PoweredByDodge
10-26-2005, 07:25 PM
as of 2005 current production "trade names".
Johnson Controls Inc
-----Duralast
-----Energizer (as of about 2003, the original Energizer casings were no longer to be found around Pep Boys, I had thought they were simply redesigned... wrong. What looked like an "old die hard" really was... JCI took over battery production for Energizer America from a 3rd party company [that had been previously making them for Energizer] by the name of "Cecra" or "Cerca" or something like that -- I've heard it pronounced but not seen it written).
-----Eveready
-----Equalizer
-----Interstate
-----OPTIMA (formerly named as an Interstate product, I suppose it is, but I had thought Interstate was a Parent Company... oops).
-----Motorcraft
-----Pre 1995 Sears Diehards
East Penn
-----American
-----Deka
-----Hi-Tech
-----Pow-R-Surge
Douglas
-----Farmland
AC Delco (GM Delphi)
-----Post 1995 Diehard Gold
-----Firestone
-----Dura Power
-----Walmart/Everstart
-----Sears/Freedom
-----Lastcell
-----Tough One
-----Voyager (split market with GNB)
GNB
-----Champion
-----Omaga
-----Voyager (split market with Delco)
Exide
-----Auto Express
-----K-Mart/Centura
-----DieHard non-Gold (some)
-----Edge
-----Napa/Legend
-----Motorvator
-----Power-Tron
-----Prestolite
-----Pep Boys/Pro Start
-----Quick Start
-----Titan
-----Value-Lite (Firestone "base model")
.... Douglas makes industrial batteries for farm equipment - hence the Farmland name. I wouldn't consider them an auto battery mfg. but they are 12 V batteries with CCA and RC parameters equal to auto batteries, so they're in.
.... I did not know whether Exide was "out of business and then restarted under a different name" or what... Well it all came together and filled in my Energizer quandry.
"Cecra" or however the hell you pronouce it, was making the Exide "Nascar" batteries (the "nascar" branding was not to mean they were race car batts, but rather a 'qualilty sign' - such as Die Hard "Gold" versus "Silver"). For one reason or another, that ceased in the late 90's... They then took on production of new kid on the block Energizer and made ALL batteries for them (with a case design so identical to the late Exides that it was frightening) for a slew of applications. I do not know "where they are now" for "Cecra" - but Energizer has been sucked into the Johnson Control camp and made into a "nametag" rather than a "model". They are on par with old school Die Hard's and other 3 - 5 year 70 to 100 dollar batteries with decent reserve capacity and good CCA ratings.
Exide as of right now - I do not know what the deal is -- They don't make their own batteries (so to speak). JCI makes their own and labels as whatever... same for Delco/Delphi ... etc etc... Exide provides batteries for various "nametags" but somebody else is making their shit.
This list supercedes my previous discussions of battery manufacturer's - this comes from quite reliable sources, and while it may be imcomplete (as there are thousands of little "no name" batteries out there - such as "Car Quest Silver", etc -- all made by most likely one of hte companies above) -- i do believe all of the info stated is correct.
have at it...
FYI - this all came out of some research... I was trying to figure out WHY Optima Yellow's are so good for cars that are stored for the winter - and why they don't "go dead" and can "take a whole bunch of recharges from being bone dry dead - but other batteryes can't"... lead to a bunch of battery info... on a side note though - if you are storing a car for a 6 to 8 months outa the year without driving it enough for the alternator to charge the battery - i reccomend highly an optima yellow top 600 to 750 CCA battery with a 1 to 2 amp "battery blanket" charger - these are small chargers (about the size of 3 packs of smokes) that monitor battery voltage... when it gets below 12.4 or 12.2 - it'll kick on a tiny trickle charge --- they it gets back to 12.65 and stops charging. Nice little trinket for 20 bucks. It worked very well on the caddy - i just wanted to understand WHY... so i started battery " 'vestigatin"
note - douglas, east penn, and GNB i had never heard of before the last few days.
