The battery on  my 2003 Ford  Ranger died, the last one i bought  4 or 5 years ago  was a Panasonic  "no maintenance"' battery, my thoughts on no maintenance   means  no need to top  up with distilled water,  & for the last 4 years i have'nt done so. and  never a problem ...... I  took it to a local Thai  DIY Man   who said he could charge  it overnight     , the next morning he said ,....." battery dry no have water inside,....."i pointed to the label displaying.... No maintenance & no visible pots to fill  .. he just laughed, tearing off a colored  plastic  strip  to reveal   screw lids over the pots where water is supposed to be filled ....

 

Does anyone know   what this no maintenance label is supposed to mean? ... i bought a new battery this morning i also asked this guy about the  no maintenance    label, he didnt know too,     but the new battery has  visible  screw lids  .. 

It means no maintenance for four years then its dies , I don't like that kind,

my daughter has them on her Honda Jazz , they only seem to last 2-3 years,

 

On my truck I like to check battery levels weekly and top up with distilled

water ,along with all other levels , had one battery last for 11 years, maintenance

not a concept familiar to most Thais.

 

regards worgeordie

 

 

 

The 'Thai DIY man' probably charged it using too high a current as is very common here and fried the battery hence no electrolyte.

Bought a lot of batteries since I have been here.

Tried the 'premium', maintenance free, yada yada yada

Now use Thai made batteries, and at the first sign of low voltage replace them.

Weekly check with a multimeter will tell you when it is starting to go.

No drama, no excess cost, just easy peasy way to go.

Why do you call them pick ups?

https://www.oranacarandtruck.com.au/blog/history-of-the-ute

15 minutes ago, Sparktrader said:

Why do you call them pick ups?

It's an American thing ,

regards Worgeordie

Just now, worgeordie said:

It's an American thing ,

regards Worgeordie

Yes I know, what does it mean?

Just now, Sparktrader said:

Yes I know, what does it mean?

You can pick stuff up with it , transport it , 

regards Worgeordie 

In my experience in warm climates batteries rarely last more than 3 years due to the use of the aircon. My 2016 Ranger is on it's third battery. Both times before have got in and had zero electrics, sometimes it was obvious as the remote locking did not work. Charged them overnight and they last about a month, then you can hear the starter motor start to struggle. Time for a new one . In Saudi batteries were old at three years, and driving long ways on desert roads, at the first sign of them getting weak I would change them out.

As for maintenance free batteries, I was under the impression they were filled with a gel, not a liquid electrolyte, but, I could be mistaken.

Total  hit and miss here.

Unless you test the internal  resistance when you buy the battery

to high and could be a short life span as it may have  sat on the shelf for  the last few years. 

Bs labels on the battery saying its some thing its not.

Just don't pay to much, as sure will be disappointed  2 years latter.

TIT.

 

 

 

33 minutes ago, worgeordie said:

You can pick stuff up with it , transport it , 

regards Worgeordie 

Same with any large car.

1 hour ago, AhFarangJa said:

In my experience in warm climates batteries rarely last more than 3 years due to the use of the aircon. My 2016 Ranger is on it's third battery. Both times before have got in and had zero electrics, sometimes it was obvious as the remote locking did not work. Charged them overnight and they last about a month, then you can hear the starter motor start to struggle. Time for a new one . In Saudi batteries were old at three years, and driving long ways on desert roads, at the first sign of them getting weak I would change them out.

As for maintenance free batteries, I was under the impression they were filled with a gel, not a liquid electrolyte, but, I could be mistaken.

"As for maintenance free batteries, I was under the impression they were filled with a gel, not a liquid electrolyte, but, I could be mistaken."

 

AGM (absorbed glass mat) batteries are what I think you are referring to.  Nearly all motorcycle batteries are AGM these days but I have not seen AGM batteries for cars in Thailand.

 

AGM batteries are great.  You can fit them any way up and you never get acid spills.

1 hour ago, Sparktrader said:

Same with any large car.

Try hauling a 25 cu ft refrigerator in your 'large car'

2 hours ago, worgeordie said:

You can pick stuff up with it , transport it , 

regards Worgeordie 

I WOULD HAVE NOT EVEN REPLIED

 

18 hours ago, worgeordie said:

You can pick stuff up with it , transport it , 

regards Worgeordie 

I think he needs pictures.

I just changed my battery in the Triton, the last one made it to three years. A new sealed battery cost me 2400 baht, that's with a 800 baht discount for the old one. I never expect to get more than 3 years here.