Battery Time...

Kel

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Well, took the battery tender off to take her out of hibernation and it read 1.74 volts on the multimeter. Put it on the charger and it's up to ~9 volts an hour or so later. Looks like it's time for a new battery to replace the original. Assume an OEM replacement is the best bet? Best place to get then would be the local Ford dealer and not O'reilly's, Advanced Auto, etc? Was looking forward to finally taking her out of winter storage, but I knew it was sooner than later with the original battery. TIA.

Kel
 

Cman01

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Really depends on what you want in a battery that fits in that tray. OE would be the battery you have now or afkt where it could be the same size as OE but with more cranking amps or something.

If you are going for some weight reduction there's always the 13 lbs. Odyssey battery (or the even lighter lithium type batteries) but you'll have to do a little modding to make it fit in that area.

Tony
 

Kel

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Thanks for the quick reply, Tony. I'm probably thinking OEM is the way to go. Forgot to ask, as it looks like I'll replace at home, any issues with the electronics ie the key or other areas affected by low (or no when I remove) voltage that needs to be addressed? A little simpler to replace the battery in the 66 vert :)
 

72MachOne99GT

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Lots of guys disconnect their battery over winter, no issue when restoring power.

Should just be a clock and radio preset change in order.

What’s an OE replacement cost?
 

Cman01

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Yeah, no problems replacing a battery. Just remember to remove - cable first and reinstall last. Once the car starts give it a minute or two to just run @ idle speed then go out for a drive (prefer highway) for like 20-30 minutes to give that battery a quick charge by the alt. I would keep the radio and other accessories off during this time.

After that you should be good to go.
 

tones_RS3

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Am I missing something here, but if you have a battery tender on your battery, wouldn't that keep it from dying out?
I have the OE battery in my 2013 Mustang and I use the CTEK 3300 battery tender plugged into the volt adapter on the dash. Fires up and seems fine every single time.
 

Norton

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Well, took the battery tender off to take her out of hibernation and it read 1.74 volts on the multimeter. Put it on the charger and it's up to ~9 volts an hour or so later. Looks like it's time for a new battery to replace the original. Assume an OEM replacement is the best bet? Best place to get then would be the local Ford dealer and not O'reilly's, Advanced Auto, etc? Was looking forward to finally taking her out of winter storage, but I knew it was sooner than later with the original battery. TIA.
With those voltages, it's definitely time for a new battery!

Really depends on what you want in a battery that fits in that tray. OE would be the battery you have now or afkt where it could be the same size as OE but with more cranking amps or something.
I looked for something with more cranking amps and reserve capacity. Unfortunately, I found none (in stock size/shape) that offered either. Previous good experiences led me to go with an Interstate replacement, but OEM and Odyssey are also good choices.

Forgot to ask, as it looks like I'll replace at home, any issues with the electronics ie the key or other areas affected by low (or no when I remove) voltage that needs to be addressed? A little simpler to replace the battery in the 66 vert :)
As @72MachOne99GT said, you should have no problems disconnecting and reconnecting. That said, my CTEK MULTI US 7002 offers a "Supply" mode that I use to keep the electronics alive when I change batteries.

Am I missing something here, but if you have a battery tender on your battery, wouldn't that keep it from dying out?
I have the OE battery in my 2013 Mustang and I use the CTEK 3300 battery tender plugged into the volt adapter on the dash. Fires up and seems fine every single time.
Every battery, even those maintained with tenders/chargers throughout the winter, dies eventually. Most of mine have lasted around 5-7yrs, meaning those of us with '13-'14 MY cars are in the window...
 

tones_RS3

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Every battery, even those maintained with tenders/chargers throughout the winter, dies eventually. Most of mine have lasted around 5-7yrs, meaning those of us with '13-'14 MY cars are in the window...
I'm in that window because my car is over 6 years old now. But, I do take it off the battery tender once in a while when the weather permits during the winter and fire her up on the driveway. Not sure if that helps with battery maintenance?
 

Kel

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Yep, it was on a CTEK 7200 trickle charger all winter. Put it on the regular charger since a bit before this thread and it's now at 11.75 volts, so I'm sure she's shot and ready for a replacement.
 

Norton

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I'm in that window because my car is over 6 years old now. But, I do take it off the battery tender once in a while when the weather permits during the winter and fire her up on the driveway. Not sure if that helps with battery maintenance?
Can't hurt. Unfortunately, batteries only last just so long before they have to be replaced, regardless of how we try to maintain them. YMMV, but I proactively did mine last year. Relatively speaking, it's cheap insurance against being stranded at the most inopportune time/place possible.
 

Robert M

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I have had battery tenders on my cars for years, and yes, eventually the battery life ends, but one thing I will say, "if" you are using a smart charger, something that shuts off when the battery is fully charged and goes into a "maintain" mode, it will go a long way toward battery longevity. If you use a charger that is not smart and continues to charge (or trickle) the whole time it is connected, that will damage the battery over time.

The longest I got out of an oem assy. line Motorcraft was 13 years on a 1995 Cobra R, the second longest was 9 years. Smart chargers, like the Battery Tender Plus work, but they gotta be "smart".......

R
 

SID297

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I have had battery tenders on my cars for years, and yes, eventually the battery life ends, but one thing I will say, "if" you are using a smart charger, something that shuts off when the battery is fully charged and goes into a "maintain" mode, it will go a long way toward battery longevity. If you use a charger that is not smart and continues to charge (or trickle) the whole time it is connected, that will damage the battery over time.

The longest I got out of an oem assy. line Motorcraft was 13 years on a 1995 Cobra R, the second longest was 9 years. Smart chargers, like the Battery Tender Plus work, but they gotta be "smart".......

R

I have quite a few individual chargers, but I've been thinking about picking up this one:

https://amzn.to/2Gbk6ma

 

SID297

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I have seen that unit, it is pretty cool.

"Extension cords" for the Battery Tender units are also available so this mult-port tender can be in one place and the extension cords can get each port to each battery.

R

That's why I liked it. I could mount it on one of the shelves and just run drop cords to everything.
 

Norton

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The longest I got out of an oem assy. line Motorcraft was 13 years on a 1995 Cobra R, the second longest was 9 years. Smart chargers, like the Battery Tender Plus work, but they gotta be "smart".......
That's impressive! The longest I've gotten from an OEM battery was 8yrs in my '97 Mustang Cobra.

Ironically, I didn't have a smart charger at the time, so I went with periodically connecting the trickle charger for limited periods of time. Smart charger is a MUCH better solution.
 

tones_RS3

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Can't hurt. Unfortunately, batteries only last just so long before they have to be replaced, regardless of how we try to maintain them. YMMV, but I proactively did mine last year. Relatively speaking, it's cheap insurance against being stranded at the most inopportune time/place possible.
I agree man.
 

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