km they cover per week it makes sense.

302 XC · 03-08-2010, 08:48 PM

Its not the Ks that warn out taxi batteries
Its the constant
"start"drive a bit turn off
"start"drive a bit turn off
"start"drive a bit turn off
You get the drift

mrfordfairmont · 03-08-2010, 09:10 PM

well i am not the only one with ****** batterys when i took mine back the was another fella there with a performance asdelco and he is on second battery and now gone away from acdelco... and his car is stock.

oh and acdelco has a p**s poor customer service.

i put a 100amp alt due to the thermo fans(which pull 60 amps) but i do have a sub and amp to make sure the battery is getting charged, otherwise it a factory vehicle.

earth points:-
battery to block
battery to body
block to body

NO BAD EARTHS...

svo supporter · 03-08-2010, 11:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrfordfairmont

well i am not the only one with ****** batterys when i took mine back the was another fella there with a performance asdelco and he is on second battery and now gone away from acdelco... and his car is stock.

oh and acdelco has a p**s poor customer service.

i put a 100amp alt due to the thermo fans(which pull 60 amps) but i do have a sub and amp to make sure the battery is getting charged, otherwise it a factory vehicle.

earth points:-
battery to block
battery to body
block to body

NO BAD EARTHS...

No one is suggesting a bad earth. It could be something silly like an open circuit causing a power drain. eg. The amp not switching off, with the ignition off. So instead of jumping to the conclusion these batteries are pure crap, how about taking some advise from other members on here, and get it checked. If anything, it'd be for piece of mind, that your car won't burn to the ground as a result of it.

Fair call, there service is pathetic, but it doesn't mean the batteries are the same. Every battery company has a bad batch every now and then. Just like everything. Cars have a badge batch of parts eg your XD. They have a front loom problem with points ignition. They also have a balljoint problem, along with a camber bolt problem. Not to mention, the dreaded spring saddle squeek. Does that mean your XD is crap? I don't think so.

So instead of bad mouthing, how about doing what has been suggested by members and discount your car first.

yift · 04-08-2010, 12:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jastel

Been using them in the taxis for a year or two now

Average age of dying is 4 months

Which sounds bad but is normal for a taxi - no warrantys allowed

They are OK for their price IMO

we use super charge batteries on the cabs at the depot i work at, they give us a 6 month warranty for commercial use aswell. so far we havent had one fail within the 6 months but we change them give or take 2 weeks before or after the 6 months is up.

**Jastel** · 04-08-2010, 08:27 PM

I liked the Exides for years but they got too expensive up to $160
Still wouldn't do much more than 6 months

I pay $100 for AC Delco 530CCA Maintenence free ones, can get warranty if I want to pay $40 more so not really worth it

How much are Supercharge?
Might check them out

The batteries sometimes charge back up and can be used in private cars/boats etc for another 6 months or so but they WILL NOT go back in the taxis.
Don't need any more 3am wake up calls.

**Jastel** · 04-08-2010, 08:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 302 XC

Its not the Ks that warn out taxi batteries
Its the constant
"start"drive a bit turn off
"start"drive a bit turn off
"start"drive a bit turn off
You get the drift

Thats it!!

Plus the radio, computer, GPS, meter, Eftpos machines, hail lights etc etc....

Or drivers sitting there reading books all night.....

**DJR-351** · 04-08-2010, 09:06 PM

Bastards!!!

My AC DELCO s*** it's self two days ago, I bought the 2003 Landcruiser in good faith in 2005 believing the batt would last a life time (f%^& knows when it was fitted) and now it's flat as a tack, for six months of the year I am overseas so the bastard has no excuse for being overworked, I come home and crank it and it has always started, two days ago no way!!! piece of **** never again.....

**DJR-351** · 04-08-2010, 09:08 PM

Dam double post....