What batteries do you guys run?

[ccbruin]

Like the title says? I need a new battery..

[Metalhed]

Advanced Auto Gold x2

[Ardent]

Just bought a costco group 65. $85, 1000 CA and 850 CCA at 32*.
3year free replacement and additional 4 year prorated warranty.
Only downside I can see is that it's not a sealed battery.

[Rick]

Optima yellow top

[MelloYello]

x2 on the Costco (kirkland) battery. Have had no issues and the price is great.
I was talking to one one the tire guys at the store and he said the batteries were made by Diehard. ?

[Brody]

Optima Red Tops X2. Been using the Optimas since they came out in every rig I have had with no problems.

[dannanw]

I need a new one, prob just walmart cause it will sit most of the time.

[ColoJeeper]

Optima Redtops

[Squshiee1]

I LOVE my interstate megaton 2, i have had it since i have bought the car, never jumped, but i have to charge it once in my drive way because i left my radio on for 11 hours. it still cranked once but it was at 8 volts and was dead. so i charged it and it works again!

http://www.interstatebatteries.com/cs_eStore/content/product_info/auto.asp

[Roostercruiser]

I run on Monster and Rockstar. Its my battery that makes me run and start in the morning :lmao:


Ps. My truck has red top optima

[Colin]

I had a Optima yellow top in my TJ, it was good.

[ccbruin]

I hear the Optima battery's quality has really gone downhill since it is now made in mexico. JF people seem to be HUGE fans of sear's Diehard batteries. But they are $200. I will probably get the one from costco, as long as they have the dual posts

[mattzj98]

Optima Yellow top. When I was working on my new jeep, it took 2 weeks of playing music and light being on and off the to get the battery low enough to where it wouldn't crank..

Nothing but best experience with it. Can't complain for 220 bucks

[Popsgarage]

Optima Red top, Blue top and Yellow top. The kids and wife all have Red tops in their junk.

[mattzj98]

I use the yellow one for the sound system and all the lights.. Red ones are mostly for diesels and have a lot of cranking amps right?

[Popsgarage]

Red tops are more for starting, Matt. The Blue is a deep cycle marine and the Yellow is the regular deep cell. Use either of these for heavy draw accessories like stereos and winches.

[mattzj98]

Red tops are more for starting, Matt. The Blue is a deep cycle marine and the Yellow is the regular deep cell. Use either of these for heavy draw accessories like stereos and winches.
Which I basically what I said. Diesels require more cranking amps, therefore a red top is very popular. Yellow one for winches lights and stereos! =D

[Hypoid]

Red ones are mostly for diesels and have a lot of cranking amps right? They make batteries with different Amp/hour and reserve capacities.

While we are on that subject, I know Costco sells a red top, but I don't remember the ratings. Would someone check on that next time they are in Costco?

TIA

[ROKTAXI]

Optima Red Tops X2. Been using the Optimas since they came out in every rig I have had with no problems.

ditto

[AccordRanger]

I have Duralast batteries in in the Subie and Explorer. Subie has a red top and Explorer has the Gold. When i have some spare money I want to get Optima yellow tops.

[otisdog]

I've heard the same about Optima's quality. I do have an Optima Yellow top that I've had for years. Very good for handling the winch and all the other crap.
I may go with the $200 Diehard that has been spoken of next time around. I want something extra powerful.
jim

[ccbruin]

For me its either the $200 Diehard or the $85 costco (supposedly made my diehard). I have to decide if that extra 115 is justifiable...

[mattzj98]

Wouldnt you want to spend 20 more and get a red or yellow top over the diehard? just wondering..

[Brody]

Davez Off Road, Optima and Odyssey Batteries:

http://www.davezoffroadperformance.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=825

Kind of what Matt said: Why not spend a bit more on a dry or gel cell battery?

[ccbruin]

Wouldnt you want to spend 20 more and get a red or yellow top over the diehard? just wondering..

I have heard nothing but bad news on Optimas since they began to be made in Mexico...

[Java]

There is a place on the north side of 44th ave just west of kipling that sells recycled batteries (and utility trailers). You can't miss it, they have a huge banner / sign that says "recycled batteries $24.99 and up" that you can see long before you get to it. They have varied stock, it's hit and miss, but I got an Exide Gel Cell for $60.00 there that I ran for 3 years and sold with the vehicle working fine. I also have a generic universal battery from them that came from a wheelchair, paid $25.00 for it. It's about 1/2 to 2/3 the size of a regualr vehicle battery. I use it with an inverter when I go camping so I can run Mr. Coffee in the morning, and it can work in the Jeep, need be.

[mattzj98]

I have heard nothing but bad news on Optimas since they began to be made in Mexico...

I've had 2 different ones and they are great.. most of my friends and my neighbor run them as well.. my diesel runs on red top.. never an issue

Idk who you've been hearing bad things from..

[Cr33p3r]

I currently have a Interstate and a Red Top Optima in the ranger, lately they both have been going dead if not started in a while but I think that it is mainly due to the truck being down for 8 months and will take time to get things going again.

[Fordguy77]

I don't have any dual battery set ups, but I have red and yellows in almost eveythin I own

[Michael4rnr]

I run a sears die hard platenum.

[Popsgarage]

I was disappointed when I found out they were being made in Mexico as well but I haven't had a single issue with the Red tops I've purchased in the last 4 years.

[Hypoid]

I was disappointed when I found out they were being made in Mexico as well but I haven't had a single issue with the Red tops I've purchased in the last 4 years.
That is good to know. My ol' red tops were made here, before Johnson Controls (?) bought the company.

