Battery Poll

How many of you are still on the original Miata battery?? Please state the year. of your Miata. Mine is a 2000 MX5. Still seems to work. Has always turned over what sounds like a tad slower than my other two vehicles. But the same as from day one, so I consider that normal. Only fire mine up about once a week, for a round a 14 mi. trip, ea. way. If I have just traveled to a spot in town, it seems to turn over a little quicker having just been used. Comments???

P.S. Gets used more during the good weather, beach going, summer/fall months, here in N.Ca. :-).

Reply to
Steve K
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2000 model about 56K miles driven daily (commute, etc.).

still orig. battery, nothing abnormal to report. no signs of dying.

it's definitely outlasted my expectation, given the lifetime of other batteries in my other cars. Usually those died within 4-5 years of new.

Reply to
josh

99 bought new in April 98.Battery was still plenty strong when I traded it for a Mazdaspeed last July. George "From the home of the: Super Bowl XXXIX Champions 2005 AFC Champions Super Bowl XXXVIII Champions 2003 AFCE Champions Super Bowl XXXVI Champions New England Patriots" "Bingo! We win again!" - Troy Brown

''Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, Welcome to Fenway Park" Home of the 2004 World Series Champion, Boston Red Sox

Reply to
George R. Burke

My '91's original battery lasted until well into 1998. My current car, a '99, still has the original battery, but oddly enough I was just thinking about getting a new one. On a couple of cold mornings this past month, it was cranking really slowly.

H.

Reply to
HardwareLust

Thanks for your responses, so far. I'm thinking about replacing mine in the next few months, not because it seems to be acting differently. Cranked over, all winter long, even when sitting up to a week and 1/2, and never really ever slower. Like I said always has been a tad slower than my other two. Once when having lunch with an old co-worker friend, when I went to crank it on, getting ready to leave, he asked me if I ever had the battery tested`. I told him that that was the way this car always cranks over. Seems normal to me, for that car. Just maybe the type of starter Mazda uses. Not really noticebly slow, just a tad slower (Hope that makes sense :-) )). Anyway, I'm considering getting one anyway, since they are so difficult to find, not in your everyday Sears, Kragens or Grand Auto, I don't want to find myself one day with a totally dead battery, and then having a difficult time getting one. Our Auto Zone Stores carry a Durolast, but even though they all seems to list them, they never ( At least the one near me), never has one, telling me the nearest one that does, often times 14-30 mi. away; an inconvenience for sure. If the Auto Zone a mi. from me happens to actually have one the next time I check, I'll probably scoot over with my tools, and like Larry the Cable guy says, Just, "Get er done,">>lol.

Reply to
Steve K

I still have my 1996 original battery. It is still fine, though I bought a Westco replacement a few years ago mistakenly thinking the battery was bad. I keep one on a battery tender and use the other.

Actually, I find that both may be unable to start the car if it has stood for a few days and it is still freezing when I try to get away. Happened a couple of times in the last one or two years. I just swap the battery from the tender with the one in the car and I am off. :)

Even when the car is parked, there is a dark current draining the battery. In addition, the battery will be hotter after a trip.

Leon

Reply to
Leon van Dommelen
1994 original battery, still kicking it over, every day...

Bill Seaby

Reply to
William Seaby

Reply to
Christopher Muto
1994 Red "R" and still going strong.
Reply to
Jim Mc Donald

Perhaps I should introduce myself to the group. We bought an 03 LS about 2 weeks ago. 2nd Mazda, 1st Miata. Have absolutely fallen in love with the machine. The amazing thing is that my wife has as well!

I have wondered about the battery as well. Mine starts after turning over what seems like about 4 or 5 times each time. I am used to my other cars and bike starting on the 1st or 2nd revolution. It always catches me by surprise that the Miata has to grind away for a second longer. She only has 17k miles and I am not sure yet where it stands on maintenance. Could it simply be in need of new plugs or wires, or could it be that the battery is not strong enough?

Your thoughts would be appreciated.

TW

Reply to
Terrance Wagner

Mine sometimes does that when I have a wad of keys on the keychain. I think too much metal interferes with the engine immobilizer.

You can allways have the battery tested. The amperage a battery delivers declines over time and that is a good indication of how much life you may have left.

You can also eyeball the cells. The cell closest to shorting may turn cloudy before it goes bad. However, this is ususally an indication that the battery is already shot and you need a new one.

As far as battery life, it is greatly influence by freezeing. Periods of idleness (battery drains just sitting there, and this includes the time the battery sits on the shelf at the store!!) and complete drains. If you drain a lead acid battery completely, it will never return to the amperad capacity it had prior to being drained.

Reply to
M. Cantera

i don't know if you were speaking generally about typical lead/acid batteries or specifically about the miata factory installed glass-mat type... mine is completely sealed and don't know of any way of looking inside of it by means of other than destroying it... read this great article below (but note that the terminal post issue with westco batteries is dated, they now offer a perfect fit).

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Reply to
Christopher Muto

Sorry about not being specific. You can only peek into conventional lead-acid batteries. (i.e. those that require maintenance such as you adding water on a regular basis.) The maintenance free batteries have opeque stuff in between the plates, if you wanted to look into them.

As an aside, I worked in a facility that had an old uniterruptible power supply made up of lead acid batteries with clear cases. You could always spot the if any was low on acid, or if it was going bad in no time at all.

Reply to
M. Cantera

no need to apologize, was just looking for clarity... there is certainly lots that i don't know... but after learning about miata glass-mat batteries and reading that article (previously mentioned) i can't help but wonder why they even put conventional lead/acid batteries any more.

and your point about a heavy key chain is interesting. in fact, when i first got the car and went to have copies made the locksmith told me that miata's are really great cars but they have lousy locks and warned me to never use force to turn the key (well you have to use some 'force', but you know what i mean) and not to have a heavy key chain dangling from the ignition. those apparently are two great ways to ruin the locks.

Reply to
Christopher Muto

Same thing for me, 1999 model, 63K miles, driven daily, and this winter for the first time was a little sluggish cranking when left outside on cold nights. I'll probably replace the battery in the fall.

Reply to
Barry

1997
Reply to
Roger Scow, Sr

snipped-for-privacy@webtv.net (Steve K) wrote in news:19825-424454FC-222@storefull-

3132.bay.webtv.net:

94 w/ about 150,000 mi. Made it until this past winter.
Reply to
Scott Hughes

turns out that i don't have the original battery in my '95 triple black... i discovered that the dealer had a record of the battery being replaced in

12/02. that battery says mazda on it so it is a factory replacement. anyone know a way for me to tell if it is a glass matt or the lead/acid type that i hear mazda is using as replacements these days... if it isn't the glass matt type then i probably will have to replace it in a year. thanks.
Reply to
Christopher Muto

Sealed battery will has the vent blocks (square things on top of the battery) glued to the battey. Lead acid has removable blocks/plugs so that you can add periodically add distilled water to the battery.

You should ba able to pull the part number from the battery/work order/dealer and f>turns out that i don't have the original battery in my '95 triple black...

Reply to
M. Cantera

M. Cantera wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:

Not always true, there are sealed lead acid batteries.

I should know, I have two of 'em on my main ride:

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Since it's sometimes necessary to take scooters and wheelchairs aboard commercial aircraft the FAA requires they be fitted with sealed batteries, the two common types are gel and lead acid, both are completely sealed with no vent holes, removable caps, etc.

Reply to
XS11E

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