Are Optima batteries still any good these days?

[cherokee83]

I went with a diehard platinum myself due to convenience (It's usually not hard to find a Sears nearby).

I think a big issue on the bad rap Optima is getting is from people using a "Red Top" with deep cycle expectations. If you need a deep cycle, you go with the Yellow Top.

DieHard Batterys truly stand by there name when they go and they do go they DieHard out the blue Red Top Optima Batterys are truly for Mid Sizes cars only Know the Optima Yellow you can not go rong i have one from 2007 in my W/T 1983 cherokee with A/C power locks windows and seats on top of all that i have 2 15 subs and 2 1000 amps and i have jumped off tons of cars every winter for the past 5 years Yellow top are #1

[bg2pres]

I agree with Tad, my yellow top is solid... My red top was not worth the money... Yellow top is 5 years old

[MFRPA]

Batteries

I had two red tops and they were worthless.

I run Pep Boys/Bosch : 2 batteries in my M715 and 2 in my diesel Suburban.

They warranty them for three years full replacement. I had one go in the Suburban they replaced it free.

[CJ5]

Good info in here on the charging/recover of Optima's. I have had mixed results with them. I have dual in both my CJ and YJ. It seemed to me they just were not worth the money but perhaps I didn't understand the proper charging requirements. I have been through many of them. It seemed like a problematic electrical system cause them to die and early death. I will have to research more maybe I can recover some of the old ones I have not tossed.

[rreed]

The ctek charger I bought for mine has gotten the "most" results out of recovery but neither of my yellows have fully recovered. One drains back to 11.3-something and the other around 9.something. The 11.something I can leave on the ctek for a week and it'll be okay for a few days of DDing (first taking it off the charger shows 12.something+ volts) but certainly doesn't spin the motor nearly as fast as it used to. After a few days, especially a cold snap, it was back to 11.3-something or so volts and would not crank.

The other yellow that stays around 9.something, I can leave it on the ctek for a good week+ and the moment I pull the charger off I can watch the DVM count down like a clock. This is charging either battery sitting on the floor.

On either battery the ctek never shows full charge, it stays in charging state the entire time. The instructions say if it doesn't show full after three days your battery may be unrecoverable.

Similar results for the new red top that came in the Wagoneer I picked up a couple months ago but the ctek will take it to full charge then go to maintenance mode, and once removed will show around 13.something volts like they're supposed to. Immediately install and crank and nothing. Suddenly drops to 11.something.

As of now I'm going to leave the ctek on my better yellow top for the winter and see what happens after charging it a very long time. I think it's dead but what the heck. The red top looks brand new so I'm going to see if an Optima shop will warranty it but I've never heard one good thing about red tops and have seen nothing but trouble from them from other folks as well as my own.

[Mars]

I've been buying $25 salvage yard batteries. Aint had an issue. And when they die.. ( 3 years so far ) I get 10 bucks back out of them.

[rreed]

I've been buying $25 salvage yard batteries. Aint had an issue. And when they die.. ( 3 years so far ) I get 10 bucks back out of them.

Holy crap that's actually a brilliant idea! Not sure I'd do it for my winching/wheeling vehicles but for my DD's, heck yeah!!!

[serehill]

I've been trying to figure out -

Why the Optimas are all over Craigslist like refurbs for about half the price. I assumed they are rejects but there are tons of them around here.
They are still not 55 bucks though that is scary.

[dbabicky]

I used to run Red Top Optima's for years with no trouble. My last one was in my CJ-5 I sold 5 years ago. I've had darn good luck with Interstate since then. The garage I help out at sells them. I get them for his cost which isn't that big of a savings, but I can get referbed ones from right off the Interstae Truck, for $35.00. Haven't had any trouble from Interstate Battery's.

[jrlane]

Never ran the Optimas. I have a Duralast from autozone in Mine and its 9 years old. Cranks great if I start it everyday but will go down if I leave it set for about 2 weeks. Been a Great Battery for its age.

[bg2pres]

People don't know how to charge them in recovery, so they throw them away. The seller must know how!

Why the Optimas are all over Craigslist like refurbs for about half the price. I assumed they are rejects but there are tons of them around here.
They are still not 55 bucks though that is scary.

[Carnuck]

I got burnt 3 times with Intermistakes. Won't play again. They tried to claim I had a parasitic loss in the vehicle that killed the batteries overnight, yet the old battery lived fine in there for a week. It was just too weak for cold weather.

[rreed]

The stock battery in the wife's '07 Nissan took a dump after just a few years so she had an Autozone Duralast battery put in. That one took a dump after 1-2 years (went flat dead, wouldn't take/hold a charge) but replaced under warranty. The warranty also took a dump after 1-2 years, same as original one. Now this warranty Duracrap was flagged as a bad battery (1-2 years old as well) by the Nissan shop after taking it in for a transmission issue (alleged to be caused...by the bad battery. yeah.) so I swapped in one of my good Wal-Fart batteries and took her Duracrap into the '20.

Her Nissan cranks noticeably faster during starts and a few times now I'm not sure the '20 is going to start. Noticeably weak crank and volt meter shows around 10-11 volts at idle when the 10SI alternator stops charging. Sure it may be arguable that the Nissan is eating batteries but we'll know for sure after we run this 2-3+ year old WM battery in it, and for good measure I won't touch another Duralast battery.

Talked to the sales monkey in a nearby Interstate store about warranty replacement on Optimas, got a good "uhhhhhhhhh.... (rifles through sales literature and brochures).... uhhhhh..... Says here you have to have a receipt." Okay, cool, thanks. I have three dead Optimas sitting on my garage floor.

[j20brett]

I have had two failed red tops. Was going to switch to a diehard platinum this go round, but would be eating the $180 since mine is still under warranty. I think ill trade up to a yellow top this time sinc it seems others have had better luck with them.

[racegas]

Costco battery

My wife's Yukon has been having trouble starting, sporadically. Battery checked out at advance and Firestone. Took it back to advance today, they tested battery, alternator and starter. Battery tested 536/800 CCA. They said take it back to Costco. I was ready for a hassle, while Costco argued about it being bad . It had a 36 month free/100 month prorated warranty, and was about 26 months old. .

Instead, they accepted me at my word, didn't even ask what made me think it was bad. Told me to yank it out of car, bring it in, they'd put what I paid for it on a cash card, go get a new one, use the cash card to pay for it and a manager would adjust the price, so I effectively just swapped it out, no questions. Didn't even need the receipt, they looked it up.