purple heart

Just had the battery tested on my '74 A3 350, L-48, and after it tested good, I was told it was 6 years old. I told them to keep and I would try to find another Delco Battery. HA! Right! No good at the Chevy dealership and the local auto parts stores, Discount Auto and Auto Zone, don't sell Delcos any more. Will try NAPA tomorrow.
Would anyone know where in the Clearwater, FL area I might find a Delco Battery and does anyone know what CCA's the car calls for? It also has A/C, pwr steering and brakes, A3, and a Turbo 400 transmission.
Will need the info asap and any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,

I'm Batman

Why are you hung up on the Delco? Drop in an Optima red top and be done with it.

Chilli

Delco batteries, in my opinion, are outstanding. Those damn things last forever, even if they've been sittin' around for awhile. My most recent Delco battery, which was the factory battery that came with the '97 Silverado I sold more than a year ago, is still kickin' (I kept it and put a crappy Canadian Tire special in it's place when I sold the truck). I put it on a battery charger two days ago and the "Fully Charged" light came on almost instantly. I hate the IDEA behind the "Freedom Battery", but on the other hand, it just won't die - a far superior product to the pieces of $h|t made by Interstate or Exide. Just my $0.02.

pws69

Well, they certainly USED to be.....

And who do you suppose makes "Delco" batteries? Since 1998, they have been manufactured by MEBC in Saudi Arabia (for Delphi) - which seems to coincide with the degradation of quality and reliability.

There appear to be a lot better choices these days.

purple heart

Better choices? Maybe but I'm with Chilli on this one. My '99 riviera's original delco battery just passed away two months ago. Most if not all delcos in my vettes usually last about 5-7 years-what's wrong with that???!!!
Hey Batman, what's an Optima Red Top? Never heard of it?

Lastly, if I can't find a delco, which of the two choices do you recommend: Die Hard by Sears or an Interstate and why?

Thanks for your comments...

Sal

FKING1

Just put one in my 70 to replace a Delco ( don't know how old the Delco was) Optima's are a bit pricey ,but, good. Will put one in my 00 when it dies. Currently nearly 7 yrs. old.

Fred

I'm Batman

You've never heard of an Optima battery?

http://www.optimabatteries.com/publi...e/starter.html

purple heart

Thanks Batman, I will be checking the red tops out tomorrow. I also found a local source for a AC Delco battery for $46.00!!! Even though is has 530 CCA's, I'm not sure if this is really enough. I checked the Owner's manual, it only states power in Watts! IOW, the 350 battery has 72 plates and 3250 Watts; the 454 battery has 78 plates and 4000 Watts! Not sure how these numbers equate in CCA's?????? Any help would be appreciated on this one.
Thanks

Garson

I have a little different take on batteries. It is the one thing that you need to make the Vette go. In the big picture, they are not that expensive compared to other parts. I change out the battery every 4 years, ( 60.00 divided by 4 = 15 dollars a year ) that way I don't have to wait for it to die far from home. With the newer autos constant drain and the sitting around in the winter in my Vete, it is hard on a battery, Just my two cents............

bondoboy

I put an interstate in my 71. It works great, but it doesn't fit in the box right. It's a little too wide. Just something to consider.

babbah

Optima Redtop on my C2...awesome battery, sits for a year and doesnt need to be recharged.....

commando57

I wouldn't have a battery in it at all if I didn't use it in a year!
I would take the barttery from something else.

Paul L

The Optima is expensive but I decided to try one. After a month or so it is performing well. The idea of no boil-over appealed to me. This one is 800CCA, much more than I need but that is pretty much the norm I understand. It is very close in physical size to a group 24 (sits a bit lower) and no problems were encountered on installation.

bcliff

I have a battery manufacturer a few miles from my house. (DEKA Batteries/East Penn Manufacturing) They supply for some of the name brands, not sure who now. I put a 2nd in my 71 in 1992 and it is still working with no problems. I have a new one to replace it this year, I don't know how much longer it will last. I only use the car spring-fall and store it in my garage without charging it. Unbelivable!

Tom

pws69

I have used Deka batteries in the past and they were excellent.

purple heart

Garson,

Thanks, that's sound like good advice, especially when one has dealt with dead batteries on more than one occasion. I'll definitely keep that one in mind, ty.

purple heart

Interesting you should say that; I just called a local Redtop seller and was told that they, the RT's, only last about 2-3 years!!!!! WTF, over! If, and mind you, I'm not positive about this yet, but if that's true, I'll probably buy the AC Delco one I found for 46.00 or so new. It has 539 CCA's; I also found out the car requires 430 or 470 cca's. More food for thought.

WMays

I couldn't help but posting....Optima is a good battery, it is an AGM (absorbed glass mat) contruction using a "spiral wound" technique that makes it really resistant to vibration. (over the life of a battery, that tends to be one important criteria in their failure modes). In other words, the plates are not hanging suspended in acid like most batteries (even other AGM's). I use an Optima in my car.

Most of the American battery manufacturers do not have a good quality control process...You may get an excellent battery 95% of the time, but usually about 2-5% do not do well. Exide, Delphi, JCI etc etc

East Penn, as mentioned in a previous post, has one of the best quality control systems and process controls that I've ever seen. Their quality is remarkable and their battery performance confirms that. The only bad thing about East Penn is that they typically don't sell their own branded battery to the public. In other words, it may be hard to find.

If you can find an East Penn, use it. Optima is a technically better choice, but also costs a lot more.

I'm Batman

Sounds like he has another line of batteries that get a better profit margin tha the Optimas. They tend to last forever. I have one that's about 8 years old and is on it's third vehicle - still starts fine every time.

purple heart

Hmmmmmmmmmm? here we go again; this one or that one.....