Los Gatos?

I had enough of my mostly-dead battery in the '85, so I took the plunge, I went to Pep Boys ( ) and got an Optima Yellowtop. I tried asking the highschool dropout at the counter whether they carried Bluetops, as I noticed they had a sign that said "Optima Marine Batteries" but didnt' have any blues on display. I asked if they carried Optima Bluetop batteries, the guy looked at me like I was a retard, I was like...you know, the blue topped ones, they are deep cycle and for marine use. He said, oh, deep cycle, we have that, what you want is a redtop. Yeah, the redtop, of course, what else would they call the one with the blue top? Redtops aren't even deep cycle! I gave up and bought a yellow (same as blue internally, but has slightly less warranty) I paid $160, yeah, a complete ripoff, but I've been to every battery store in town and noone else had a deep cycle that would fit my car, and noone else carries Optima. I needed it for tuesday, so ....well it's bright and yellow and shiny, so I'm happy.

transalper

That's a great battery. I just put one in as well. Other than having to extend the positive cable a few inches and add a spacer under the battery, it was a clean install. I had a red top for a few years and swear by optimas. BTW, the price you paid is not that bad. I've seen em for $140 on the net, but that does not include shipping.

Mad Chemist

Dumb question- what is the advantage of going to a deep cycle battery, particulary if you don't have alot of added on electronics (ie. amp, sub, etc)?

Los Gatos?

The advantage if you don't (I have a TON of electronics) is that the battery can sit for extend periods, the battery will probably last 5-10 years, it is completely sealed (no fumes, no leaks) and it can be completely discharged and then recharged (unlike regular lead acid batteries which will die if completely discharged) around 350 times. So if you have it for 10 years it's cheaper than getting 3 or 4 $50 batteries. They also have high cranking amps and fairly high AH (continous power) Yep, they are good!

seafarinman

So how do the red tops compare to the yellow tops? There was a shop selling factory refurbed redtops for like $40.00 and I bought two. I am planning on getting an isolator and running a dual battery setup with one in the bed.

Churnd

I've been thinking about getting an Optima for some time now, but I can't decide on whether I should get a Red or Yellow Top. I've seen a lot of debates about which is better for the standard starting battery. Most people say the Red top is better and don't recommend using the Yellow top as a starting battery.

So I'm a little torn as to which I'd need to get. I also have quite a few things running off of my battery, such as my Jacobs Ignition, the electric fan, my KC 150W lights (when they're turned on), my 300W RF amp, the light harness that I got from AutoBulbDepot (which I think pulls more current than you'd think), and I think that's it.

I can see the voltage guage on the dash panel move when I turn on a blinker or hit my brakes or turn on the windshield wipers or even the headlights. When all are on at the same time, that sucker drops pretty bad. Not below 10V but still a little lower than I'd like. I want it to stay above 13V when it's running at all times. So can anybody make me a suggestion about which battery I should get?

transalper

You'd probably be happy with either the red (actually the orange-top is the one you want to make sure the posts are on the correct side for a more simple install) or the yellow. I chose the yellow-top because I have some high amp draw accessories (winch and air compressor) that will be really tough on a starter battery, even the orange-top. The orange/red top has something like 950 CCA which would be awesome for really cold starting, but the CCA of the yellow-top will be fine for me in MN.

Here's some good info:
http://www.1st-optima-batteries.com/
http://www.batterymart.com/optima_battery.php

Churnd

I live in MS where it rarely gets colder than 25 degrees. Having that said should I go with a Yellow Top?

transalper

Both would work. The question really comes down to whether or not you plan to add some real power drains (eg winch). Also, the deep cycle battery is around $30-$50 more.

Bumpin' Yota

If you MUST go optima - do the yellow, blue, or orange. I wouldnt waste any money on that POS red top, ESPECIALLY if you have a lot of current that will be pulled from the electrical system and dont have an aftermarket alt.

I for one will never use another optima red top.....the others Im undecided on as I only have experience with the red top. Also the yellow everstarts from walmart failed to impress me at all....

Steve

transalper

what happened to your red-top? i had good luck with mine.

Bumpin' Yota

I basically hooked up 2 mtx 2300x's running 4ohm mono. About 1700 watts combined output IF you could keep the voltage up. The Red Top lasted about a month before it couldn't even crank the 3.slow's starter. (When I pulled the Red top, it's resting voltage was 9.4volts even after an attempted overnight trickle charge.) I never ran the system with the engine off so the alt was juicing the whole time. Incidentally, on bass sustains and all out SPL burps, the voltage would drop to 11.2-11.7volts (The severity of the voltage drop below 13.8 is completely dependant upon the battery as the alt is trying to keep everything at 13.8. Also low voltage going to the amps have a nasty habit of killing amps.)

I then made a swap to the biggest yellow everstart that walmart sold. When it dropped to 11.7v on it's frisrt burp, it was returned the next day and replaced with a champion 4x4 34dt.

Voltage would drop from 13.8 to 13.0.... FAR more acceptable. About a week later I grabbed another champion 4x4 34dt off of the same pallate and installed it. I then dropped about 4000 watts of system in my truck. Running the voltage would go from 13.8 to 12.8 on a wide open burp....

Sucellus

If I were you, Churnd, and my voltage was dropping below 13 while the car was running with minimal draw, I'd take a good look at the alternator. Battery too though.

PoBoy

Get both, put the red under your hood and the yellow in trunk Its a great combo that Ive been running for 3 years.

broknlgs24

hey PoBoy, how'd u hook up the battery in the trunk?

PoBoy

See my website for a couple of pics, but I basically jsut built a huge box with storage compartments. One of the compartments I made for my battery. I threw 2 bolts up through the 2 of 4 holes on the yellowtop...doenst move an inch. Its all run in parallel of course.

Bundubasher

The Red Top is a starter battery, pure and simple. The yellow top is for slow discharges and can be recharged from flat a number of times.

I've replaced my starter battery with an Optima Red top and the beast now starts like a bitch on heat! Wolston 4x4 added a Lucas split charge relay and I downgraded my original, bulk standard, HD battery to feed any accessories. Before I leave I'll replace the second battery with an Optima Yellow top and some more quick disconect cable clamps such as the OJOP Starter Battery Quick Connectors - "Quick Power".

At the moment only my fog and spot lights run of the second battery although ultimately it will be used to power the fridge, CB, extra lights etc. Before I leave I'll replace the second battery with an Optima Yellow top and some more quick disconect cable clamps such as the OJOP Starter Battery Quick Connectors - "Quick Power"

The split charge system and the extra lights have really added to the confusion of wires, relays and fuses already under the bonnet and I may have to do a little "tidying-up" before I go.

MNBOY

This may be over-simplifying things, but the only drawback to using the yellow top is the cost. It will start the engine fine, no matter what engine, including a Chevy V8 conversion in cold weather. The down side of the red top is that you will ruin the battery fairly quickly if you run a lot of accessories or run any accessories for a long period with the engine off. If you ever get into a situation where you are using a large elctrical load like a winch with the engine off (front half of the truck under water and no snorkel, I've been there) a deep cycle battery will handle this fine, where a starting battery will not. For a single battery system, I would go with the deep cycle every time. Good luck.

rjm

i run an exide deep cycle orbital gel battery. it also has the four post set up, which is nice. it has 950mca and 750ca. i paid 109.00 and that included free shipping!!!!!!!!!!11

Skydigger

I'm getting one of those next week. How long have you had yours?

Warren