Anywho - enjoy.
Johnson Controls Inc
-----Duralast
-----Energizer (as of about 2003, the original Energizer casings were no longer to be found around Pep Boys, I had thought they were simply redesigned... wrong. What looked like an "old die hard" really was... JCI took over battery production for Energizer America from a 3rd party company [that had been previously making them for Energizer] by the name of "Cecra" or "Cerca" or something like that -- I've heard it pronounced but not seen it written).
-----Eveready
-----Equalizer
-----Interstate
-----OPTIMA (formerly named as an Interstate product, I suppose it is, but I had thought Interstate was a Parent Company... oops).
-----Motorcraft
-----Pre 1995 Sears Diehards
East Penn
-----American
-----Deka
-----Hi-Tech
-----Pow-R-Surge
Douglas
-----Farmland
AC Delco (GM Delphi)
-----Post 1995 Diehard Gold
-----Firestone
-----Dura Power
-----Walmart/Everstart
-----Sears/Freedom
-----Lastcell
-----Tough One
-----Voyager (split market with GNB)
GNB
-----Champion
-----Omaga
-----Voyager (split market with Delco)
Exide
-----Auto Express
-----K-Mart/Centura
-----DieHard non-Gold (some)
-----Edge
-----Napa/Legend
-----Motorvator
-----Power-Tron
-----Prestolite
-----Pep Boys/Pro Start
-----Quick Start
-----Titan
-----Value-Lite (Firestone "base model")
.... Douglas makes industrial batteries for farm equipment - hence the Farmland name. I wouldn't consider them an auto battery mfg. but they are 12 V batteries with CCA and RC parameters equal to auto batteries, so they're in.
.... I did not know whether Exide was "out of business and then restarted under a different name" or what... Well it all came together and filled in my Energizer quandry.
"Cecra" or however the hell you pronouce it, was making the Exide "Nascar" batteries (the "nascar" branding was not to mean they were race car batts, but rather a 'qualilty sign' - such as Die Hard "Gold" versus "Silver"). For one reason or another, that ceased in the late 90's... They then took on production of new kid on the block Energizer and made ALL batteries for them (with a case design so identical to the late Exides that it was frightening) for a slew of applications. I do not know "where they are now" for "Cecra" - but Energizer has been sucked into the Johnson Control camp and made into a "nametag" rather than a "model". They are on par with old school Die Hard's and other 3 - 5 year 70 to 100 dollar batteries with decent reserve capacity and good CCA ratings.
Exide as of right now - I do not know what the deal is -- They don't make their own batteries (so to speak). JCI makes their own and labels as whatever... same for Delco/Delphi ... etc etc... Exide provides batteries for various "nametags" but somebody else is making their shit.
This list supercedes my previous discussions of battery manufacturer's - this comes from quite reliable sources, and while it may be imcomplete (as there are thousands of little "no name" batteries out there - such as "Car Quest Silver", etc -- all made by most likely one of hte companies above) -- i do believe all of the info stated is correct.
have at it...
FYI - this all came out of some research... I was trying to figure out WHY Optima Yellow's are so good for cars that are stored for the winter - and why they don't "go dead" and can "take a whole bunch of recharges from being bone dry dead - but other batteryes can't"... lead to a bunch of battery info... on a side note though - if you are storing a car for a 6 to 8 months outa the year without driving it enough for the alternator to charge the battery - i reccomend highly an optima yellow top 600 to 750 CCA battery with a 1 to 2 amp "battery blanket" charger - these are small chargers (about the size of 3 packs of smokes) that monitor battery voltage... when it gets below 12.4 or 12.2 - it'll kick on a tiny trickle charge --- they it gets back to 12.65 and stops charging. Nice little trinket for 20 bucks. It worked very well on the caddy - i just wanted to understand WHY... so i started battery " 'vestigatin"
note - douglas, east penn, and GNB i had never heard of before the last few days.
Anywho - enjoy.