New leisure battery guarantee

[hallii]

I have had to replace one of my leisure batteries, an Exide G80 costing close to £200 and they will only give a 1 year guarantee.

 

Now that's what I call confidence in a product!

 

No worries, EU law gives 2 years and overides the 1 year anyway.

 

I know battery guarantees are never what they seem but just thought that 1 year is a bit mean?

 

H

[Tracker]

hallii - 2013-01-28 11:12 AM

 

I have had to replace one of my leisure batteries, an Exide G80 costing close to £200 and they will only give a 1 year guarantee.

 

Now that's what I call confidence in a product!

 

No worries, EU law gives 2 years and overides the 1 year anyway.

 

I know battery guarantees are never what they seem but just thought that 1 year is a bit mean?

 

H

 

So why buy one then?

 

Why not vote with your feet and get one with a better warranty?

 

EU law may be one thing - getting the supplier (not the manufacturer) to accept any liability within 12 months is not always easy and going beyond 12 months may well prove to be something else again in resolve testing!

 

It's always a bit iffy replacing one of a pair and, unless there is a very strong underlying reason to stay with gel type batteries, did you consider replacing both with wet cell (Vartas maybe?) two of which would probably cost somewhat less than one Exide G80?

 

I wish you luck!!

 

[FRANKP60]

We have just change the engine battery , third time we have had to call RAC out over a couple of years for battery problems,we have been away for couple of weeks not in van,So after being away coldest 2 weeks for long time , although van turned over not enough power to start ,i did find out the battery was 6 years old.

R AC supplied new battery and fitted for £129.00 with a 5 year guarantee,!!!!!well impressed with that

[hallii]

Tracker - 2013-01-28 11:20 AM

 

H

 

So why buy one then?

 

Why not vote with your feet and get one with a better warranty?

 

EU law may be one thing - getting the supplier (not the manufacturer) to accept any liability within 12 months is not always easy and going beyond 12 months may well prove to be something else again in resolve testing!

 

It's always a bit iffy replacing one of a pair and, unless there is a very strong underlying reason to stay with gel type batteries, did you consider replacing both with wet cell (Vartas maybe?) two of which would probably cost somewhat less than one Exide G80?

 

I wish you luck!!

 

I replaced the one of a pair after testing them both with a discharge to 12.25 v . The one gave me 45 ah so not bad, in fact as good as a new one (almost). So I had to replace with a gel, I did consider a pair of varta silvers and yes they are cheaper, but hey ho, we have to make choices!

 

I could not find any supplier prepared to offer more than 2 years guarantee, and they wanted substantially more money for it.

 

Flooded lead acids are fine if you don't spill them, but regardless of what the manufacturers claim, they are not as maintenance free as they claim. They do need checking at sometime. Gels are fit and forget, and when you have to remove the swivel seat to gain access to a battery that's a consideration.

 

H

[Tracker]

hallii - 2013-01-28 1:36 PM

 

Flooded lead acids are fine if you don't spill them, but regardless of what the manufacturers claim, they are not as maintenance free as they claim. They do need checking at sometime. Gels are fit and forget, and when you have to remove the swivel seat to gain access to a battery that's a consideration.

 

H

 

In over 50 years of driving and working on vehicles I've never spilled anything from any battery and, in recent years, neither have I had to top any battery as they tend to be sealed for life?

[Paul-]

Exide batterys!!!!!!!!

 

My 110ah packed in after only 11 years :-(

[Derek Uzzell]

I was once told that Exide Gel batteries are re-labelled Sonnenschein products, though the technical specifications seem to differ slightly. Certainly, it seems possible to obtain a dimensionally-equivalent Sonnenschein gel battery for a good deal less than an Exide Gel one. For example:

 

http://www.sonnenscheinbatteries.co.uk/index.php/sonnenschein-gel-gf-y-range-1/12v-78ah-gel-battery-gf-12-065-y-sonnenschein.html

 

An information leaflet for Exide Gel batteries is here:

 

http://www.caravantechnology.com/Assets/Datasheets/Exide_Gel_A4_4pp.pdf

 

You’ll note that, although a 24-month European faulty-manufacture/materials guarantee applies when these batteries are employed for engine-starting, the guarantee duration is reduced to 12 months for cyclic (ie. ‘leisure’) applications.

 

My 2005 Hobby had an Exide Gel 80Ah leisure-battery as standard. The Exide Gel leaflet supplied with the motorhome advises that, for multiple battery systems, new and ‘old’ batteries should be no more than one year apart in age. If your ‘old’ battery is the same age as your 2007 motorhome, you will be exceeding Exide’s 1-year rule by a considerable margin.

 

My Exide Gel battery did not linger long. There were indications (that I ignored) in early-2012 that the end of its useful life might be approaching and then it was suddenly dead. A battery specialist advised me that sudden-death-syndrome was not uncommon with gel batteries.

 

[Cliffy]

 

I use cheap and cheerful.

 

Orange Trust batteries 110 Ah around £70 each with 3 year guarantee (They put a signed label on when you buy them). The last one I replaced (last year) was six years old the other one is four year old. Yes I know batteries should be replaced together but I manage to live without EHU for 3-4 days in the UK and indefinitely in France so I am happy with that.

 

£140 per 6+ years for batteries seems a good deal to me.

