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Bosch 12v Battery

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by VicVinegar, May 20, 2018.

  1. VicVinegar

    VicVinegar Member

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    Am I missing something here, or is the Bosch warranty at 48 months free replacement the best available? I'm comparing it to OEM (24 months with proration to 60), Optima (36 months replacement), and the Autocraft Platinum (36 months).

    Reviews seem good, I can get it locally, and it appears to be $50-70 cheaper than OEM or the Optima. Trying to find the downside.
     
  2. MelonPrius

    MelonPrius Senior Member

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    How much is it? That's a good warranty for replacement.
     
  3. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i think it is. same with duracell, iirc.
     
  4. VicVinegar

    VicVinegar Member

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    Showing $155 + tax on Pep Boys site right now.

    The Autocraft is about the same price. I haven't called a dealer yet, but OEM online seems to be closer to $200. Optima is $220-230.
     
  5. Simonak

    Simonak Member

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    I went with Optima for like 180$ couple years back but now looks like prices went up.
    Cheapest i see ebay 205$ with possible 15$ off coupon and maybe 8% ebay bucks.
     
  6. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    I've been noticing that Pep Boys Bosch battery for a while now, regular $155'ish, sometimes on sale in the low $140's, including install. A few PriusChatters have got that one, and so far so good.

    I went with Optima Yellow Top, but it's price has been climbing, and I've heard it's sort of a mismatch for the Prius, having quite high Cold Cranking Amps, and perhaps sacrificing durability and Amp Hours to accomplish that.

    Next time around it might be a Canadian Tire conventional-case AGM Motomaster for me. It's apparently dimensionally identical to the OEM Yuasa, has the proper vent port, post orientation and so on, and is a rebadged Exide.
     
  7. Simonak

    Simonak Member

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    Sure but how good is it? My original Toyota crap battery died after 4 years I think and Optima going strong for 4th year now.
     
  8. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    A lot of factors involved. If you bought new (for example), maybe the car sat on the lot for a while? I think the Yuasa OEM is pretty decent.
     
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  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    My three oem’s lasted 8, 10, and 6 so far on the current one.
     
  10. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    When you buy something, there's a tendency to be loyal to the brand; you like to think you've made a good choice. But over the years, as the bonehead purchasing decisions accumulate, you get a bit more pragmatic, lol.
     
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  11. VicVinegar

    VicVinegar Member

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    My OEM is on 5 years, and I've noticed the traction battery losing a bar here and there resting, so I suspect it maybe getting close to time. If my multimeter wasn't broken, I'd check.
     
  12. Grit

    Grit Senior Member

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    were they garaged up?
     
  13. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    in the night, yes.
     
  14. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    Close to what time?
     
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  15. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    what does the traction battery have to do with the 12v?
     
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  16. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    My thought exactly Mr B.
     
  17. Hybrid Hound

    Hybrid Hound Junior Member

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    We are on our second Prius now. Our current 2015 only has 27K miles. But I do read posts about the battery (12 volt) to see how long they might last. This led me to look at the Bosch, (priced at 172), which brought me to a Rural King ad for a group 51 AGM for 125 bucks. Could this be a suitable battery for our needs? Seems to have the necessary power for doing what that little lawn-mower battery back there is required to do.
     
  18. mediahound

    mediahound Active Member

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    What are the benefits of an Optima Battery? Is it worth the extra cost?
     
  19. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    it used to be that people bought the optima for price, warranty, and the ability to recover from deep discharges.
    unfortunately, as it became more popular, its reliability dropped, and the price went up.
    many have had good experiences, and some haven't.
     
  20. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    And there's more options, more closely aligned with the OEM Yuasa batteries. I've heard: the high CCA of the Optima is arguably not needed, and is achieved through more/thinner plates, and at the expensive of durablity and amp-hours.

    Next time around it'll be a conventionally shaped aftermarket AGM for me, probably the rebadged Exide through Canadian Tire. I was sceptical about the compatibility of CT batteries, but recently got one as replacement for a Honda, and the replacement through CT, if you were to peal off the CT badges, was identical to the Honda battery. I'm guessing they both come from the same source, likely somewhere in China??
     
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