Good Battery?
Originally Posted by ACW
Red Top warranty: http://www.optimabatteries.com/publi...anty_info.html
Yellow Top warranty: http://www.optimabatteries.com/publi...anty_info.html
Yellow Top warranty: http://www.optimabatteries.com/publi...anty_info.html
I think I may just get the red top with the longer warranty. Anyone know of any reason I should get the yellow instead?
TECH Regular
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 496
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From: GARDEN GROVE, CA
Originally Posted by RDISADEIFAN
I like the AC Delco batteries myself.
After calling around to a few palces I've found that the Optima red top batteries warranty can vary. Some places have the 3 year free replacement and other places only warranty it for 2 years.
BTW, something interesting when it comes to prorating. The place I bought my Exide 72 month battery from a few years ago prorates it at $1.50 per month with a one year free replacement. When you calculate it up you'll see that the prorated cost of the $65 battery at the 71 month point is $106.50. WTF! At that rate the battery only has a realistic 43 months before you reach the break even point. For the prorated price to actually save you a little money you would have to replace it around the 36 month area. So the 72 month battery only had a real 36 month or so warranty.
So all you folks should ask about the prorated rates and don't assume a "72 month battery" is actually a 72 month battery.
BTW, something interesting when it comes to prorating. The place I bought my Exide 72 month battery from a few years ago prorates it at $1.50 per month with a one year free replacement. When you calculate it up you'll see that the prorated cost of the $65 battery at the 71 month point is $106.50. WTF! At that rate the battery only has a realistic 43 months before you reach the break even point. For the prorated price to actually save you a little money you would have to replace it around the 36 month area. So the 72 month battery only had a real 36 month or so warranty.
So all you folks should ask about the prorated rates and don't assume a "72 month battery" is actually a 72 month battery.
TECH Veteran
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 4,012
Likes: 1
From: Beaumont, TX
Originally Posted by JasonWW
BTW, something interesting when it comes to prorating. The place I bought my Exide 72 month battery from a few years ago prorates it at $1.50 per month with a one year free replacement. When you calculate it up you'll see that the prorated cost of the $65 battery at the 71 month point is $106.50. WTF! At that rate the battery only has a realistic 43 months before you reach the break even point. For the prorated price to actually save you a little money you would have to replace it around the 36 month area. So the 72 month battery only had a real 36 month or so warranty.
Yep, I guess you can't just assume that the prorating will make sense. Everyone should ask about the details.
Also, some places are more **** about reciepts. A few said if you lose the reciept, you lose the warranty, but others said they could go by the date on the battery. Plus you want to buy from a place that will be in business for the next few years at least. A little radio shop by my house has real nice prices on the Optimas, but I don't trust them to be there in a few years, so I'm going to spend a little more and probably get a red top from O'Reilly's Atuo Parts. They have the 3 year warranty whereas Pepboys have only a 2 year.
Here's a quote from another thread on the sizing. I have verified this for myself, but I think it's true. I also want to point out that the 75/25 has the big lip along the bottom for the factory clamp to hold it down. The 34/78 has a smaller lip which may or may not clamp the battery down or you might have to notch the clamp in the middle to fit it around the middle battery cell. I'll put some pics below.
The 75/25:
The 34/78:
I'm still trying to figure out the difference in the 75/25 and the 75/35. They seem identical.
Also, some places are more **** about reciepts. A few said if you lose the reciept, you lose the warranty, but others said they could go by the date on the battery. Plus you want to buy from a place that will be in business for the next few years at least. A little radio shop by my house has real nice prices on the Optimas, but I don't trust them to be there in a few years, so I'm going to spend a little more and probably get a red top from O'Reilly's Atuo Parts. They have the 3 year warranty whereas Pepboys have only a 2 year.
Here's a quote from another thread on the sizing. I have verified this for myself, but I think it's true.
Optima recommends the 75/25 for the f-body as a stock replacement. The slightly larger group 34/78, which accepts the covers, will fit if you modify the battery box slightly to allow the battery to move further away from the radiator.
The 75/25:
The 34/78:
I'm still trying to figure out the difference in the 75/25 and the 75/35. They seem identical.
