It's going to be cold this week, and my battery is 3 1/2 years old. I need some more power to start my car after work at 1:30 in the morning when it's -15F. Anyone have any suggestions? How many CCAs? What brand? Can i get away with a lightweight battery? How does this one look? http://www.portablepower.com/items/batteries/SLA/1/Hawker/PC680T/SL105/37L105S4
optima yellow top has like 800 or 880cca's; its what i got in my car right now and i had it in canada on a lake last year and the temp was like -30 on the lake, and i froze my balls off but my car still started with no effort, its worth the extra money for the optima, take my word for this one.
Got a model number or something? How would one go about finding this particular battery? Heck for $20, I'd be game for sure.
Have an Optima Red Top, car always starts with little effort. I also have a Interstate in the family mobile, 750cca starts with ease as well.
Not sure. It's the one we got for my car when my stocker tried to blow itself up. Just look for the cheap one with the posts on the correct side.
Optima's ar a waste of money unless you drive the car year round or you have a huge system in it. Seriously, go to walmart and get the smallest battery they have. They are like $20 and they have 600cca. Its not like we are trying to crank over a high compression v8 or anything. I have had 3 optima red tops, and not one of them has made it through a winter. Yes, I pulled the bettery and left it in the basement of my house sitting on a milk crate, so it never got real cold. Russ
I just replaced my battery with a walmart battery this week. I still had my factory battery which was mfg in '99. I didn't get the smallest one though, I just looked in the catalog there and got the one listed for my car, exact same dimensions as the orig battery, about 650cca, and it was about $60. I really didn't pay attention to the other batteries and prices there, but just look for the one listed for your car and then compare that one with the others on the shelf and there might be a cheaper one that'll work...
Well, even if it only lasts a year, you can get 5 maybe 6 of them for the price of a red top. Is the red top going to last 5-6 years?? Russ
I've never had a problem with batteries from Wal-Mart or Sears. The last Diehard in my SHO lasted seven years.
Optima Yellow in my Fiero still cranked the car after the car sat UPSIDE DOWN for 3 days. Optima FTW. HEAVY bastards tho. Wow. Oh yeah, rated for 750 CCA, every test showed 1000+ CCA.
Optima's are nice but you pay for it (in cost and weight). You don't need a 600+ CCA battery in MN. That said I had one in my GTP after the stocker died and I loved it. I'm more conscious about the weight of things with the Subby though.
If you're concerned about weight, get a HONDUH Optima (the tiny little bastages) and throw that in there. Gotta be at least 600 CCA. Smaller and lighter weight, too. And yes, they're available in reversed and standard polarity.
Okay, let me clarify. I am so impressed with the optima batteries from what I've dealt with them before. There have been people that I swear have TRIED to kill them. One guy used one as his boat lift power source. He obviously never charged it. As the battery finally went dead, the boat still wasn't at the top of the lift and in locked position. So, after discharging the battery trying to get it to the top, the motor spun backwards, actually CHARGING the battery, but BACKWARDS. The Positive was Negative, and vice versa. He brings it back to Advance (where I was working at the time) and I test it, and it tests bad, obviously. I hook it up backwards, and there's something like 150 CCA. I laugh and get the boat lift story above. Anyway, I give him a new battery, he goes on his way. I buy the CORE (aka junk battery) from the store for 10 bucks. I discharge it by hooking it up to a headlight and a 194 bulb for a few days. I then proceed to force charge it with the battery tester. It is almost glowing hot. BUT, I got it to take a charge the right way, at least a miniscule one. I leave it on a trickle charger for a week, and after that week I now have the battery I mentioned I had in the Fiero. And its STILL working today, in my dad's boat. I should steal it back and put it in my car. ha. Moral of the story - Optimas are amazing.
My car was not happy starting this morning... The low fuel light came on right when it started, but I had a half a tank... hmm. Was off by the time I jumped back in after it had warmed up.
