Optima Batteries: Are They Worth It?

"FJ80WaitinForaLSV8" (fj80waitinforalsv8) 02/05/2014 at 11:21 • Filed to: None

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I need to replace the battery in my land cruiser. I have a winch and on board air compressor so I use a decent amount of electricity but have always used a standard autozone/NAPA battery.

Now my car is getting up in years and I don't drive her that much, nor will I in the next year or so (after that engine swap muwahaha). I was wondering what people thoughts were in terms of spending $250 on a premium car battery - do they actually last twice as long?

puddler > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 11:22

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must be, i had one in my nova & it was stolen.

offroadkarter > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 11:24

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I have seen many optima red tops shit the bed. After they got bought out it seems the quality went down, so I never trusted to buy one for myself

HammerheadFistpunch > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 11:25

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this question is relevant to my interests. also, not selling and getting the swap?

FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 > HammerheadFistpunch 02/05/2014 at 11:27

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I would say I'm 75-25 and leaning towards keeping the cruiser. Although ask me in 6 months and I may change my mind.

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > puddler 02/05/2014 at 11:28

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I wish my Nova's battery had been stolen... Because then I'd at least have a Nova.

OtizzyStarBai > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 11:32

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Great question... always wondered if it was worth dropping the extra coin.

Wacko > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 02/05/2014 at 11:34

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what if it's the nova from the 80's

wabbastang > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 11:34

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They were great initially, put them in many vehicles, and I still think that they were good at one point. However things have changed over the years and I won't touch the newer ones. Have had to remove tons of them from cars that have failed. Nothing but bad luck in the last few years. That isn't to say that there aren't good high end batteries out there, there are, I'd stay away from these at this point.

Party-vi > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 11:34

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The whole purpose of a deep cycle battery is if you need battery power for devices in your car/attached to the Landcruiser. If you had a huge stereo and liked thumping music with the engine turned off a deep cycle would be right for you - they're designed with the ability to deeply discharge their capacity and still function correctly. Normal car batteries rely on a single huge burst of current to start the engine of a vehicle and then are relatively useless.

If you find yourself using the winch and air compressor frequently and don't always feel the need to turn on your engine then I'd say a deep cycle is right for you.

puddler > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 02/05/2014 at 11:35

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everyone should have a musclecar sometime in their life. it's yours for $3k if i keep the engine ;)

Casper > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 11:37

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They are very different from a basic battery. They don't generally cause corrosion/promote rust like a standard battery because they are sealed, they can be mounted in different ways than a standard battery, and are higher quality materials than a basic battery. They also don't generally need as much maintenance as a standard unsealed battery. On the flip side they cost more.

The real issue is how are you going to use it, what is the vehicle, and are you properly maintaining your batteries as it is?

JEM > OtizzyStarBai 02/05/2014 at 11:45

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Same here. I always tend to with the top of line Duralast as I've always had good luck with them.

Also, because of the @*($&^$ jingle: "DURALAST. BUILT TO LAST"

Gets stuck in my head every time I need to buy a battery and I feel like an automaton programmed by a commercial but damn if it doesn't work everytime.

GabeCee13 > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 11:47

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Yes the Optima batteries are worth it. I've had several of them, regretfully sold them with the cars they were installed in (D'ho!), I have two Yellow Tops that have been in service since 2007.

One battery is in my daily driver Suburban. The Suburban killed two alternators since I've owned it, 2007/ 136k miles and the battery has stood up no issues.

The other battery is in my garage queen, hooked to a battery tender, gets started and driven every 3 or 4 months. Haven't had any issues with that one as well. This battery gets occasionally taken out when going to look at other project cars for sale or one of my driveway queens needs to get moved.

The big issue I've encountered with Optima batteries is once they fully loose a charge. Getting them to take a charge takes a few steps. What works for me is putting it on a high amp charge for about 30 mins, then low amp for 2 hours then high amp again for 30 mins. After that process the battery should be put in something that will be used often, daily driver.

camaroboy68ss > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 11:50

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I have always been told that optima are really good if you drive the car regularly other wise they go fairly quickly.

I will say from experience Odyssey batteries are great! They are a sealed dry cell like a optima but hold a charge for a long time. My grandfather had a little one in his hot rod and that thing sits all winter and you can go and get full cranking owner till it stars. Never have had a issue with it and it has to be 7/8 years old now because it was in the car when he bought it. It cranked a big heavy 348 Chevy big block like it was nothing and it half the size of a normal battery.

Slow4o > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 11:50

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Like several have already said, apparently when they were bought out they opened a factory in Mexico or something and the quality has dropped. I have had one in the Mustang for a couple years now, and I must've been lucky because it has been great. I had 2 10" subs in the trunk all the way up until this year, and never had a problem with it dying if I had the engine off. Also, they have a pretty good warranty which allowed me to swap out for a new battery when my alternator died instead of waiting for them to charge the old one.

crowmolly > puddler 02/05/2014 at 11:51

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Didn't put a hood lock on?

crowmolly > wabbastang 02/05/2014 at 11:52

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Yup. They used to be awesome but I hear of way too many failures lately.

RazoE > offroadkarter 02/05/2014 at 11:53

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Mine went to hell. Lost all ability to hold any juice and left me stranded.

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > Wacko 02/05/2014 at 11:55

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Well, it's still a car so, at worst, I'd have two cars! Or rather, my Fiat combined with an 80's Nova would actually be closer to 0.75 car, haha

puddler > crowmolly 02/05/2014 at 11:55

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battery in the trunk. they busted my latch with a screwdriver. fkn GM...

