99 VET

Suggest using a trickle charger like a CTEK 3300 w/your new battery. I use a battery mat that goes under the battery just in case. I had a red top that went bad in a yr but got a free replacement that lasted over 6 yrs which I replaced to be on the safe side. Good luck & remember to wave to other vette drivers!

OptimaJim

LoneStarFRC is absolutely correct about gel and AGM batteries being two very different technologies. Someone would have a really hard time finding a gel battery for an automotive application, but the bigger issue is with chargers and maintenance devices that don't distinguish between the two. Gel batteries have very narrow charging parameters that may not fully-charge non-gel batteries and could damage them over time. For that reason, we always recommend avoiding any “gel” or even “gel/AGM” charger settings (regular settings work just fine on our batteries).

Mike, while you are correct that a battery with more reserve capacity will take longer to discharge from a parasitic draw, the real issue is the draw itself. All batteries will do best if they can remain fully-charged whenever possible. If you don't have the option of using a quality battery maintenance device to maintain the voltage of your battery while in storage, using a quick disconnect on a fully-charged battery is also a viable option to prevent discharge from parasitic draws (although you may lose presets).

Phanni, I'm sorry to hear about the problem you had with your battery. Did your retailer not honor your warranty?

striper, whenever someone releases a report on comparison testing of batteries, our engineers also release their own report to us internally. In that report, they cover the testing methodology used and why one battery may have tested better than another. They also explain how battery design and construction could be altered to maximize results on comparison tests performed in a lab, but caution that such changes would result in decreased performance in real-world applications. That's one of the reasons we supplement our own lab testing with field testing- taxi fleets in Las Vegas, etc... in fact, a member of this forum was personally involved in some of our fleet testing.

If any battery fails from a manufacturing defect, it is likely to do so well within the first year of use, if not the first month. Beyond that, battery lifespan is generally tied directly to the application. Whenever any battery is discharged below 12.4 volts and is left sitting in that state, sulfation begins to form in the battery, which diminishes both capacity and lifespan. That makes a quality battery maintainer an excellent investment for any vehicle that doesn't see regular use.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
www.pinterest.com/optimabatteries

MIKE'S02VETTE

Really appreciate all the replies. I am fairly confident that any Group 78 AGM will fit into the battery tray of my '02. The ACD Group 75 in there now is smaller than the tray. I just don't know if there's enough room for the big, and expensive(207.00 on sale), SDHP 34/78 being that it's almost 11" long(10.9).
I have not found a locally available OPTIMA battery that has an RC of 120 mins, or greater. From what I've read this seems like a very polarizing product (love it or hate it).
Keeping a battery maintainer/charger on it at all times now.

LoneStarFRC

A group 78 battery WILL fit the battery tray with NO mods required. Period.

The main reason I, and others, like the 34/78 (meaning it meets both the size and terminal characteristics of both Groups 34 and 78) batteries is because of the convenience of having dual terminals.

A battery that is strictly a group size 34, will be a top post ONLY.
A battery that is strictly a group size 78 will be side-post ONLY.

If you do not want the convenience of a dual-terminal battery, just look for a group 78. It will almost invariably have higher CCA/CC numbers and higher RC than group 75 batteries (which are also side post). Think of the 75 as the smaller cousin to the 78.

reath1

OptimaJim, herein lies the problem. Optimas just aren't made like they used to be. I used to use nothing but Optima, probably 10 in the last 10 years in different vehicles and watercraft, but in the last 5 years it seems quality has gone downhill. That seems to be the consensus on this forum also. The last red top I had lasted 10 months. Had a LOT of problems with the retailer warrantying the battery also.

I could notice the battery getting weaker and weaker over the course of about a month and if I didn't leave a charger on it overnight it would not start the next day. Drove it to O'Reilly's and had them test it. Test Result-Battery Good, Needs Charge. Which I honestly think their machine is probably programmed to say. They told me it was probably the alternator. I knew it wasn't but told them to sell me one. The clerk grabbed a reman alt. I said no, give me a NEW alt. Went home and installed it. Battery responded the same. I left the charger on overnight again. Started the truck with the charger still on. Did not run any accessories on my way to the retailer. Had him come out and check the battery with the truck still running. Read 100%. I shut the truck off. Battery immediately read 100%. I started the truck 1 time and shut it back off. Battery read 52%. He again put it on the machine inside. Again, Battery Good. Needs Charge. Yea right....Still did not want to replace the battery. And this is in my wifes Tahoe, not a Vette with parasitic drain. Drove to Sears and purchased the Platinum.

