New Battery

tim5055

tim5055

True Classic
Well, when I purchased the 86 from JimD one of the first things I did was replace the battery with an Optima Red Top as the existing "wet" battery had leaked and caused a little boo-boo in the frunk.

Of course, after I had the red top installed I noticed posts from Bob Brown saying it should be a deep cycle battery, meaning yellow top or blue top:sigh:

Here I am 3 1/2 years later and the battery is toast. My fault, too many times allowing the clock to drain the battery. I do have a trickle charger installed, but don't always use it. I have one cord and switch it between the X and it's stable mate in the garage. I guess it's time to just plug in a second cord......

Well, I started looking for a Yellow Top and most here say the group 34 fits (some say you can't get the cover on) so that pointed me to what I wanted. Yellow Top Group 34. Advance Auto Parts shows one in stock, $242 - ouch.

Googled around and found Amazon has the same battery for $181 with FREE shipping. I pay for Amazon Prime, but this is free for everyone.

Wait, Advance Auto Parts say they match prices..... I gave them a call and guess what, tehy only match prices they want to. I pointed out that their web site says them match (they include the shipping price in the match) but no, they won't match this one.

So, I should have a battery delivered Monday, no tax, no shipping right to my door. I swear, this one I will keep plugged in......
 
Well, as Amazon promised the battery was delivered today. The old one was out and the new one was installed in a few minutes

It should be noted that the [ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006QH55YW/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1"]Optima Group 34 battery[/ame] was a perfect fit. It filled the battery tray front/back - side/side and the bottom mounted battery clamp in the later year Xs fit perfect. No problem with the battery cover.

It should be noted that the newer Optima batteries do not have "wings" at the end for the carrying strap. they have slots in the side of the case that th strap slide into. This keeps the battery from being too wide for the battery cover.
 
Why deep cycle?

Tim I read where you mention Bob B. recommends a deep cycle battery. Why? This would be contrary to what I expect would be recommended.
 
budgetzagato said:
Tim I read where you mention Bob B. recommends a deep cycle battery. Why? This would be contrary to what I expect would be recommended.
Click to expand...
Well, I'll be honest - I'm not sure. But, I will never question Bob's knowledge of these electrical systems.

Here is his comment:
bbrown said:
But I would strongly suggest you use a battery tender of you're not running your X often.
Also I would suggest you get a deep cycle Optima.
Click to expand...

I'm sure Bob will jump in but the Deep Cycle Optima is actually a hybrid, designed for starting AND deep cycle. The yellow top I just purchased was rated 750 CCA. It's not the straight industrial deep cycle batteries I have in my golf cart. As I read the specs on the Optima web site the red to is a straight starting battery, the yellow top is a hybrid and the blue top is still a hybrid, but the CCA are lower - I guess because it's more of a deep cycle design.

I guess the deep cycle portion allows more oops, I forgot to plug in the battery tender cycles of the battery before it goes kaput. My last one lasted 40 months (36 month warranty) and I admit it's early demise was surley due to my forgetting to plug it in too many times.
 
Enersys Industrial

Everyone has an opinion based on their needs and experience. For me headliners are reliability and longevity as I like to look after my stuff I want it to last, for some the best battery is the one that you can exchange late on a Sunday. So that would be a Walmart battery and I won't argue with that.


I know it is too late for you to change your mind but anyone having a look at an AGM battery should perhaps consider that the cylinder type [Optimas] as far as I can tell were sold off by Enersys to Johnson Controls and are no longer made in Colorado USA but now Mexico. Down here the quality has been hit and miss since JCI took over as they were an excellent battery a decade ago. Mates in the Marine world told me they were no longer using the Optimas in their recreational builds when I went to look for a new battery I was advised to look at the Odyssey. Their experience was the old USA Optimas (before they were bought by Johnson Controls) were good AGMs since the takeover it has been less so.

