OEM Battery's average life span

Replaced mine jan.2013 when it was struggling during that deep freeze winter we had !It served me well for the past 8 years so it was time for a new one !

I find that 4 years is all I should expect from a battery. 5 years is pushing it. It gets cold here in the winter. My Sprinter is always parked outdoors.

I know that people in Phoenix Arizona have short auto battery life because of the intense summer heat.

I replaced mine after 7 years. Not bad. My wife's Kia was purchased used and had the original battery in it (8 years old). Replaced it the first day the temperature hit 35F. I remember having to replace batteries every 18-24 months!

I think my original lasted 5-6 years. Replacement Boschs lasted 3 months, 1 month, 2 years. Currently have a Walmart super-XXX-something. Easy warranty replacement all across the country.

i am still on the original german VARTA battery (2010)

My '06 original battery (Varta) lasted 9 1/2 years. Mild southern california weather. 115K miles.Replaced it with a flooded type Deka. Hope it lasts as long as the original!

Original lasted about 6 years. It was not showing any problems I had noticed just in at a different dealership than usually used and they recommended replacement. Bad choice lasted only couple years. On my third replacement now.

RB7 said:

My '06 original battery (Varta) lasted 9 1/2 years. Mild southern california weather. 115K miles.Replaced it with a flooded type Deka. Hope it lasts as long as the original!

Click to expand...

9 1/2 ha ? Now that's impressive . Were you good in Physics in high school by chance ?

My '06's original is still going strong but it does make me wonder.

My '06's battery was still working, but it died a couple of times in the last year when the van sat for a month at a time. I plan to go to Alaska in the future, and I no longer had faith in it. All I remember from Fyzics is that "Fast air sucks"(Bernoulli) and that "Work is MAD" but who doesn't know that?

I had to replace the one in my 08 just before I sold it last month.

I just proactively replaced my 8 year old battery eventhough no issues were apparent. Just thought it was better to do it near home base than deal with a failed battery miles in the middle of nowhere.

I replace mine when it's 5 years old. I believe the computer need a good consistent voltage.

I have first hand experience that the battery will only last a few years if you ask it to run accessories like lights or an inverter (even light usage) and occasionally forget to turn things off and let the battery drop below 12 volts. This practice left my current battery with at least one weak cell so it was replaced last month even though it still started the van.

I'm back to having separate house and starting batteries and am about to complete a system that connects the batteries whenever one side shows charging-level voltages - ie, when other the vehicle is running or the inverter-charger is plugged into shore power. The goal is a system that will never use the vehicle battery for anything except for starting and running the vehicle, and which automatically disconnects the house battery when the voltage reaches ~12.2-12.4V if appliances/lights are left on. (Looking for a source of latching relays to accomplish the latter.)