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I'm done with Optima Batteries

Ha, I just looked at the battery in my '70 Impala, it's an interstate. over 10 years old and cranks that 400 motor no issue after sitting for 3-4 months. 2 year old Optima in my '04 GTO, been sitting since early december, dead as a doornail, won't even lite the dome light. 4-5 year old optima in my K5, dead as a doornail. These things...

Trouble for me in my K5 is, with my tilt front clip I custom designed that battery tray around an Optima D31. Took me days to fabricate it. Dimensions on a different battery will have to be very close, and finding one with close dimensions could be an issue.
 
The optima battery probably has more and tighter plates, this causes them to have more cranking amps but also causes the plates to short out sooner.

Diehards were good for that, they are great batteries but don't last from my experience.

I've had the best luck with a standard battery properly size for the application.

Hard wheeling can short a battery by loosening the plates, also using tap water in a non mtx free batt will shorten its life.

Proper charging.

Lots of variables.
 
Interstate batteries used to last me a long time and that's what I would run. But later I was able to get good deals on NAPA (75 month) batteries so I gave them a shot. I owned an incredible amount of those POS's because they all died, luckily always within the free replacement period. So then I finally switched back to Interstate and found out they were not the battery they used to be. After a few of those living a short life and the dealer not wanting to replace them, I gave up on Interstate too. I do still have a couple in my '79 that are still going, but they are the older ones. Oh, and one in my '70 Impala that still does great, it holds a charge all winter.

Lately I've had good luck with the AutoCraft gold batteries from Advance, they seem to hold up well. I also have an AC Delco battery in one car that I got used several years ago, it has died a couple times while in storage, but it still charges up and works great when used on a regular basis.
 
So unless I have an application where the battery has to be mounted on its side...why would I want an Optima? Does anybody have real world evidence that they crank an engine longer, hold their charge longer, etc.? We all know that specs like CCA, RC, CA printed on a battery tell us NOTHING about how long they will last in our car. What can an Optima do that stepping up a group size in regular batteries can't do? Does a $150 spiral cell give more capacity than a pair of $75 standard LA?

The AC Delco in my K5 can sit for months in the winter and it cranks fine. The Megatron house batteries in my RV have made it most of the winter before and they are like 8 years old. What's the problem we're trying to solve?
 
first things first.. it's an AGM (absorbed glass mat) style battery, plenty of other manny's using that tech, not just Optima......

that out of the way... there are no claims of more power, etc, etc... at least that I know of... it is a tech I would like to see succeed...

it's just a different, more stable, clean way to perform the same function imo... how many rotted out battery trays have you seen? :whistle:

take it from someone who removes, stores, services and reinstalls 100's of bats a yr in boats... I'll take the heavier AGM's any day... heck, the dozens of pants/shirts I've lost to bat acid hugging/carrying em down in to bilges are a testament to that...

that's the funny thing about bat acid... it'll dry, and you think it's fine.. put it in the wash and it comes out like a moth party was had... :haha:
 
true that Paul....I like the AGM batts too, for those reasons.

I went with my red top Optima in my 99 2500 on the experience I had with the 1989 Optima (Gates) in my Jeepster, which was 21 years old at the time and still working great....and for no other reason than that.
I have my yellow top because Optima gave it to me free in exchange for the one out of the Jeepster.
I have killed the Yellowtop once left power on for about a month, but it is a deepcycle batt and came back fine.
 
I've had my Interstate batteries in my toy-hauler freeze and split but the ever-start battery that was parked next to it had no issues ( RV dealership says I need to remove them when I winterize the trailer and store them indoors or they will freeze up every time) WTH? I don't have to pull my batteries in all my other Blazers when they sit all winter.:dunno:
 
the reason it froze was because it was dead....

when batteries go to full discharge, the acid in them becomes weak and no longer retains it's "antifreezing" capabilities..
 
ryoken said:
the reason it froze was because it was dead....

when batteries go to full discharge, the acid in them becomes weak and no longer retains it's "antifreezing" capabilities..
Click to expand...

they had enough to start the generator ( I started it once a month through out the winter to keep them from draining too much)
 
it must have been on the way out... that's why you'll sometimes see older bats swollen... when ya see that, ya know they aren't long for this world..

