Westco battery fails (again)

Sorry to hear that it failed and that I can't give any insight on how long one lasts. But if you want to get another (are there any alternatives?) then for what it is worth I got one in December from batteryweb.com for $107.50 delivered, no tax collected. It arrived two days later originating from "MK Battery" (where you suggested that I buy from but could not find locally). Oddly the 12V31M doesn't appear on batteryweb's site now... perhaps they lost money on the sale and removed it from their site?!? Perhaps it is worth a call.

Don't know, mine is only a couple of years old now. New ones are $99 now:

My second Westco is apparently dead: I can charge it at one amp for two days and it'll start the car, but two days of sitting in the garage and it's nearly flat. I might have some rogue OEM component drawing excessive dark current (there's no alarm or aftermarket stereo), but it's been too cold to do any serious testing.

I'm about to buy a cheap wet battery and be done with it.

when i got my new westco last month i put my old one up on craigslist for free with full disclosure of the age etc... someone wanted it because he was having his car painted and it came to his intention that the oversize after market wet cell battery that the po installed actually put a dent in his fender from the inside... i don't know how it was mounted but this was a new one on me and thought i would mention it to you as a possible consideration when using an oversize battery.

My Duralast battery fits in the same spot with the same bracket. It even has the vent hose connections. It was around $90.00 from Autonzone, but I received a partial credit from the last one not making it to the end of the warranty period.

I like getting the battery from Autozone because of how easy it is to find a store to do a swap-out, and never waiting for it to be mailed.

That said, I still might get a Westco next time since with a OTM it is now OK for the car to go down for a couple of days at a time.

Pat

I picked one up in person from MK Battery, near downtown Dallas, in nearby Mesquite, TX. Around $130 with tax. I didn't want to wait.

I tried, but I can't decipher that. "OTM?" "Go down?" Where? Sorry, if I'm being dumb.

Nah, not being dumb. That should have been, "OTM vehicle", meaning other than Miata. By "go down", I meant for the car to go down, as in not be operational. That used to be a cause for great concern if it happened to my Miata for even a day, but with a Honda Accord backup, things are easier now in that regard.

Pat

In April, my Westco will have been in the '90 Miata for eight years. I have been thinking about changing it simply as a preventative measure.

When I ordered it from Westco, the first one came damaged. I took a couple of pictures, sent them an email and got a replacement quickly and with no questions asked.

I see one currently on ebay for $105.

Ken

Got it. in 13 years, my miata has gone down (other than a few dead batteries which were always discovered at home on a cold morning) only once. Overheated with a bad radiator on the highway. Only time it was towed. With everything else that ever went wrong with it, it kept plugging along or gave me enough warning.

Sounds like a good idea.

If you have what Pat likes to call an OTM, why not get all you can out of that little ......... cell! You might as well set the curve ;-)

Chris

It's like timing belts. They let go in the most inconvenient places. While it's tempting, I like the "preventative" aspect of it.

Ken

Chris D'Agnolo wrote:

My one experience with a broken timing belt was about one mile from the driveway, and it was all level or downhill home. I just pushed/coasted it back to the house. :-)

That was also the timing belt that lasted less than 30K miles.

My last battery failure happened on a hill and I roll-started it in reverse. Despite my abnormal good luck with the latest Miata breakdowns, I agree, replacing the battery now is a very good idea. Eight years out of one battery is fantastic.

Pat

Many years ago, I was coming down the hill leading to my home when the throwout bearing fork failed on my 70 TR6. Coasted to a stop in the driveway. Yep....I had one of those moments too, but I think there is a limit per lifetime.

Ken