Looking to change out my battery: any suggestions on a long lasting brand and is it just like any other car or is there something special I should know?

 

I'm my opinion go OEM again they last.

 

just don't go cheap ....

get a good known brand and you'll be fine. But still you want the better or best and not the least expensive one they sell ... usually rated in MONTHS I always buy 60 months or more if they have more available. I've got DURALAST in two of my cars now and they are holding up well.

expect to pay $100 or more for a GOOD one.

 

+1
There's no voodoo involved in the MINI battery. Auto Zone or any other auto supply can have one installed and you on your way in minutes. Just be prepared for the arduous task of MAYBE having to reset your clock and/or your radio presets. Some of the battery threads imply that there is some secret install magic that has to be performed but it just ain't so.

 

Ok good. I have heard weird things about minis and batteries so I wanted to make sure. I don't want to screw something up since I'm great at that.

 

the weird things are usually the things that happen when a battery is on its last legs and folks try to stretch the life . . . .

I find a battery change at around the 5 year point avoids these problems . . .

there is probably a reason the longest battery warranty you'll find is 60 months . . .

 

The first thing my old battery did to tell me goodbye was to require an extra crank or two to fire the engine. It ALWAYS starts on the first crank. (Now that I've said that I'll be expecting a gremlin to step in and confound the situation.)

 

I bought an Optima battery for my Toyota eight years ago and it tested at 95% when I sold the car. I will go with them. My Mini came with a new batt so no need to change.