batteries

[fullsizebronco]

i need new batteries and i have the option to get 2 optima red top batteries for 150$ off a guy i know and they are about 200$ each so would this be a good battery for my truck its a 1994 f250 7.3 turbo diesel and i need to get the best option for my money right now

 

[1994IDI]

I am running Red tops, 1000 amps with 100 amp reserve, I cant remember the part number, but they spin the truck great. You didn't say how old the batteries were, but if they're fairly new then I think you'll be satisfied. I've been very pleased with mine. I bought them brand new about 9 months ago and spent around $250.

 

[matt-jenkins]

From what I have heard about Optima's is that there quality has gone downhill recently. I have never used there product so I can not say this is personal experience however. Seems like a good deal though the only thing I can think of is to take them somewhere and have a battery test done prior to buying them.

I picked up a set of Kirkland Signature batteries from Costco a few weeks ago, 900CCA.
Truck cranks over down here pretty good (I'm Located in Langley), mind you it does get quite a bit cooler up in Kelowna but that shouldn't be an issue till next fall with this weather.
Costco sells the batteries for $97 a piece plus the Eco fees of $5 with a 3 year warrenty.

 

[RLDSL]

Optimas are not what they used to be for one thing , ever since they closed the US plant and moved to mexico and went to making them from used innards. Even optima knows it as they no longer warrant the things for 6 years, its 3 years now and you'll be lucky to get that out of them, I had 2 new ones croak in about a year in a couple of my cars here recently. Aside from that they may have the amps, but they are woefully low on reserve capacity which is what a diesel really needs on those nasty cold mornings, it's the high reserve capacity of commercial batts that will get you those extra cranks to get you going.
You can get some group 31s batts that usually run around 1150 cranking amps with a much higher reserve capacity for under a hundred bucks each and the nice part is any truck stop carries the things if one ever goes bad on the road. Truck PRo usually has some good deals on them.

 

[towcat]

cranking amps is some for the ******** in marketing to trick you with.
reserve capacity is reveals the true strength of the battery.
Optimas are not designed to be deep cycled either.

 

[junior20762003]

what do you mean by deep cycled towcat

 

[towcat]

what do you mean by deep cycled towcat

deep cycling is when you discharge a battery completely......intentionally or not.

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

Optimas are not what they used to be for one thing , ever since they closed the US plant and moved to mexico and went to making them from used innards. Even optima knows it as they no longer warrant the things for 6 years, its 3 years now and you'll be lucky to get that out of them, I had 2 new ones croak in about a year in a couple of my cars here recently. Aside from that they may have the amps, but they are woefully low on reserve capacity which is what a diesel really needs on those nasty cold mornings, it's the high reserve capacity of commercial batts that will get you those extra cranks to get you going.
You can get some group 31s batts that usually run around 1150 cranking amps with a much higher reserve capacity for under a hundred bucks each and the nice part is any truck stop carries the things if one ever goes bad on the road. Truck PRo usually has some good deals on them.

cranking amps is some for the ******** in marketing to trick you with.
reserve capacity is reveals the true strength of the battery.
Optimas are not designed to be deep cycled either.

What ^^^ they ^^^ said.



I don't care how many bells and whistles a trendy consumer-oriented battery has, nothing can top the authoritative cranking power of a couple Group-31s, except more Group-31s.

 

[gatorman21218]

Cranking batteries are designed to provide short bursts of a lot of power (for starting). There are deep cycle batteries for say electric trolling outboard motors that you can safely rundown for hundreds of uses. It has to do with the surface area of the plates and their thickness.

 

[Classicfordguy]

I just put two optima blue tops in my truck, group 27 I think, 1000 CCA each. Blue are boat batteries designed to be run down all day and man so far they work great. Turns the engine over super fast and ran a 1600watt sterio for 5 hours while at the races this last week and couldn't tell the diff when I started the truck.

Thats just my experience so far, I got them new for $100 each from a guy I know so I couldn't really go wrong.

-Rob

 

[fullsizebronco]

so for a 150$ would you say im getting the best battery for that amount of money or should i look somewhere else for batteries?

 

[Agnem]

What ^^^ they ^^^ said.



I don't care how many bells and whistles a trendy consumer-oriented battery has, nothing can top the authoritative cranking power of a couple Group-31s, except more Group-31s.

X2. I just got my first set of Group 31's and put them in the Moose Truck. DANG! They barely fit! If you have a wide radiator keep that in mind. They DO fit without any shoe horning, but you best plan to get them in and out with some kind of a handle, because your hands will pay dearly if you have to try and grab them to pull them out. I've heard Optima's do not store well, which is why I avoid them.

 

[RLDSL]

so for a 150$ would you say im getting the best battery for that amount of money or should i look somewhere else for batteries?

In case you've forgotten, might I direct you to look at where you live. North of the border where there are ski areas is not exactly the kind of climate that you want to be with a big honkin' diesel with iffy batteries in the middle of winter, that is unless you carry a pair of cross country skis with you and you enjoy your excersize

 

[fullsizebronco]

currently i am running dual caterpillar batteries and they where amazing batteries and i love how big they are but i let them die over the winter and it says in my profile that im from kelowna but im living in dawson creek b.c at the moment for work but the batteries that i have sat through -50 temps while my truck was parked for more than a month and where dead when ever i got over to working on it
i have also checked into the regulator problem is it possible that the internal regulator could be causing a draw on my batteries or is that just the ones on the fender that can draw on batteries when they are no good and what should the reading off my alt. be i think when i checked a few weeks ago it was 14. something is that to low?

 

[jwalterus]

good alt should be charging at 13.8-14.6 (IIRC)

good battery should be 11.8-12.8 (IIRC) with no load on it

sometimes all a battery needs is a full charge off a good battery charger, but if they aren't sealed, check your water level, I've picked up a few vehicles with low water in the batteries and people thought the batteries were shot, brought the level up and they worked fine