My Battery Story

[RangerRock]

Will try to keep this short.
Tried to start the truck ('21 Ranger Tremor) with the fob, failed to start twice. Jumped in the truck and it started right up, but figured I'd get the battery tested as it was getting close to 2.5 years old and that's when the last one started failing and the one before that on my F150. Auto parts store #1 said yep, failed the test. Went to another store and they said it failed as well. Specifically, a cranking test. Went to the dealer as the battery was within the 3-year, 36,000 mile warranty period, and I have a great service writer, showed him the receipt from the auto parts store, and he got me a new battery under warranty no problem. But, the dealer test said it passed. Anyone have any idea as to why? And how the heck to a get a good, reliable battery test in the future? Appreciate any insights you all can provide.

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[diesel924]

When you use a conductance tester you are supposed to put the clamps right on the lead terminals of the battery, not the steel cable clamps. It makes a difference.

 

[ScarzRanger21(2.0)]

In your case, I’d go by what the auto store said. If they load tested it, that’s the most accurate way to check a battery. Did you ask what kind of test the dealership did?

If they just put a multimeter on it and said “yup, there’s juice” that’s not an accurate battery test. You need to put it under load and monitor the voltage drop as it’s working. You could have 12v surface charge but that doesn’t mean your battery will handle cranking starter.

 

[diesel924]

In your case, I’d go by what the auto store said. If they load tested it, that’s the most accurate way to check a battery. Did you ask what kind of test the dealership did?

If they just put a multimeter on it and said “yup, there’s juice” that’s not an accurate battery test. You need to put it under load and monitor the voltage drop as it’s working. You could have 12v surface charge but that doesn’t mean your battery will handle cranking starter.

If you look at his printout you can see they used a conductance type tester, not a carbon pile load tester.
https://www.autometer.com/bva-360;-...zpe5IRwfGCKbH6sgjK-fLSJTCxEgfWANcE3DT6Q-nmrhb

 

[RangerRock]

In your case, I’d go by what the auto store said. If they load tested it, that’s the most accurate way to check a battery. Did you ask what kind of test the dealership did?

If they just put a multimeter on it and said “yup, there’s juice” that’s not an accurate battery test. You need to put it under load and monitor the voltage drop as it’s working. You could have 12v surface charge but that doesn’t mean your battery will handle cranking starter.

No, I didn't ask what kind of test the dealership did, but will next time I'm there. At auto parts store #1, they hooked up a device and tested while the vehicle was off and it was over 12V, then, they had me start it and said it immediately went up to 14v. They then asked me to hold the RPMs between 2 and 3,000 which, I had a bit of a struggle with but managed to hold it just over 2,000 for a few seconds. They then said it looks like I have a bad cell and the battery ultimately failed.
Store #2 just hooked up a device to the battery and that is the receipt you see in my original message. Guy just said it failed.

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