Steve Weiner-Rennsport Systems

Very true,......

I've really had excellent luck with them for 10+ years, but I learned a lesson on the first one and now keep them on on battery maintainers designed for AGM -type batteries.

Mother

I use a yellow top for a few years now and still cranking over.

Indycam

http://www.lifelinebatteries.com/index.htm
http://www.lifelinebatteries.com/marineflyer.php?id=8

ltc

You want one of these:

http://www.porsche.com/uk/aboutporsc...=2009-11-23-02


You don't want to know the price...

cwrm4

Question about the Costco returns...does Costco only warranty Optimas bought at Costco, or will they warranty Optimas bought anywhere? I have another dead Optima after only 1.5 years of use; this time a Red Top. I purchased it online but have the receipt.

Nine11

I think they'd only accept merchandise they sold.

karlusmagnus

Have you tried to revive it using a CTEK or similar maintainer set up specifically for gel batteries?
I think that there was a post on pelican, from one of the Optima company reps which spoke specifically about reviving dead optima's ... worth a search.

Karl.

2002M3Drew

If you are concerned about weight, these things weigh a ton. Then full sized battery (regular Interstate) that I just pulled from my 964 weighs 34 lbs. The minimum published weight of the Optima is about the same, but I think they are heavier in actuality. As an alternative, the Deka ETX30L is also an AGM battery (no leaks). It has the proper terminal orientation for the 964, and it weighs in at 20 lbs. It costs $76 discounted at Batterymart. It is the same battery as the 3121 Braille, which is a real beast. 1380 PCA! I had the Braille version in my 911SC for three years with no issues, and I didn't use a trickle charger.

zunix

@2002M3Drew -- thanks, that sounds like a really nice alternative. Anyone else have experience with the Deka?

Marc Shaw

No problems with my 75/35 Optima after 3 years (kept on a CTek) but I just replaced it with an Odyssey 680 for weight savings.

Marc

OptimaJim

Hello, I noticed your conversation regarding our batteries and wanted to offer some assistance. No battery manufacturer releases sales numbers, but it’s safe to say we sell a lot of batteries through a lot of different retailers. However, we will not re-spec, re-badge or re-label our batteries for any retailer, so you may not find our batteries everywhere.

The quality of our batteries has always been excellent and continues to improve. Most of the “bad” batteries returned to us now are just deeply-discharged and work fine, when properly recharged. Most battery chargers will not charge any battery that has been discharged below 10.5 volts and most flooded lead-acid batteries cannot be recovered from such a deep state of discharge. Optima batteries can be recovered from a deep discharge, by using the technique Karl referenced, which is explained in this video- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIoaL3DWWEg

The key to long battery life, regardless of brand, is maintaining at least 12.4 volts at all times. All Optimas are AGM batteries, so microprocessor-controlled tenders or maintainers with AGM-specific settings are ideal, but most battery chargers will work just fine. Charger settings for “gel” or “gel/AGM” should be avoided, as they will not fully-charge an AGM battery and could damage it over time.

The factory free replacement warranty on all new RedTops and YellowTops is three years from the original date of purchase. Any retailer from which you purchase a new Optima should provide warranty service for you, for the full duration of your warranty. However, there are some online retailers that do not. We strongly recommend that you find out the warranty procedures before making a purchase. If the seller’s procedure is to contact the manufacturer or if they do not provide a customer service phone number that they answer (not the Optima batteries customer service number) we recommend looking elsewhere.

For same-day purchases and service we recommend visiting your nearest Optima retailer, as online purchases can take multiple days to arrive. Likewise, in the event that product support service is needed, online purchases must be shipped back to the original seller and can take several days to be processed and returned.

OPTIMA-authorized online retailer requirements:

• Ship Optima products in approved shipment packaging
• Answer a toll-free service phone number during business hours
• Adhere to and honor the Optima factory warranty policy
• Provide an in-house warranty program

If you have any other questions about our batteries, please don’t hesitate to ask.

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

Indycam

Why was the 75/35 changed to a 75/25 ?

cwrm4

OptimaJim - I used a "smart" charger on AGM mode at the 30A rate on my RedTop. The RedTop was completely discharged (interior lights wouldn't even come on).

After about 2 hours the battery got fairly warm, and I could hear it outgassing through the relief tabs. The charger showed 10A at that point. The outgassing was concerning, but I had to move the car from where it was parked so I let the battery cool down, put it in the car, and it started right up. The next day, the battery would click the solenoid but nothing else.

Since the battery was outgassing, has it been damaged? I haven't yet tried recharging it, but plan to take the car on a long trip soon, so would like to make sure that, even if I can recharge the battery, it isn't on its last legs. The battery is 1.5 yrs old.

GG Allin

Anyone considering an Optima, consider these guys. Great customer service.

http://www.1st-optima-batteries.com/

morrisroad

Interstate I have heard are good batteries. I had one in Jag with a v12 without issue. Currently, have a diehard international, with trickle charger.