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Dr. D
Dodge Dakota
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6/26/2003
17:07:05

Subject: Life of Optima Battery ?
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I got 4 years of cranking service out of my optima battery .... Should I have gotten more than that?

Dr. D



Acid Freak
Dodge Dakota
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6/26/2003
17:20:54

RE: Life of Optima Battery ?
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I hope that isn't the normal life span. I laid out a 100.00 last summer based on Optima's hype, I have had Die Hard Gold batterys last 6 to 7 years, and could save some money in the process.



DakotaDriver
Dodge Dakota
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6/26/2003
17:54:16

RE: Life of Optima Battery ?
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Which Optima model - Blue top, Red top or Yellow top? They are all made for different purposes.



JasonB
Dodge Dakota
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6/26/2003
17:56:11

RE: Life of Optima Battery ?
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It's been my experience that overall battery life for most all brands is inconsistent. I have often seen the factory battery last 7 or 8 yrs in some of the Dodge trucks, then sometimes less than 6 mos. The same goes for aftermarket replacements. I am not very familiar with "premium performance" battery life, but the standard off-the-shelf (including DieHard and other major brands) battery is very inconsistent.



jaggy
GenIII
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6/26/2003
18:23:41

RE: Life of Optima Battery ?
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it is very hard to say how long a battery can last, but better to say what kind of abuse can it take.
everytime a battery gets too hot it looses charging capacity or boils and looses water.
comparing batteries over a period of time is very hard to do. the Idea of the optima is that it is gel so that it can take the abuse of quick charge and quick discharge that would otherwise toast a typical battery.
I love the optima batteries and will put one in my truck as soon as my current battery dies.

I often will leave my truck on in aux and listen to the radio and run the battery almost dead, then charge up and do it again.
this is very hard on a battery and the optima's seem to be the best for this kind of abuse.
hope this helps.



Dr. D
Dodge Dakota
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6/26/2003
18:46:24

RE: Life of Optima Battery ?
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I had the red top and a very good charging system.

I just think that I got one with a short life span.

Dr. D



Acid Freak
Dodge Dakota
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6/26/2003
19:08:57

RE: Life of Optima Battery ?
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Optima claims a 2 year shelf life, maybe yours had been sitting for a while ? Maybe someone on here has first hand knowledge of decifering the manufacturing date usually stamped into the case.



Steve Jack
Dodge Dakota
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6/26/2003
20:42:27

RE: Life of Optima Battery ?
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I can comment a bit about the Optima battery in general having written magazine articles about batteries for "performance" publications.

Spiral cell technology has a long shelf life compared to wet-cell technology and can sit over the winter without charging the battery to keep them up! I use them for my hotrods, muscle cars and streetrods because I don't want to fuss with the battery when they are sitting for long intervals.

In so far as what is the lifetime of the battery that really depends on the operating environment both electrical and temperature wise. Number of starts and how large of wattage requirement to do such, discharges, and even the charging voltage of your alternator can effect the life. Extreme heat (and today's underhood temperatures are stratospheric compared to yesteryear) will eat any battery up in a hurry...even more so than cold.

So the real answer is...it depends on environment.



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