In fact when I took my car in to get a new battery, the old 7 year old battery still was able to get a good reading on a battery tester, and was around 13.5 volts.
No 12V Automotive starting battery is 13.5 volts. That is the alternator output, not the battery. A 12 volt battery that is new or in good condition is 12.6 volts (2.1 volts per cell) when fully charged.
