In our country today there are a huge number of drivers who try to monitor their vehicle as best as possible. The date of manufacture of the battery is one of the most important indicators that you should pay attention to when buying a current source for a machine. The fact is that over time, the technical characteristics and the ability to hold a charge on the battery deteriorate significantly, therefore, in order for the new battery to last as long as possible, you should only buy batteries that were manufactured and put on sale relatively recently. It is very important to be able to independently determine the release date, since not all sellers provide this information to their customers. Therefore, every motorist should know where on the battery the date of manufacture is indicated.
general information
As practice shows, only a few motorists pay attention to the battery production date when replacing this unit in their vehicle, as a result of which a lot of problems arise in the future. But the date when the battery was manufactured is the main indicator of the suitability of an autonomous power source for operation.
The whole problem is that the release number itself is not indicated on the battery; instead, a certain code is knocked out, on the basis of which the date of manufacture of the battery can be decoded. In most cases, it is indicated on the factory sticker. The ability to understand the marking of automotive parts manufacturers will allow you not only to determine in which year the battery was released, but also in case of any problems, identify possible causes of the malfunction.
Battery Life
Absolutely all rechargeable batteries have a certain useful life. If the battery was manufactured in accordance with all international standards and stored in full accordance with the factory recommendations, its shelf life is:
- dry-charged batteries - 2 years;
- refueling batteries - no more than one and a half years;
- refueling uncharged batteries - 5 years.
Thus, if you know how to determine the date of manufacture of the battery, you can always buy only a high-quality and fully functional battery.
A few words about European labeling
Nowadays, a huge number of European brands of car batteries can be found on the market, so it is very important to be able to decipher the markings used in the EU countries. European manufacturers do not print any technical information on the factory label, but engrave it on the battery case. At the same time, the code can be either alphabetic or numerical, everything here already depends on the particular manufacturer. Next, we will understand in what format various manufacturers use markings, as well as how to find out the date of manufacture of the battery by marking.
Battery from Varta
Varta is a world-famous German company specializing in the production of car batteries. On its batteries, this brand indicates the alphanumeric marking that is applied to the battery cover. The number of characters in the code depends on the year of issue. For example, the manufacturing date of Varta batteries manufactured before 2014 was as follows:
- the year was indicated by the last digit in the fourth position;
- the month was prescribed in the 5th and 6th positions;
- the day was indicated as a two-digit number in the 7th and 8th marking block.
It is worth noting that until 2013, the company also used color marking. There was a circle of a certain color on the factory sticker, each of which corresponded to a specific quarter of the year.
Bosch Batteries
The date of manufacture of the Bosch battery has a more simplified recording form compared to Varta batteries. The year in which the battery was manufactured is indicated in two places - on the cover and on the front side. The marking in this case has the form of a three-digit digital code, the first digit of which means the month, and the next two - the year.
Relationship between Bosch and Varta Labels
Since 2014, both German concerns have changed their numerical codes, making them more unified. How to find the battery manufacturing date of these brands? This information is still part of the main labeling and is located in the fourth, fifth and sixth block of code. The first is a year of production, and then a month. Based on these figures, information on when the battery was finally released can be obtained from a special table.
Mutlu Batteries
The Turkish company Mutlu is another world-famous manufacturer of automotive parts and accessories.
The Mutlu battery, the manufacturing date of which is also sewn into the main marking, is the best solution for motorists looking for reliable and inexpensive car batteries. This brand uses a six-digit label, the first of which indicates the model, the second indicates the year of manufacture, the fourth indicates the month, and the last two indicate the day. Thus, when buying a battery for our vehicle, reading the marking type 350214, we can get information that this particular battery came off the factory conveyor on February 14, 2015.
It is worth noting that some modern manufacturers of automotive batteries, such as TAB, Topla and others, use a similar form of marking with Multu, so the date of manufacture of the battery from these companies is determined similarly.
Vesta Batteries
The Ukrainian manufacturer of batteries, Vesta, manufactures its products under two trademarks, however, the marking form is absolutely identical in both cases. The only difference is the font size, which is not particularly important. The marking on the Vesta battery is located on the front side, on the factory sticker, so there will be no problems finding it.
As for the marking form, there are some differences. For batteries designed for cars and light vehicles, the marking consists of two digital blocks, of which the first contains 4 digits, and the second contains six. The first block contains information about a team of workers that worked on a particular day, battery capacity and other technical information. The second block is the date of manufacture.
To make it easier for you to understand how the production date of the Vesta battery is determined , let's look at everything with a specific example. The second digital marking unit is formed as follows:
- the first two digits of the second block correspond to the year of manufacture;
- the second two transmit information about the serial number of the month;
- the last two correspond to a specific day.
It is worth noting that, regardless of which brand and factory the Vesta rechargeable battery for the car was produced on, the markings will look the same, so you can easily determine the exact year, month and day in which the battery is assembled.
Markings used by manufacturers for heavy batteries
Heavy batteries are batteries that have a large capacity and are designed for trucks and passenger vehicles. The form of writing the code on such batteries differs from their counterparts produced for cars, so you should talk about them separately.
In most cases, the marking of heavy batteries has the form of an eight-digit digital code in which the 4th and 5th digits correspond to the year, and the seventh to the month. All other figures are used by manufacturers to transmit various technical information. However, it is very important to understand that different manufacturers may use different marking options. How to determine the date of manufacture of the battery from different brands will be discussed further.
Marking form for heavy batteries
Most European companies involved in the production of power supplies for trucks and buses have long moved to a single standard for marking. These include FB, Forse, Uno, Vortex, and many others. These manufacturers use a ten-digit code for marking. The fifth and sixth figures indicate the year of manufacture of the battery, the eighth - the month, and the ninth and tenth - the exact day of the month.
An exception to the rule are Japanese auto parts manufacturers, who use an alphanumeric entry form to indicate markings. In the Land of the Rising Sun, a five-digit code is used, which is located on the factory sticker located on the battery cover. The first character in the marking corresponds to the day, the 2nd and 3rd to the ordinal number of the week, and the fourth to the year. However, it is worth noting that the year is indicated not by a number, but by the letter of the Latin alphabet, therefore, to find out the year of production of the battery, you need to contact the manufacturer and compare the information you are interested in with a special table.
Determining the date of production of batteries from other manufacturers
If you are faced with some unknown manufacturer when buying a battery, in order to determine the date of release of the battery, you must familiarize yourself with the information on the rules for reading markings in a particular company. Trust sellers in this matter is not worth it, because they themselves may not know such information or provide you with obviously incorrect data, as a result of which you simply get a poor-quality battery for your car.
The choice of a battery should be taken very seriously, since the operation of your vehicle depends on its quality. Before buying, it is advisable to familiarize yourself with products from various manufacturers and choose the most suitable for yourself. Moreover, today the market for car batteries is incredibly diverse, the main thing is to choose a "fresh" battery.