So my Duralast Gold battery is dying as it no longer holds a charge. So before I get another one, I just wanted to hear other's opinions as to what battery is better. Should I stick to Duralast Gold or try another one. I have a stock 2002 C5. Let me hear what you got.

 

Optima red or yellow. They're the best batteries I've ever used. I find they're especially useful if your car sits for prolonged periods.

I have a dual terminal yellow top in my Vette and a smaller yellow top in my '76 Triumph project car that gets started once or twice a year.

 

 

Red tops suck. Yellow tops do better. You live in a hot climate and the red top is guaranteed to fail you. In Florida I went through a red top in 18 months twice. Then I stopped listening to the hype and got a yellow top. Its much better.

 

Had mixed luck with Optima Red Tops - one lasted better than seven year (sold the car and battery was still good) and another lasted just a few weeks past the three year mark.

Currently have a Sears DieHard Platinum in my '03. Been there for nearly five years and not one problem encountered.

 

Most batteries will do just fine. Prices very due to marketing costs, but now a days, a battery is a battery. The cheapo battery in my C3 lasted 8 years and I only replaced it because of it's age. Still worked fine. If you had good luck with Duralast, stick with it. I have an Exide in my C5 and have had no problems.

 

Personally I had poor service from the red top Optima. I replaced it with an Energizer "Wally World" battery. I'm at about 6 years on it. I drive my C5 about once a week, maybe less. I'm always reading these cars have a parasitic electrical drain when sitting. So maybe your driving style will affect your battery performance, something to consider. Also I now put my car on a charger about once a month to really get a full charge on the battery. Check the water level once a year too! All that said, MY choice would be any traditional battery, skip the Optima, save your $$$.

 

The one I got from Auto Zone a few years ago has been flawless so far. A lot cheaper than all the big name fancy ones out there.

 

I'm running the Duralast Platinum in mine. The peace of mind of having an AGM was worth it after the NAPA battery from the previous owner dripped acid that melted through the HVAC vacuum line.

 

I have three red tops...I replaced one at 8 years.. it never failed me.. but I thought I would not tempt fate... I still have that battery and use it as a 12 V bench test battery...its 15 years old... My second red top, is in my C5 now and its been in there 7 years sits through the winter,, and I have never used a battery tender...I have a red top in my other car for 5 years... I've never had any problems with an Optima Battery.. of course many people who use a trickle charger but a few nails in a red top if the charger in cheap and unregulated. So many people in this forum and every other forum I am no always ask things like where can I buy the cheapest brakes,, the cheapest tires... etc... When will they learn that, most cant afford to buy anything cheap.. it just cost too much in the long run.. My OEM camera batteries last me 7 or 8 years.. the cheap knock off last 6 moths to 2 years. and some will even leak and destroy your 1500 dollar camera.. but people just want to buy the cheapest thing they can get.. can you imagine someone wanting to buy cheap brakes then put their wife and kids in that car... you can buy a SanDisk memory card for 65 dollars that has a high transfer rate.. or you can buyt a 15 dollar knock off that has a vey low transfer rate and most corrupt easily and don't have the capacity they claim.

 

DieHard Platinum and very pleased with the product. I strictly buy DieHard batteries from Sears unless I go with Optimas.

 

I have had two Optima Red Tops over about 8 years in my C5 and they never failed, but I have had better results so far with the Diehard Platinum the past 3 years with voltage staying higher and more consistent (according to the gauges)...

 

IM looking for the cheapest neurosurgeon I can find, because I need some brain surgery...
I want the guy that gets 1000 dollars for his work... not the guy who gets 25,000 for his work....

 

... I have a yellow top in my z and a red top in my daily, both were bought and installed at the same time a little over 2 years ago... the one in my z has given me zero issues... the red top in my daily is starting to lose it's charge if I don't drive it everyday and drive the z instead and I'll have to put a charger on it to crank it up... amazon refunded my money no questions asked which was cool so I'm just going to replace it with a yellow top

 

Red Top. If the car is going to sit a few days or more, put a float charger on it. C5's are notorious for slow draws that will tap a red top out very prematurely if you let it discharge too much. Red Tops in general are very susceptible to an early death with continued discharge and recharge cycles. If you remember to just toss the car on a float charge (a cheap $20 .5 to 2 amp charger at wal mart works fine) or maintainer when you're going to leave it for more than a day or two, it'll last a long time.

Whatever battery you choose, it's highly recommended to go for a sealed unit as our batteries sit directly over the PCM and main wiring harness. Thus any leaks tend to cause some rather troublesome wiring harness damage if left unchecked or unnoticed.

 

Optima red top in mine, on a battery maintainer through the week as it's not a daily driver.. I don't want a cheap battery in it that could leak and destroy a bunch of stuff underneath it

 

The most expensive thing is not always the best. There are just a few battery companies that manufacture all the different brands of batteries. Marketing can add a lot of money to the price of a battery.

 

For cheap insurance pick up an acid neutralizing mat for under 10 bucks to put under your battery.

 

Good idea, I didn't know about these mats.

 

I'm on my second Red Top in the vette (in only 2yrs time). Both are questionable. First one got replaced because it wouldn't hold a full charge past 12.4v. New replacement would hold 12.9v from the shelf but soon after would only hold 12.4 at full. I've not had it fail to start or any other issues; however, I have had three or four "pull key" messages that may have been related to the battery. I have kept the second one on a maintainer for most of it's non-driven life and it still cannot hold greater than 12.4v. I'll just keep it until it causes problems and then replace it with a non-Optima battery. I would not recommend them based on my experience.