Let's talk car batteries

Many manufacturers including Optima didn't move out of the USA just because of cheap labor. There has always been cheap labor overseas even when manufacturing was booming here. On the other hand having the highest corporate tax rate on the planet did have a profound influence on why many mfrs left over the years. It's not always about corporate greed but it's always about profitability. I 'd like my Optima to be stamped "Made in USA".

There is no reason for Interstates' AGM not to be at least considered although fairly new. One thing to keep in mind, imho, is how good is any battery going to last in wide swings in temperature and the day to day grind such as in BFAlaska for example . I can't think of too many other places with such crazy wide yearly temperature extremes. +90's and up to -80s and below. Optimas were easily the top seller up there for automotive and marine applications. Easily... Northstars at the time (at least the ones I saw) were used up there for marine use along with the ubiquitous Blue Tops. It's great to see Northstar offering a great AGM truck battery. A bit pricey but then again most AGM's are pricey. Depends on what level of pricey you can afford. Odysseys were fairly new at the time but no doubt available up there now too. With temperature extremes like that a battery gets a real workout......a REAL workout. That's where a good battery can really shine. Day to day use. Maybe someone can do a review on Interstates AGM if they have one.

 

Duralast batteries have always had very good reviews. Made by Johnson Controls by the way...

 

I put an Optima yellow top in my Tundra in 2013 before it was a year old. Almost 90K miles later, and after several winters in Alaska, and months of 100°F+ heat in Southern California, it's still going strong. I don't have unusual loads on it unless I'm towing my travel trailer or running a 12v fridge, which I occasionally do, but it's been bullet proof up to now.

That being said, I just put a battery in my wife's Honda Pilot yesterday. It's just a stock daily driver but it eats batteries and this will be it's third one now. I found a good deal on a Bosch Platinum AGM battery here in So Cal for $170.00 out the door (tax and install included) so that is what it has now. We'll see how it holds up compared to the Kirkland battery she had put in last time, and the OE battery before that.

 

Great to hear your Yellow Top is doing what it's expected to do like they have over the last 40 years. The Pep Boys Bosch I replaced in my Tundra was not the AGM version. I'm pretty certain my non AGM was actually made by Exide. Bosch doesn't manufacture batteries. Only Bosch branding. The AGM version has good reviews. After two years my non AGM would go dead after two hours playing only my stock crap radio. Had to jump start my truck. Somewhat embarrassing.

Edit...Just looked up who makes the new Bosch AGM...Lucky you....Johnson Controls.

 

FYI...http://www.rodauthority.com/tech-st...d-whys-to-selecting-the-right-optima-battery/



^^^^ "Two other big things improve Optima’s power density and long life: though most manufacturers in the automotive market use recycled lead, Optima’s plates are 99.99 percent pure – “virgin” lead, if you will. OPTIMA is particularly careful with its electrolyte, too – even the sulfuric acid purity is carefully controlled. The extreme purity of the constituent elements is protected by the sealed case, which also keeps any acid from spilling onto your vehicle."

 

I was never able to confirm this from a reliable source, but JC is what I kept coming up with for the manufacturer of the Bosch Platinum AGM as well. It was only a few dollars more than a good quality lead-acid battery so if she gets more than 3 years out of it, we'll be happy. Time will tell.

 

Yup, JC pretty much makes all the grey/silver bodied AGMs lol. Otherwise relabeled for the specific retailer.

 

There are only 3 major battery manufacturers in the US. East Penn, Exide, and JC. Yuasa is Japanese.

 

I learn a lot of good stuff on this forum; thanks, fellas!

 

I run two 92 Ah AGM batteries with a battery isolator to seperate the two when the truck is not running.

 

Where did you mount the second battery?

 

Second battery is in the bed along with my ARB fridge.

 

Do you ever get that thing in the dirt? Always looking for fellow offroaders to join our adventures.

 

Hopefully I can make it out with you guys in the near future. I’m new to overlanding and would love to learn from you guys.

 

Do you have a pic for us?

 

Within a few months, my truck will be 2 years old and time to think about replacing the OEM battery with an AGM. My truck sits at airports or in my garage for extended periods, so would like a deep cycle replacement. This thread has been very helpful since there are a lot of choices. Currently, Batteries Plus has a $30 rebate going on the X2 and they have 10% off if you order on line with delivery at the store. With the rebate, their price for the X2 with 5 year warranty is close to the Optima with 3 year warranty. I have noticed that AutoZone carries the Optima, but their warranty is 2 years for the yellow top D27F where Batteries Plus and Amazon support the 3 year. Just some research that I thought might help...

UPDATE: Installed X2Power AGM 27F today (turns out my OEM 27F, 710CCA battery was leaking from the bottom, so I'm glad I caught it before failure)...

 

Auto zone has 3 years on the red top Optima I had to replace mine after a year in my boat. Didn't go with the yellow because it is a competition ski boat not a bass boat.

 

OEM battery in my son's '16 Tacoma didn't make it a year! He got a replacement under warranty, but will be changing to an AGM after the winch install (early Christmas present).

 

Used Red Top in my '01 Trans Am, but Optima recommends Yellow for my '16 Tundra and son's '16 Taco...Autozone lists battery warranty by model on their web site.

 

Was your Trans Am a WS6 car.

 

The factory battery in my Trans Am went 13 years but was always on a trickle charger.

 

No. I bought it for the wife and she wanted automatic trans, but it was a 5.7 LS. Only mods were Corsa exhaust and American Racing wheels after one of the stockers got busted. Red/black with T-Tops. Very nice. Sold it last year when the grand-baby came along. Now she has a Honda Accord V6 touring which really is fun to drive!

T/A ate batteries...everyone said due to heat under hood and Texas heat...My '04 GTO has a AutoZone Gold battery that I keep on the trickle charge. Seems to hold up good and they replace it for 3 years if I kill it. Used to run Optima Blue for 7 years.

 

The GM OEM battery died after 2 years and spilled its guts everywhere. I had to repaint the tray and underneath after the corrosion ate off the paint. That was a mess. Not ever impressed with GM batteries - my '14 Silverado killed the battery after 1 ½ years. Got the warranty replacement just before I traded her in on the Tundra.

 

Get an Interstate and don’t look back.

Quality doesn’t cost, it pays.

 

My YellowTop has 3yr free replacement.

 

With normal street use my Autocraft AGM has lasted 4.5 years so far with no apparent issues. My wife's RAV4 had the same battery fail a little after 3 years.

 

My point was to check the retailer's website before buying...it seems that different retailers post different warranty support for the same product (specifically Optima products) and it seems to be dependent upon model as well. Whichever battery you buy, purchase from the retailer that provides the best warranty support and don't assume anything.

 

Apparently Auto Zone is stating incorrect warranty period for the D27F. Optima will honor the non- commercial use 3 year free replacement (Yellow/Red) and 2 year (Blue) sold by ANY authorized dealer which can be found on Optimas' website. Not only is Optima not ambiguous with their battery warranty most authorized dealers aren't either. They can't. Every Optima display I've seen at authorized dealers have the warranties quite clearly advertized front and center. Don't buy from an unauthorized dealer. This applies to everything especially off the internet. You are correct...don't assume anything.


https://www.optimabatteries.com/en-us/support/warranties/optima-redtop-yellowtop-bluetop-warranty