Sam's Club Golf Car Batteries - Price and Opinion check

jcheil

Re: Sam's Club Golf Car Batteries - Price and Opinion check

They are 215ah each. So in a 12v config, 2 of them would be 215ah total. And I "think" I read somewhere that they are manufactured in the USA by East Penn and just branded Duracell just like they do for the Deka brand.

It was such a tough call when I upgraded my system last year. I REALLY wanted to go with some nice 2v ones with expected life of 10-15 years but I just couldn't swing the $ at that time. Plus, I have this feeling that even if I get 5-6 years out of these and have to replace them twice more in 15 years, it may still end up being about the same price in the long run (although inflation is uncertain). Plus I guess we all keep hoping there will be better battery technology in 5-6 years.

So $1600 now (and every 5-6 years) for the GC2 or $6000 now for (hopefully) 15 years. I just could not justify it at this time.

706jim

Re: Sam's Club Golf Car Batteries - Price and Opinion check

I guess this is a pretty old thread, but I have to chime in here to say that my 12 Sam's club GC's lasted 18 years (19 seasons).
These were Dunlop brand 220 ah and cost $44 each.
They were used in a solar system 6 months of the year and spent the winters out in the cold.
I figure 20% DOD probably helped with their lifespan.

BB.

Re: Sam's Club Golf Car Batteries - Price and Opinion check

For every 10C below ~25C, their (aging) life will be extended by ~2x.

So, you have several factors working in your favor (cold batteries and shallow discharge).

And, if you are only doing 20% discharge, the batteries can have upwards of 50% to 80% loss of capacity and still meet your needs. Batteries are usually "officially" dead if they lose 20-40% of their capacity.

-Bill

carleriksen

2manytoyz said:

Re: Sam's Club Golf Car Batteries - Price and Opinion check

Six years ago, I bought cheap batteries from BJ's Wholesale Club (Sam's Club competitor locally). Exide batteries, made in Mexico. I even added some Enegizer batteries. They all lasted at least 5 years, some went as far as 6. I'm in hot/sunny FL, and my batteries lived in the garage. Even at night, often 95 degrees. By comparison, a car battery often lasts about 3 years in a vehicle here. So despite them being cheap, and a mixed batch, they worked very well, and lasted as much as I could hope for.

That said, that store no longer stocks 6V GC2 batteries, but our Sam's Club does. So this time, I bought 8 rebadged Deka batteries. American made. Trojan snobs might look down upon my choice, but at $85 each, can't be beat here. Why pay twice as much for something that doesn't last twice as long, or perform twice as good?

Trojan batteries also have received a lot of bad press on the golf cart forums. EZ-GO had so many issues, Trojan is no longer the battery supplier. FWIW, I do have 4 Trojan 1260 batteries in my cart (came with them), and having no issues.

So this is what I purchased a couple of weeks ago.







Ask me in 5 or 6 years if this was a wise choice! I'm satisfied with my previous batteries, so not too concerned about these. YMMV.

I am much to late to ask you 5 or 6 years later, but nonetheless I'd love to hear what life you got out of them. Along with your typical DOD
thank you!

wellbuilt

Yup , mine are on there third season and going strong so far . 

 They really  like to be charged hard .
   If I slack off on the charging even a little I have some cell that will drop SG over the course of a few weeks . 

   I’m sure these will last 5 years plus . 

     I have a friend that changed out a set of 24  after 11 years and still uses them  in his garage for power .
 He paid 65 bucks for them . 

wellbuilt