Which 12v battery to buy for my 1998 Corolla 1.3

[olddriver]

 

I haven’t used my 98 Corolla 1.3 for 8 months and the 12v Battery was completely flat, wouldn’t even operate the central locking.  Hence I have been charging the Battery with a Ctek MXS 3.8 Battery Charger and it won’t go past stage 5, and when I disconnected it for a couple of hours and then reconnected, it takes about 5 secs to go to stage 3, and 10 secs to go to stage 4, where it stayed.  That was last night, so am I right to think it is not holding the charge and I need to buy a new one?  If so, where to buy a battery and which one, bearing in mind that the car will likely not be used much, although I could leave my Ctek connected to it, but not keen for security reasons?

 

[Rhymes with Paris]

Sounds like your Battery is done for.

Might be worth doing a last check with a volt meter after the Battery has been stood overnight without any charger on.

It will probably read zero volts or close to it, but anything under 8 volts usually means unrecoverable.

If you go check with Halfords or even a Toyota dealer with your reg number to compare, you might get a good deal.

As always, I recommend Yuasa batteries.

Good luck 🤞 

PS,if you have nowhere secure to leave a new Battery on charge while on the car, you could just have the battery in the house on a trickle with your ctek, then refit it when you intend using the car.

[TonyHSD]

For batteries and for all other parts actually always check dealers prices first as often they offer better or same price as aftermarket. 
I bought recently a new Battery from a dealer and it was the cheapest option by large margins in comparison to aftermarket ones. 

[oldcodger]

Would suggest you also look at the big online suppliers as well as Euro Car Parts who also have local branches and sometimes very good discount offers.

Was nervous about using an online supplier but it arrived well packed.

We tend to go for Varta or Bosch batteries (believe they are made in the same factory) which have 3 ,4 or 5 years warranty.

You can use the same standard size Battery for your model, though generally for an older car they say go for the next larger size Battery that will fit, though you need to really check the sizes and orientation carefully if doing that.

Usually the type of Battery is printed somewhere on it, as a  code like  005L or 048

Sounds like you need to make a diary date to give the battery a charge once a month if you drive so little.

[olddriver]

Thanks guys.

Several times I tried to turn the engine over to pump some oil up into the engine without starting it, and on the 5th turn of the key it attempted to fire but failed, so I assumed that it was flooded and left it as I didn’t want to flatten the Battery.  The weather stopped me charging it for a couple of days, and then surprise, surprise, my Ctek went to stage 5 and then 6!  So I wonder if taking a charge out of it sorted it?  The weather stopped me for 2 more days before I was able to attempt to start it and on the 12th attempt it shuddered into life, and I ran it for over 5 or 10 mins before it settled down at about 800revs.  I have since charged it again when the Ctek again reached stage 6, and 3 days later the mechanic came to collect it, to hopefully weld the cills, and it started first time, but then it always did start easy.  It’s been a couple of weeks since he took the car but not done anything yet!

On 5/20/2024 at 9:58 AM, oldcodger said:

generally for an older car they say go for the next larger size battery that will fit, though you need to really check the sizes and orientation carefully if doing that.

Yeah, thanks oldcodger, seem to remember going for a bigger capacity Battery when I bought the current one, probably around 5 years ago.

For those buying a Battery for a Corolla of this age, 1998, make sure that you measure the height of your old battery and compare it with the new, because the batteries said to be suitable for my car by Halfords and Amazon are about 37mm too tall, ie to the top of the terminals.  (Amazone suggest a YBX5053 and Halfords a Yuasa HSB053, but basically they are the same battery, and 227mm heigh.  The Bosch battery suggested by Amazon S4024 is too heigh too.) My battery is a Halfords HCB012 and at 190mm heigh, the leads only just reach to fit over the terminals, although I haven’t looked to see if they could be made longer by unclipping them, but I doubt it, especially the earth strap.

Thanks again guys.

 

 

 

   

[Rhymes with Paris]

Pleased it started for you, that's great, especially if the Battery is still ok.

Thanks for coming back to let us know.🙂