[dr350jja]

I'm still not sure that the "high" dollar batteries are any better than any other battery. My brother got 5 years out of his Optima Red Top, in a Doge Dakota. I got 5 years out of the OEM stock Toyota battery in my Tacoma. Years ago, in my Toyota Corolla, I ran a Sears battery for 7 years. In all the years I've been driving, I've always had good service from the moderately priced, run-of-the-mill, common car batteries. Am I missing something here?

[sdhill]

I have a Interstate Megatron in the 350, I think it has been in there for at least 8 years. In the 250 I have Die Hard Platinum's, had them for about 3 years with no issues. They are a sealed battery. The factory Motorcrafts lasted 7 years and were still working great, I just replaced them because they had to go sometime.

[Hypoid]

Am I missing something here?
The intended service. A traditional battery is the better value for a pavement pounder.

The trails I run really shake the Jeep, break parts if I go fast enough. The spiral wound, gel cell battery, handles the vibration much better than a traditional battery.

[Brody]

To add to what Mike just posted: the dry cell, high dollar, batteries will not spill or spray battery acid all over the damn place if you manage to break or crack them. Having had clothing I was wearing pretty much fall apart due to an exploded battery and acid, and having battery acid in other vehicles cause corrosion way back into basically every wire under the hood more than once due to a roll over, which, incidentally, required a wiring harness replacement, as soon as they came out with dry cell and gel batteries, I started installing them....

When you figure time and labor plus a wiring harness replacement vs the difference in cost between the cheaper standard battery and the high dollar dry cell battery, you are way better off spending the extra bucks initially on the high buck dry cell battery.

The DD driver batteries I could care less what brand as long as they start the car. Daily Drivers are also not going to roll over or run into a tree unless things really go south, either...

My :2c:.

Take a gallon of cheap muriatic acid and huck it under the hood and you will have a really good idea what happens in a rollover or if the standard battery decides to overcharge and explode (or crack). It ain't pretty...

[Popsgarage]

before Johnson Controls (?) bought the company.

Corporate buyouts and eliminating US jobs is really beginning to P!$$ me off! All so the bottom line can go to the people on top! The F the little guy trying to support his or her family attitude needs to end.

[pictaker]

Optima Red Top... No complaints!

[Brody]

Corporate buyouts and eliminating US jobs is really beginning to P!$$ me off!

You aren't alone...

[Funrover]

Yellow top Optima. A great battery that can take a hit and keep going!

[tonkatoy]

I run two yellow top optimas works good

[dcoop]

I replaced my red top with a Diehard gold a couple years ago. When I get a winch I'll upgrade to the platinum. The gold is a great battery, but the major reason for me buying Diehard was the warranty. 3 years full and a bit over 5 years pro rated (64 months). Payed just over 100$ for it. The fact that Optima is an AGM battery and should last a lot longer than regular lead-acid batteries, the 3 year and no pro rated warranty is pretty lame.

Also if you want to compare the optima and diehard platinum, the platinum is only 20 bucks more, but is backed by 4 year full replacement and 100 month pro rated. That's 12 years of warranty.

[Bunyon & Babe]

Optima red top in the Yota , walmart in the jeep and Suburbans and in the Dodge dually are Interstates ( I think ) . Seem to be little problems with all but the Optima. To be fair though , the Burbans don't get out much and the Jeep only runs around here on the ranch once or twice a month , not sure why the Interstates seem to drain. They are only about 14 months old and the Dodge does get regular use .

[Talus]

Optima red top in my Jeep. Replaced the previous after 11 years, I think that is fair. :D Also every so often, I end up leaving the headlight (or something else on) and run the battery to 0 volts and this seems to kill regular batteries within 3 months. I've done the same with Optimas and it doesn't seem to affect them (at least so far)...

[4Runninfun]

I run the sears die hard platinum as well. they are re badged odyssey batteries, and mine has been great. I've left my key on over a couple days, left the cb on. etc always starts right up.

[4Runninfun]

Take a gallon of cheap muriatic acid and huck it under the hood and you will have a really good idea what happens in a rollover or if the standard battery decides to overcharge and explode (or crack). It ain't pretty...

I've seen a cheapo wal-mart battery blow, it isn't pretty. And this description is right on.

[Brody]

I had a battery blow up on the 77 Ford F 150 I had. Truck simply shut down and I coasted to the side of the road. Of course it was dark, cold and raining....need you ask? I opened the hood to see what was going on and got battery acid all over the front of a brand new Levis pile lined jean jacket. It pretty much fell apart the first time I washed it. That was just the beginning. I hosed off the engine compartment, replaced the battery and then proceed to have a couple of months worth of mystery electrical problems. These persisted until I got a new wiring harness and rewired the whole engine bay. The acid had crept up into the insulation and was destroying all the wires inside all the while looking fine on the outside. This wasn't the last time this happened, either, but was the last time on that vehicle. Like I said, as soon as they started producing dry/gel cell batteries, they went into my 4x4s.

I have also seen batteries simply blow up when people have been charging them...not a pretty sight. Whenever I have to stick jumper cables on ANY battery, I always turn my head away. I like my sight. One instance I was working on my rig (whatever it was, maybe the Bronco) and noticed a neighbor working on his. He was in the process of jump starting his car. I heard a loud POP, looked over at his house and he was holding his face. He then started to run towards the street...I jumped the fence, knocked him down, told him to stay. I grabbed his hose and started flushing his eyes out. He got nailed really bad, but was OK. His wife called an ambulance, but it wasn't as his eyes were pretty much OK by the time they got there as I had continued flushing his eyes.

Ugly stuff....

[Meatloaf]

Optima Redtop in the Jeep. Don't really have much as far as electronics or anything that pulls current other than a winch, small fog lights, and electric fan.

-Kyle