Odyssey has a plate style glass mat separator battery of similar AGM construction to the spiral wound Optima, but as there is less void in the packaging you end up with more storage. If you haven't used AGM batteries before have a read up on the external charger requirements as they are quite different to a standard SLA, I have come across a few where the battery was not dead but the issue was the charger being used. Factoring in a charger for a deep cycle battery should be considered in the price. There are cheats where you put a SLA in the load when charging an AGM with a cheap SLA charger but a proper smart charger is worth looking at. The point of deep discharge is very important to the life you can expect. The Odyssey has a very specific float voltage so if you put them in a deep cycle application you'd better make sure the float voltage is 13.5-13.8V per 12V. As the Optima does not use pure lead they should not have this specific restriction.


What swayed me in the end as I was such a fan of the Optimas was that Roger Penske Racing have switched to these a year ago. He is no dummy and has some very clever techs working for him.

http://www.odysseybattery.com/
 
Sandgroper said:
Everyone has an opinion based on their needs and experience. For me headliners are reliability and longevity as I like to look after my stuff I want it to last, for some the best battery is the one that you can exchange late on a Sunday. So that would be a Walmart battery and I won't argue with that.


I know it is too late for you to change your mind but anyone having a look at an AGM battery should perhaps consider that the cylinder type [Optimas] as far as I can tell were sold off by Enersys to Johnson Controls and are no longer made in Colorado USA but now Mexico. Down here the quality has been hit and miss since JCI took over as they were an excellent battery a decade ago. Mates in the Marine world told me they were no longer using the Optimas in their recreational builds when I went to look for a new battery I was advised to look at the Odyssey. Their experience was the old USA Optimas (before they were bought by Johnson Controls) were good AGMs since the takeover it has been less so.

Odyssey has a plate style glass mat separator battery of similar AGM construction to the spiral wound Optima, but as there is less void in the packaging you end up with more storage. If you haven't used AGM batteries before have a read up on the external charger requirements as they are quite different to a standard SLA, I have come across a few where the battery was not dead but the issue was the charger being used. Factoring in a charger for a deep cycle battery should be considered in the price. There are cheats where you put a SLA in the load when charging an AGM with a cheap SLA charger but a proper smart charger is worth looking at. The point of deep discharge is very important to the life you can expect. The Odyssey has a very specific float voltage so if you put them in a deep cycle application you'd better make sure the float voltage is 13.5-13.8V per 12V. As the Optima does not use pure lead they should not have this specific restriction.


What swayed me in the end as I was such a fan of the Optimas was that Roger Penske Racing have switched to these a year ago. He is no dummy and has some very clever techs working for him.

http://www.odysseybattery.com/
Click to expand...
Nice looking batteries, but they are really proud of them. $275 for the group 34 that fits the X.

I'm already set on the correct chargers, my problem was I just didn't use them and that damn clock kept killing the battery...
 
tim5055 said:
Nice looking batteries, but they are really proud of them. $275 for the group 34 that fits the X.
Click to expand...

Yep the 'bleeding edge' always carries a premium. I will see if the extended life expectancy claims match the marketing, you should see the pricing Downunder - OUCH! :eek:mg::eek:mg:


If it helps you CTEK makes some snazzy weather proof quick disconnects for their own chargers, making it easy to put on a battery tender may be of interest. They have a dash mount that looks like it would fit in a spot in a later X console but I have a stainless plate on mine so I won't fit.


Thus
http://www.summitracing.com/int/parts/cte-56-380
 
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I have an '82, and a group 24 is the proper fit. I have a battery bracket that goes over the top/side and not at the bottom.

I currently have a battery that is too short to fit inside there, and I think it's a group 34. It's a local brand from Calendar Tire called "Eliminiator" (it's a spiral sealed lead acid battery). My battery is nearly 10 years old, and I know I'm due for a new one, but I want something that fits in the bracket properly.

Does someone make a group 24 in a SLA/AGM type?
 
FWIW I have the cheapest battery I could find that fit, 4 years no issue and I've been very rude to it, letting it drain many times, running the car with no alternator until it stops...I do drive it a lot though, never goes more than a week or so between runs and if it looks like about that long a wait I throw it on a charger overnight and occasionally pull the cable so the clock won't kill it, I'm just not sure big $$ batteries are worth it, IMHO.
 
My old battery spilled acid everywhere during a track event, so I don't mind spending a little more on a battery that won't leak.
 
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