Called Optima Customer Service and was told it was not their problem I would have to take it up with the retailer. Drove to O'Reilly's and told them to stick their Red Top up their Brown Bottom. Manager heard this, as I was not speaking quietly and not as nice as what I wrote, and after some haggling agreed to replace the battery. Now, for $685.00, I have a battery that works. $210 for the Red Top, which is sitting in my garage as I refuse to install it in anything I own, $225 for the DieHard, which is flawless, and $250 for the alternator that I knew I didn't need. Not to mention a 3 day argument with O'Reilly's.

I will NEVER TOUCH another battery with Optima written on it. Period. When I told customer service what I was running into I think something should have been done on that level instead of the answer I was given.

OP, go ahead and buy the 78 Series DieHard. It fits perfectly.

OneCylinder

Sears battery service is absolutely the best.

Open 7 days
Qualified techs test the system
Quality Die Hard batteries
Same quality service and waranty nationwide

What's not to love?

LoneStarFRC

That is a positive alright, but everyone just needs to remember the Die Hard Platinum series are in a premium category all their own, and also are the only ones made for Sears by Enersys Corp in Missouri. Enersys is best known in the battery world by their Odyssey brand. They also carry a warranty that far exceeds most, if not all, of their competitors.

http://www.odysseybattery.com/

Baldfart

I have one too. They are made by Deka (East Penn Co.). Seems to be a good battery, best priced AGM I found. Think I paid $130 for mine.

http://www.autozone.com/autozone/par...questid=249245

OneCylinder

Thanks, I did not know that. However I do know that after approximately 40 year of buying Die Hards whenever I needed a replacement battery, I've never returned a Die Hard except the one 35 years ago that I did not fasten to my '72 F-100 and fell through the fan to the ground while I was bouncing through the woods. I walked more or less 50 feet behind where the truck came to a stop, picked up the battery with the corner broken off, tie wired the torn cables, cranked up the truck, took it back to Sears at about 8:30pm where the service manager said to the tech "eh... what the heck, give him another one".

LoneStarFRC

Good to see you made it out of the woods OK. Good story.

OptimaJim

reath1, I apologize for my slow response on this thread. I was out in the field last week and I'm just getting caught up on conversations now. While I understand experiences vary, we do build our own batteries, so we know exactly how they used to be made and how they are being made today. The batteries we are building today are the best we have ever made.

The testing units many retailers use do have pre-set responses, based on testing results and “good battery, needs charge” is a common result, because it is a common outcome. We used an Autometer BVA-200 in this test, which is very similar to what many retailers use.
Many of the batteries retailers test are just deeply-discharged and work fine, when properly-recharged. When they are tested in a deeply-discharged state, if they still show decent cranking amps for the voltage level in the battery, they will often return that result and suggest additional charging, which can take several hours or longer, depending on the depth of discharge.

I'm sorry to hear you were not satisfied with the service you received on our customer service line. I would like to follow up with our team, as they are able to assist consumers with warranty service with our retail partners and I'd like to review your call and how it was handled. Please PM me your full name and phone number, so we can locate it in our system.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
www.pinterest.com/optimabatteries

reath1

PM sent Jim.

strand rider

Having purchased a used vette, I found the battery service at Sears very helpful. I have driven over there a couple of times to have the charging system checked, with various cars. They also have all the warranty records of your battery, so anyone, wife or another owner, can get full value out of a battery problem if needed. Plus the product is fresh.

I will get a Sears Battery if the product is comparable, the support system is an added value and it is full drive up, no pulling the battery ,no lifting, no grime or mess. Plus it is a national chain with lots of locations. (kmart owned )

I won't be getting anything that requires a charger to park the car for a while. My battery has taken a lot of abuse, as my car gets fettered out. Lots of cranking and repairs going on, not to mention prolonged setting while other problems are sorted out.

I know the optimas' are good batteries, but Are not tolerant of a lot of prolonged deep discharge and abuse . the lead acid battery Delco that came with the car is still kicking. A less tolerant design might have sent me to the store for more juice.