Another thumbs up for the Odyssey - in my case (avatar) the PC-680. http://www.odysseybatteries.com/battery/pc680.htm And yes, you can charge them with a regular battery charger.
if your gonna put a battery in the passneger area it better by a gel type battery that cant leak and doesnt give off fumes. my brother had 2 standard car batteries in the back of his ot hatchback for his stereo and the fumes made him sick. after he figured out it was the batteries he went to gel batteries, no more sick. i keep reading about optima batteries being junk. i have had 2 in my falcon and they have been great. i am bad about keeeping the battery charged while the car sits all winter in a cold garage and they still crank right up in the spring. i have even killed the battery more than once and they come right back with a charge. plus they dont get acid all over the place after a day of hard launches at the track. my first interstate battery would leak acid out on hard launches and the fan would blow the acid onto my valve covers and ignition wires caussing a mess and a miss. switched to optima gel and never looked back.
I read the Optima post the day after I bought my Optima battery. Needless to say, I have had zero problems with my battery. Works great, holds a charge great, etc. I am happy with my red top Optima.
I've got an Optima red top in my O/T other car and its been there for almost 7 years now and shows no signs yet of failure. I have left it hooked up eversince it was installed and only had to recharge it once early on when I left something on and it discharged damn near all the way. But I am considering one of the small Odyssey or Hawker dry cells for my coupe due to space limitations.
I'm with blk210, If you have the space the group 30 or 31's will spin anything and last forever. I have one that is on its 10th year. (will probably die now) peace
Odyssey batterys are made by Hawker energy group, you can find the pc680 hidden inside the black jump box that Napa sells for $69
Try a search on Deka batterys.Used them in our stock car when I worked at Evernham Motorsport a couple of years ago.
I use Delco marine batteries removed fron local tornado sirens. I get them for $3 each. They last a couple of years. All my old shit has one. Even my tractor.
I suspect something happened to Optima. Plant move, quality control change, or something. The house, starting and winch batteries in my 4x4 rig are all the really big Optimas. All are about 7 years old and show no signs of giving out. All are abused, and regularly deadened, to doornail states. That said, I have seen a half-dozen red tops fail within 18 months of purchase, while others, of the same vintage, are still going strong.
I've used all the name brand batteries, dry cells too. None have shined any more than the next one. This "Hot Rod Batteries" is probably a relabled battery from a Hyundai dealer parts shelf, hence the piss poor website description. I can't say anything bad about any certain battery, they all did the job they were supposed to do. If you have bad luck with a battery type or brand, I suggest you look into your wiring or charging system before assuming the battery is the culprit.
Go to your local parts house and by a regular battery for 70 bucks and be done with it .Optima batteries are crap. Also install a battery kill switch if your car sits for a week or so in between the times you drive it.The kill switch isolates the battery from possible drainage
The "Hot Rod" battery sounds like it might be a lithium iron (Li Fe) dry cell battery.The ability to hold a charge over a long period of time without any trickle charging is a feature of this type of battery. I purchased a Li Fe battery for my electric start dirt bike. This 1 lb battery replaced a 6 lb battery and has reliably started my high compression 450. These batteries have low internal resistance and give full output until the end of their charge unlike a wet cell which will taper off. I wondered if somebody might produce one for automotive use. The one I have in my motorcycle is about the size of a 30 ft tape measure. It's made me a believer.
iv only had one optima, its a yellow top, and its the best battery i have owned. im wondering if those little kenetic batteries are enough for a car, they are for compitition stereos and are super small.
I have an optima in my 33 ford. Put it in in 1999 and its still there. never been out with no problems Mabe they dont make them like they used to but I just bought one for my 51 shoe box
I use a lot of batteries for battery backup for residential flood control, I install about 200 batteries per year, here are my findings, wet batteries last on average 5 to 7 years, the number one cause of failure is dehydration. Gel type batteries last on average 4 to 5 years, cause of failure, lack of proper charging equipment. I would suggest that if you have an Optima that you put a switch on your system so you cant drain your battery down, gels tend to memorize a charge and wont recharge, If you are getting more than 5 years out of an Optima or any gel you are doing quite well, but its time to invest in a new battery. We now use only gels in flood control, you are only supposed to use distilled in a battery or you will neutralize it, I've had people put Sprite in them, or Canadian Club cause it bubbles just like the acid, Lord give me strength.
just called them and the cheapest battery is for a 375 h.p. motor is $185.00 plus the ride. they go by horse power and not cca's. i think i'll pass.
Just installed HOTROD battery to my roadster with a lincoln flathead.... I had battery fully charged and it didn´t do shit , just barely slowly cranked the starter but didn´t turn the engine at all.... Seem to be wery expensive shit , and i bought it and bring it to Finland I have to take a look inside the starter ,but if it cranks ok with bigger ,normal battery ill be hilariusly happy! I mounted it under the dash ,couse A-ford have minimally space.... Fuck.
Back when our school was building Solar-Elec cars, there was the saying often heard, "there are liars, damn liars...and battery salesmen!"
The Hot Rod battery cost $185 plus S&H, total about $200. Bought a more powerfull gel-cell that measures 7"x 6 3/4"x 3" for around $100 at my local Interstate dealer. It never fails to crank over my Chev 350. The engine is in a 53 MG TD and the battery is small enough to fit in the stock tool box under the hood.
The Odyssey PC680 has 680 cranking amps but the Solar Booster Pac ES 2500 says it has 900 cranking amps. I guess my question is.............how can they be the same? I can't locate the ES2500 on the NAPA website and the cheapest ES2500 I've been able find online is $89 on EBay. I run the Odyssey PC680 and after 8 years I need a new one, so any more info you can give concerning a PC680 inside a jump box at NAPA for $69 will be greatly appreciated.
I suspect battery technology is largely at the whim of sales b.s. I have always bought Sears Die Hards just for the convenience of quick no-hassle return for any pro-rated discount left on them, or return if there is a problem. Over fifty years, I've had one explode, maybe two or three crap out with a bad cell or whatever, out of literally dozens bought. I would guess this would be the track record of any other brand over this period and quantity.
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