it certainly isn't a brand issue, never seen it happen to an AGM tho..I may get 1 or 2 wet bats in winter storage that'll freeze and crack every now and than.. but it's definitely not a common failure for bats.. and your never surprised when ya know the condition/age of said bats..

and the rv place was just trying to cover their arse and make money.. trust me, I'm in the marine biz, I've been seeing that chit for decades.. I've had bosses who banked on a specific amount of coin in bat storage a yr.. and it's certainly not a bad idea to pull, keep warm and trickle charge every month in the off season..

but as long as the batteries are in good shape and not swollen, older bats, we leave em in plenty of boats without issue all winter.. throw a bit of a charge in the spring to em, and they come right up.. old and questionable in the fall, long cold winter, sometimes it kills em.. even deep cycles...
 
ryoken said:
it must have been on the way out... that's why you'll sometimes see older bats swollen... when ya see that, ya know they aren't long for this world..

it certainly isn't a brand issue, never seen it happen to an AGM tho..I may get 1 or 2 wet bats in winter storage that'll freeze and crack every now and than.. but it's definitely not a common failure for bats.. and your never surprised when ya know the condition/age of said bats..

and the rv place was just trying to cover their arse and make money.. trust me, I'm in the marine biz, I've been seeing that chit for decades.. I've had bosses who banked on a specific amount of coin in bat storage a yr.. and it's certainly not a bad idea to pull, keep warm and trickle charge every month in the off season..

but as long as the batteries are in good shape and not swollen, older bats, we leave em in plenty of boats without issue all winter.. throw a bit of a charge in the spring to em, and they come right up.. old and questionable in the fall, long cold winter, sometimes it kills em.. even deep cycles...
Click to expand...

The batteries were 6-mos old 6-volt deep cycle, I'm not bashing this brand at all, I just don't want to screw these up that I replaced them with (I went with the same ones again because they are good batteries)
 
I have a Redtop that isn't worth anything if you don't keep it on a charger, but a blue top that always seems to work.

I have two Everstart(wallyworld) batteries in my duramax and those haven't let me down yet.
 
Pulled my boat out today. Two blue tops that are less then 3 years old, came with the boat, tits up!
 
Did someone say Walmart carried an AGM battery? I can't seem to find it on their site if they do.
 
I had a 6 mo old Red Top.. won't hold a charge if it sits over a few days
Replaced with a pair of Odysseys with an isolater to split them when it's parked to long or running the fridge when camping.
1200 CCA each compared to 850 CCA on the craptoma.

IMG_1320.JPG
 
texlurch said:
I had a 6 mo old Red Top.. won't hold a charge if it sits over a few days
Replaced with a pair of Odysseys with an isolater to split them when it's parked to long or running the fridge when camping.
1200 CCA each compared to 850 CCA on the craptoma.
Click to expand...

I only see 850's in group 34/78DT. Did you get a different size?
 
dang- i have a couple older red tops that came with a buggy - they still work great. 8-10 years old now? i found out the butchered wiring in the buggy was keeping the charging system from working correctly, and also draining the batteries when it sat. thats why the car came with 2 of them... the guy would run the car all weekend, and swap the other battery in when the first was dead. never fixed the wiring.

i keep those red tops charged, but who knows how long they will last... and then what do i replace them with?

I had an odyssey in the blazer, bought a fancy charger for it, and the parasitic losses killed that battery as fast as any of the cheap ones ive had in it. i need to invest in a good quality disconnect.
 
scouthead said:
dang- i have a couple older red tops that came with a buggy - they still work great. 8-10 years old now? i found out the butchered wiring in the buggy was keeping the charging system from working correctly, and also draining the batteries when it sat. thats why the car came with 2 of them... the guy would run the car all weekend, and swap the other battery in when the first was dead. never fixed the wiring.

i keep those red tops charged, but who knows how long they will last... and then what do i replace them with?

I had an odyssey in the blazer, bought a fancy charger for it, and the parasitic losses killed that battery as fast as any of the cheap ones ive had in it. i need to invest in a good quality disconnect.
Click to expand...
Can't you just disconnect the battery?
 
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