[Brambles]

I have just checked the latest specs for an Exide G80 and Sonnenschein GF 12 065 Y, and there is no difference. The published 78Ah for Sonnenschein v 80Ah for the exide is just rounding by exide. lt may be because there is a slight difference in the way the test is done. The GY is carried out at 30 deg C and possibly the G80 is at 20 degrees C. Anyway without typing out all the full details it looks like the Exide range is still rebadged Sonnenscheins. Its all part of the Exide Technologies group which is massive.

I think it was back in april last year (2012) Exide stopped the pro-rata warranty on batteries just leaving the basic free replacement period. For vehicle batteries it is I understand 24 months but not if used in a cyclic application which is what we want them for. This is reflected in the price you can get them for, the GY generally available a bit cheaper than the G80. The G80 if being used as a starter or standby battery having 24 months and of course the customer has to pay a bit more for this.

You should be able to get the GY 12 065 Y for around £155 delivered or cheaper.

 

Can I go back to sleep again now ;-) .

Jon.

[myshell]

Have a look at these batteries, not tried them myself but must be worth a look at the price.

 

 

http://www.batteriesuk.uk.com/leisureproduct.aspx?ref=234

[PCC]

These Exide / Sonnenschein batteries have been around for a long time now. As I understand it they should give good long service if they are kept in ideal conditions but it is possible for holes to form in the gel causing a loss of capacity, and once these holes form they are permanent.

 

AGM is a later technology that offers many of the benefits of gel but they do not have a problem with holes forming. Varta introduced a new range of AGM leisure batteries last year and they might be worth looking at next time you come to change. They are cheaper than gel but much more expensive than lead acid.

 

The advantages, as I understand it, are that gel and AGM batteries are more tolerant of deep dischare than lead acid (even the proper deep cycle lead acid batteries), and recharge faster. Thay are maintenance free, can be installed at any angle and are less likely to vent into the atmosphere.

 

The latest technology is lithium batteries which are very expensive, but I'm sure the price will fall significantly as they become more common in electric vehicles. There may soon be some nearly new lithium batteries put on the market by Boeing: taken from their new Dreamliners and doubling as a barbecue. I guess all new technology has it's teething problems. I seem to remember that General Motors also had some problems with lithium batteries catching fire.

[Derek Uzzell]

Holes in the gel was what I was told caused the falling-off-a-cliff failure that could happen with gel batteries and "holes" are mentioned here:

 

http://www.ehow.co.uk/info_8398809_differences-agm-gel-batteries.html

 

My understanding is that hallii obtained his 2007 Hymer Van in mid-2010 and it has 3 batteries - one beneath the driver's seat (undoubtedly the Ford-supplied starter battery), a 2nd under the passenger seat and a 3rd in a box in the wardrobe (presumably the 2nd and 3rd are parallel-connected leisure-batteries and both are gel-type).

 

Ignoring the differences-in-age issue, linking different types of battery is generally frowned on as it complicates the charging process. As hallii said, it would have been possible (and not that much more expensive to fit a pair of brand new maintenance-free 'wet' leisure-batteries, though this might still mean the batteries should be vented.

 

When my Hobby's Exide Gel leisure-battery gave up the ghost, as the battery is housed inaccessibly beneath a swivel seat, I replaced it with a Banner AGM battery. However, I'm not sure if connecting gel and AGM batteries together (as might have been an option for hallii) presents technical problems.

 

 

[Bulletguy]

hallii - 2013-01-28 11:12 AM

 

I have had to replace one of my leisure batteries, an Exide G80 costing close to £200 and they will only give a 1 year guarantee.

 

 

£200????!!!!!! And only one year warranty. Crazy.

 

I bought a 125ah last year. £90 with four year warranty.

 

http://www.alpha-batteries.co.uk/leisure-batteries/125-ah-xplorerleisure-battery/

[Dr Dave]

Bulletguy - 2013-01-29 3:27 PM

 

hallii - 2013-01-28 11:12 AM

 

I have had to replace one of my leisure batteries, an Exide G80 costing close to £200 and they will only give a 1 year guarantee.

 

 

£200????!!!!!! And only one year warranty. Crazy.

 

I bought a 125ah last year. £90 with four year warranty.

 

http://www.alpha-batteries.co.uk/leisure-batteries/125-ah-xplorerleisure-battery/

 

I must say i am very pleased with my alpha batteries they are on ebay if anyone wants to browse.

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/THE-BATTERY-MANs-SHOP/Leisure-batteries-/_i.html?_fsub=373176010&_sid=207197280&_trksid=p4634.c0.m322

[Paul-]

Just a thought but when my Exide finally died I bought a Lion battery , its got a 3 year guarantee

 

It might be worth trying euro parts for a price

 

Paul

[Derek Uzzell]

Bulletguy - 2013-01-29 3:27 PM

 

hallii - 2013-01-28 11:12 AM

 

I have had to replace one of my leisure batteries, an Exide G80 costing close to £200 and they will only give a 1 year guarantee.

 

 

£200????!!!!!! And only one year warranty. Crazy.

 

I bought a 125ah last year. £90 with four year warranty.

 

http://www.alpha-batteries.co.uk/leisure-batteries/125-ah-xplorerleisure-battery/

 

Yes, but that's a 'wet acid' battery (so incompatible with hallii's gel battery that had not failed) and the wrong size to fit under his Ford's passenger seat.