Battery OPTIMA or Varta
i'm very pleased with the battery's performance. i took the family to the drive in theater and sat through 3 movies listening to the stereo and using the lights. when it was time to start the van, it did so without even the slightest hint of complaint. also, this afternoon my EV gave me a fit and would not fire up at the car wash. i cranked the living bejeesus out of the starter and the battery never once gave a sign of weakening. no jumps were needed. a highly recommended battery alternative!
I put in a Optima yellow top that I got at Costco for about $150. I bought a $5 extension so my wires could reach the terminal. Great sealed dry cell battery!
Its minor but there are 2 different technologies in use...the red battery is designed for cold starting while the yellow was designed to handle added accessories...at least thats what i take from the website...it also says that if you use a red top in a car with enhanced car audio the warranty on the Red Top is void...take that into consideration...
The cells on the original Varta battery have 6 caps, 5 of which are located under the stickers on the battery. Peel the stickers off. Your dealer hasn't been doing this right. Now, put on some goggles and some gloves. Take a quarter and turn out each cell cap and set them aside, someplace clean and someplace that you wouldn't want damaged by battery acid. Just a precaution. Look inside each cell. You should see the vertical plates, and they should be completely immersed in water- submerged about 1/4\". If not, add distilled water unto each cell until they are as such. It'll take only a couple of ounces.
That's why I got one for my '66 Beetle (12 volt conversion) It won't rust out the now repaired battery tray! Also, you don't want to put a super-hyper battery charger on them. They tend to like being charged on the slow side.
I splurged on a red-top a while back when I needed a new one because I had heard how good they were as a battery, but I did not know about the safety features you mentioned!
I just put a red top in my Scirocco, and it starts so much better now... I have seen lots of batteries fail, and nine times out of ten it's a cheap piece of crap like the duralast... The only batteries I have seen hold up in the long run have been Interstate batteries, and Optima's.
Louis, the Optima has a reversed polarity pole set up. You will have to extend you cables and now the positive post is very close to the fender wall. Pray that it doesnt slide during a hard turn.
optima=the suck... one year on a yellow top turned into .05 volts under load....
The new optimas are junk, I would get a conventional battery and call it a day. I have had numerous red tops in the past in various vehicles and they last no longer than a regular battery should and I didnt think they were all they were cracked up to be. When it came time after 4 years to replace the battery in my car I just got a conventional interstate and have been happy since
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