interstate battery upgrade

[thorgal]

Hi team

I flattened my interstate battery yesterday by accident and while charging it back to normal state in my garage, I was wondering if anyone has gone up with a size meaning more then 720 CCA ,I know that size wise it is not much room left in battery compartment if anyone wants to supersize , but still ,I would love to go up at least to 850 CCA, since my battery is more than 5 years old anyway , it soon will be the time to replace it .Has anyone have done it?

 

[umbertob]

An Interstate MTP-93 (or another brand within that same group size) will fit. You may need to slightly modify the vent hose as the outlet is positioned on the "long side" of the battery case. The factory bracket will be a real tight fit due to the different design of the battery top, but it will work - it did on my 2006 RRS, so it's got work on an LR3 just as well. Specs for the battery are better than the factory unit. Price should be slightly better, too.

 

[RoverGuy7]

I like interstate in these trucks. If you go to the website, it'll tell you to get a H8, however the H8 is slightly larger. The H7 is the correct size, and higher CCA, 790 I believe.
You don't want to go much bigger then stock, in physical size, as there is a pretty important wiring harness at the back corner of the battery, I have seen even the right size tires, installed too far back cause chaffing on these wires.

 

[thorgal]

Thanks guys.

MTP 93 is actually a battery suggested for a Range Rover.Width is pretty much the same , although , it is longer more than 3/8 of an inch, which will be a tight fit, but should work.Hight does not matter as original is 1/2 inch taller then mtp 93.Wll see...

 

[RoverGuy7]

The 93 will fit, but it is very tight. The vent is in the wrong location and the wrong size, so you'll need an adapter, and the hold down does not fit correctly. I don't recommend using it, the H7 is plenty strong enough for the truck, and the correct size.

 

[umbertob]

FWIW, my experience with the MTP-93 wasn't a good one. It leaked acid about a year into the ownership - don't think it was due to its size or the bracket not fitting correctly, it was just a bad battery, happens to all of them I guess... Fortunately, I caught the leak early enough before it could do any damage to surrounding electronics. Since the faulty battery was still under full warranty (one good thing about the Interstates Mega Tron Plus line, great warranty), they replaced it at no charge. I specifically requested an MTP-H8 instead, I felt better having something that fits precisely in that space, even though the CCA and CA numbers may not be as good.

If I were to shop for a new battery now, I'd go the same route (H8 or equivalent size 49), perhaps an AGM instead of flooded, less chances of an acid leak. Lots of owners are upgrading to group size 49 (H8) of the Sears DieHard Advanced Gold, an AGM battery at a good price, and great Sears warranty. Unfortunately, that size is not available in their top-of-the-line Platinum series (a rebadged Odyssey, made by Enersys - best batteries in the business in my opinion.) I think the DieHard Advanced Gold AGMs are manufactured by East Penn for Sears.

The 93 offers the most bang for your buck, but I agree with RoverGuy7 that it may be overkill for regular use, and not worth the minor drawbacks. An auxiliary battery may make more sense if you have that much demand for power.

 

[thorgal]

Meanwhile , I reconditioned my old one with my trusty CTEK 25000 and it went from 2V to 13.4 in just 4 hours.Re installed it back into my car ,cleaned terminals and all is well..for now.

 

[icepix300]

anyone ever have a battery blackout? I was driving and all of a sudden the warning lights began to light up, and a big F showed up in the transmission indicator screen. The truck just stopped working and I had to pull over and get towed.
The battery was completely dead. Can anyone help me? What happened?

 

[thorgal]

Possibly failed alternator.

 

[RoverGuy7]

I would be looking alternator as well, as the engine will run with no battery connected at all.

That is not to say that the battery is fine, it may have been damaged as a result of the alternator failing, or it may take a charge and be fine.