M54B30 > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 11:55

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Curious myself. My wife replaced the battery in our 530i after the dead alternator drained it while she was on vacation. She used some cheap battery (Walmart or Autozone, not sure) and our car had tons of electrical issues right after. We were getting ABS lights, stability control lights, pulsing interior lights, etc. It was a rough few months until I said I'd had enough and bought an expensive one from a BMW dealer.

Your car sounds older but you're only a battery every what, 8 years? Might as well splurge and get a good one. My wife went cheap (not knowing any better) and we nearly spent god knows how much money tracking down electrical gremlins. Essentially, she nearly saved $50 to spend hundreds later when new problems popped up.

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > puddler 02/05/2014 at 11:56

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If only I didn't live in Brazil...

OtizzyStarBai > JEM 02/05/2014 at 11:56

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thanks. now i've got it in my head :-p

puddler > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 02/05/2014 at 11:57

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haha, that would be a helluva roadtrip.

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > puddler 02/05/2014 at 12:02

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I'd be lying if I said I never thought about it... Highly hypothetical as it was, I spent a good number of evenings discussing a possible roadtrip to the US and then all the way down to Patagonia before heading back to Brazil on an old Muscle Car.

I'd totally do it if I had the means too.

red014 > Wacko 02/05/2014 at 12:03

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If it were a Nova from the 80's, stealing the Optima from under the hood would probably declare it as a total loss by insurance standards...

BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 12:05

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I would get an AGM (Absorbed glass mat), or a deep-cycle... or one that is both.

Whether it be an Optima, Napa Gold, Interstate, whatever... a good reputable brand is fine... there are only 3-4 manufacturers of lead acid automotive batteries anyway, they get re-branded.

On-board air compressor or winch, while the engine is not running... you want something like a deep-cycle battery for that kind of load on the battery. If the engine is running, then the load is on the alternator and thus on the engine, the battery is just the buffer.

If the engine is off, the battery has to stand up to that kind of electrical demand by itself, and maintain enough amperage to re-start the engine the next time.

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 12:16

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I'll tell you what batteries ARE worth it in my experience: Volvo OEM batteries.

My '98 V70 still had the original factory battery in it when it went to the scrap yard in 2011. My brother had a '78 245 with the original factory battery still in it when it was tottaled in an accident in 1999. He replaced it with a 1989 245 that still had the fractory battery in it. he never replaced the battery in that car as long he owned it (until 2009). His current '93 850 wagon has the factory battery still. My '82 242 race car has a Motorcraft bettery in it. It sucks. Thinking about getting a Volvo OEM battery for it.

Stupidru > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 12:48

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I bought a red-top and it's gotten me through 3 Wisconsin winters with no signs of stopping. I just checked the voltage the other day (the morning after I last shut the car off) and it was at 12.8V, so there's still plenty left.

Ever since Optima was bought by Johnson Controls here in Milwaukee, things have started to look up for them. They used to have a lot of reliability issues, but I believe this is a thing of the past. Being an engineer from Milwaukee, I have lots of contacts in the industry- one of whom is the engineering manager in battery technology at JCI. Everything I've heard says that Optima is back on its feet

FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 > Stupidru 02/05/2014 at 12:51

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Does anyone still manufacture their batteries in the USA?

Stupidru > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 12:54

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Unfortunately I don't think so

FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 > Stupidru 02/05/2014 at 13:04

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yikes- talk about a national security issue.

DocWalt > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 13:47

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Deka makes shit-tons of batteries in Pennsylvania ;)

puddler > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion 02/05/2014 at 13:48

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http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=7ed_139…

not sure it would keep up with them.

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > puddler 02/05/2014 at 14:09

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Man, I wish streets that wide and smooth in our state... Anyways, there's an avenue in SP famous among street drag racers, I think it's Castello Branco Ave. I'd wager it's this one.

GRawesome > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/05/2014 at 21:20

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I have 4 of them now, 2 (Red top starter and Yellow top aux) of which are in the FJ40, so you could say I'm a fan. I've never had any problems with them but they are all connected to battery tenders. It depends what you want to use them for though, I've heard they aren't good for deep cycling (even the yellow top) because the glass mat isn't really designed for that.
$250 is pretty high though. When I got the red and yellow pair (group 34) I paid less than $250 for both. Check streetsideauto.com (I think that is where I got them) and then sign up for their e-mail list, they send coupons all the time and you can get a deal when you combine it with their usual discount for xx% off over $xxx plus free shipping. They usually end up costing around the same as the conventional battery, makes the decision pretty easy.

American4Hoon > GabeCee13 02/05/2014 at 23:03

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Funny you mention your 'burb killing alternators. I had a 99 Tahoe with an alternator that went south on me and was barely putting out any amps. Thanks to the red top, I drove it like that for a week before figuring out what was going on.

Philbert/Phartnagle > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/06/2014 at 23:39

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I have a red top that has been in use for 7 years now.

If/when it goes bad I'll buy another.

Optima and Interstate batteries are the only ones I use.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 02/13/2014 at 11:38

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Autozone is good with battery warranties. I have a Duralast Gold battery that I got for around $100. I had a wiring issue with my 1000W sound system so I killed the battery within 6 months. The same thing happened again with the second battery, and then the third battery lasted about a year. Every time the store replaced the battery for free without any questions, and reset the two year warranty. Definitely have gotten my money's worth out of that. I have actually fixed the wiring issue now (turned out to just be a fuse under the hood that was the main problem) so I bet I will keep this battery longer. But my point is just make sure you get a battery with a nice warranty and then it wont really matter.

pen25 > FJ80WaitinForaLSV8 04/09/2015 at 23:51

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there are many still made in the us. johnson controls is but 1. but you pay for it. the nice thing about johnson controls is it uses standard flat plate build which gives more capacity since spiral cells are reduced in the plates on the cells. they also use better lead.