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Thu Apr 21, 2022 7:16 pm

Hi all....l'm getting ready to put a '71 bug back on the road after a long rest and I want to put a new battery in it. Can someone tell me what size or "group" battery I should put in it?

Thanks

Thu Apr 21, 2022 8:05 pm

Group 42. Interstate has a good one. It may have MT after the number. Not sure.

Tim

Thu Apr 21, 2022 11:56 pm

Try a walmart T5 Maxx battery 149.84 3 year warranty

Fri Apr 22, 2022 2:10 am

Nice timing! There is a thread I haven't searched yet. But, It became very detailed about group size and cca etc.

Fri Apr 22, 2022 4:28 pm

Group 42 batteries are some of the shortest car batteries made. Everything else is usually taller. This becomes a problem for the Beetle which places the battery below the rear seat. Too tall and the rear seat starts to rest on the battery. Either applying weight to the top or shorting the terminals to the metal frame under the seat.

The T5 is probably the closest modern battery to the old Group 42. It is short and has posts that do not stick up proud of the top of the battery like most top post models.

Power wise, the Group 42 was rated at around 400-450 CCA. Pretty much any modern battery will exceed that and will work just fine. Note above the T5 is rated to 650 CCA! More than enough power for the Beetle engine.

Fri Apr 22, 2022 4:35 pm

My new Interstate MT-42 has 500 CCA.

Tim

Fri Apr 22, 2022 6:19 pm

I grabbed some battery stats one of the last times this came up -

https://www.interstatebatteries.com/products/mt-42
https://www.interstatebatteries.com/products/mtp-96r
https://www.interstatebatteries.com/products/mt-47/h5

They're all very close in size.
96R and 47/H5 even have recessed terminals, which is a bonus on our cars (96R includes a cover as well).

Highly recommend Costco for car batteries -- good price, generous warranty (straight swap if it fails within 3 years), and Interstate is a solid brand.
I've used the 96R in my '70 bug, fits fine in the space but no idea if it'll work with the stock hold down (replacement pans, using a different hold down).

Sat Apr 23, 2022 7:34 am

I've been using Interstate batteries for 45+ years now. I've never had one let me down. Never. There's a 3 year old MT-42 in my bug right now.

Back in the day, Diehard batteries were the best. In the early years they were made by Johnson Controls in the USA. Johnson Controls makes the Interstate battery. When Exide got involved manufacturing Diehards they were accused and fined for selling used batteries labeled as new. It killed the Diehard brand. In 2019 Advance Auto bought the brand name.

In my part of the US, Interstate batteries are made in the US by Johnson Controls. They also make the Costco and Duralast batteries. Walmart batteries are made by a division of Exide. Exide has plants all over the world. Their parent company, Clarios, makes 2/3 of the auto batteries produced globally. Odds are, new or used, your car has a battery that was made by a division of Clarios.

Although I'm brand loyal to Interstate, really, all the name brand batteries are probably comparable in manufacture.

Sat Apr 23, 2022 9:50 am

Jimbug57 wrote: Walmart batteries are made by a division of Exide. Exide has plants all over the world. Their parent company, Clarios, makes 2/3 of the auto batteries produced globally. Odds are, new or used, your car has a battery that was made by a division of Clarios.

Although I'm brand loyal to Interstate, really, all the name brand batteries are probably comparable in manufacture.
Last year I bought three Walmart batteries (for our 6 vehicles). They stated Johnson Controls on the label, now owned by Clarios.

So agree that almost all the batteries in USA are manufactured by same company.

Sat Apr 23, 2022 12:19 pm

Just bought a Interstate 96R at Costco for use in my fiberglass buggy.
100.00 with 3 year 100% warranty. My last Kirkland (I think Johnson Control) lasted 11 years in my buggy.

Sat Apr 30, 2022 12:47 pm

I just bought one of the T5 batteries at Walmart this morning for my 70 bug convertible, it fits perfect!

I know it was not my.thread but thanks for the suggestion.

Dave