gerardvg

Hi

Thought i should share this, my yellow top optima is now 7 years old and still going strong.

To all the optima naysayers out there, im really pleased with my yellow top optima battery.

It has coped with being neglected totally drained and bounes right back every time, even though you need another battery to help ordinary chargers charge it from way below 10.5 volts.
Basic chargers is probably why people think its no good once below 10.5 volts, the chargers wont charge anything below 10.5 volts.

i got the yellow top because my car is a weekend car, mostly sits neglected for weeks but she always fires up whenever i get the chance to drive her.

So i say give Optima batterys a go, they just keep on going

FostersPerformance

I am a boat tech..In 2007, had a boat that sunk with an Optima marine battery. Boat underwater for 2 days. When i did the estimate for insurance, they would only give the guy $ for a regular battery...So i tested the battery and it was fine. Told the guy that, he said "keep it". So it sat in my shop for a year before my jeep needed one. Same size, so swapped it in...100k miles, and 7 years later, battery was still good. Traded in Jeep, but kept battery. Had it for another 2 years before i let a friend have it for his boat....After that dont know what happened.
Send the story to Optima a few years back, but no response....Gonna put one into my 88 Vette..

MatthewMiller

Curious what size you are using? Whenever my current battery ***** the bed, I might step up to an Optima.

gerardvg

Yeah they cost a bit more than a regular battery, i went to an optima battery after a conventional battery only a few months old got drained rapidly overnight. I charged it but it would not hold charge for long, buckled plates i think was the problem.

The C4 engine bay heat and vibrations, sitting unused for weeks at a time without a battery tender usually kill battery's quickly.

A club member said to try a optima yellow top, they are a deep cycle battery that will bounce back from being completely drained without ill effect.

I know from all the company cars i have had over the years 1 to 3 years is the best i got out of them, they are battery's that don't last even though they are a daily driver that never got to go flat once!

I had a fuel pump relay failure a couple of weeks ago, i was cranking the starter repeatedly for long periods. I was surprised at the amount of time it would go without even slowing.
Especially knowing that its 7 years old Eventually realized there was no fuel pressure, lucky a small off cut of a cable tie was used to jam the fuel pump relay contacts closed to get me home.

PatternDayTrader

Sounds like an all time world record to me.
Its not impossible for Optima to make a really good battery, it just hasn't happened, ever.

vettehardt

I've had mixed results with the Optima batteries. I've only used the red tops though. I bought a 98 camaro in 2006 and it already had one installed. I just replaced it with one from walmart in 2016 after the optima went dead and wouldn't even begin to charge back up. For the first two years, i drove the camaro year round. Then I bought a truck so the camaro sat over the rest of the winters. I've already had to replace the walmart one last spring. This year i've disconnected the battery and have reconnected it and started the car at least once a month. So far so good.

I've tried running them in my 73 and have had 3 go bad on me. Usually they work good during the summer, but after the winter, they won't take a charge. I've never had or used a maintainer though as those cars were stored outside where there isn't easy access to an electrical outlet.

playsdixie

I put a yellow top in my 85 five years ago....left the key on too many times to tell, drained it to nothing but it always charges right up...never had any problems......

zo6byrd

I've also got a yellow top-has to be almost 10 years old now. Originally had it in my C4 which I parked for years but now I've got it in my daily driver. This has gotta be towards any battery's life cycle even though it works with no issues. Thinking about picking up another in case.

bill mcdonald

I had a red top last 9-10 years.
The one I used to replace it was not so lucky. Not even close.

pacoW

I use the red top's in my daily driver's, not the toys. I just use a maintainer/de-sulfater on the toys and the batteries seem to last a long time. Sold a '98 durango (wife's dd) with 9yrs on the optima that was never in a garage and never failed to start in cold PA winters. Traded in my '04 avalanche (never garaged) in 2013, had 7yrs on the red top, no issues. If you catch a sale price is comparable to regular "long life" battery.

cdm747

Just went to the Optima web site. Anybody know why they say they do not have a battery that fits an 88.

Sleazy Rider

the optima battery is too tall to fit in the tray and clear the down tube from the firewall to the frame.

zo6byrd

Sleazy Rider

just looked and the optima red top in my 2007 z06 will be 7 years old in april.

Purple92

I've been a believer in Optimas or years - but recently - I've had some problems with them - I've had to return one under warranty when the truck it was installed in would not start (I had the battery for one week and the battery failed on the 2nd start of it's life. start ).

Johnson Controls bought out the original owners of the company (Gylling) back in the 2000 timeframe - and there have been a number of people saying that the newer (like the last few years) Optimas are just not as durable as the older ones were. Curious how people that bought them in the 2014 / 2015 timeframe are doing with them...

I might just go with different brand AGM next time - I've heard some good things about Odyssey ...

PatternDayTrader

Screw all gel cell batteries forever until the end of time.

Sleazy Rider

my odyssey failed within the first year, which is why the optima was installed as a replacement.

Purple92

WOW - Appreciate the input !!! You're the first person I've heard of with negative feedback on the Odyssey !

Guess it's back to the drawing board...

QZRBLU

PDT, These Optimas are NOT gel cells, they are AGMs. Gell cells are not meant for automotive use. Most auto makers are now using AGMs in their new cars. Only the econo boxes are still using wet cell batteries.

gerardvg

My yellow top is a model D34/78, has same Ca 870 specs and fits in the factory battery tray and held down by the factory clamp. My c4 has been converted to right hand drive so mirror image however 90 degrees from how it is in your C4.

Nice engine bay / blower pic

Now if only Optima made smartphone batteries ........
We are lucky if a smart phone battery lasts a year LOL