agm battery opinion

[jcshaney]

Well lets hear some opinions on agm batterys are they worth the money or not. At one time I was a big fan of optima batterys but they seem to have went down hill recently from what I have been hearing. The jeep will see moderate wheeling it does have a winch and some extra lights. If you are a fan of agm batterys what brand do you like. Thanks in advance

 

[anthrax323]

The negative press on Optima is BS, honestly.

I've been running a yellow top in my XJ for 5 years now, with erratic driving habits (it goes from DD to 4-month garage queen cyclically). Love it. I've deep-drained it at least a half a dozen times (Engel fridge/freezer) and it's still rock solid. At some point recently I put too much force on the negative top terminal, though, and the top has cracked a little (with signs of acid leakage). Still works great though.

If and when it dies, I won't even think twice about buying another one.

 

[RedHeep]

I killed a red top and a yellow top. Both of them lasted 2 years. The yellow top went into thermal overload on my battery tender.

I'm not a fan, but a lot of people are. I spent $120 on a group 34 AGM battery at the parts store and it works every bit as good as a $200 optima.

 

[Johnnie Walker]

AGM is only a little more money than your standard batteries. One of the least expensive ones is the Die Hard Platinum, found at Sears. Otherwise, I typically buy batteries from Costco. Still have a 3 year free replacement warranty, and they do not ask questions.

The negative press on Optima is BS, honestly.

I've been running a yellow top in my XJ for 5 years now, with erratic driving habits (it goes from DD to 4-month garage queen cyclically). Love it. I've deep-drained it at least a half a dozen times (Engel fridge/freezer) and it's still rock solid. At some point recently I put too much force on the negative top terminal, though, and the top has cracked a little (with signs of acid leakage). Still works great though.

If and when it dies, I won't even think twice about buying another one.

Your Optima is probably of the older, better vintage then before QC went south. I work at a auto parts store and have seen a few come back recently. We do test them and they were bad.

 

[jcshaney]

That is what i have heard that 4 or 5 years ago they had a big change and the quality is really hit or miss now a days on the optimas.I had several of the older " vintage" ones and they were great but with all the talk about the new ones im a little hesitant.

 

[Johnnie Walker]

I forgot to mention that the Die Hard Plat. batteries are relabeled Odyssey batteries, so you know they are good.

 

[old_man]

I had two yellow top optimas that crapped out at 2.5 years....just out of warranty. If they are so good, why a short warranty?

I ran an Exide AGM and it lasted 3 years. I still have one in my trailer due to the bouncing and off angles, but really don't like them much.

 

[ehall]

I stopped buying them, just don't need the additional hassle for minimal improvement. Lead acid works, recharges easily, has the same 3 yr warranty, and costs much less.

 

[jrowell]

I went through 3 red tops within a couple years. Bought a Die Hard Platinum and it's been rock solid. Starts it faster and if I don't start my heep in a couple weeks, it'll start it up like nothing... the red tops would always be dead.

 

[Boostwerks.com]

Odyssey makes a great AGM. Optima, not so much.

 

[TheLaredo]

Exide continues to make the best batteries, both conventional lead acid and AGM. I have had both in jeeps, mustangs, cobalts, you name it.

Whatever you choose, go with Exide. Anything made by Johnson Control (interstate, autozone, Costco [iirc]) is ehh and Optima has been falling off a cliff for years now.

 

[WarGin]

Still running a 10+ year old red top optima that my dad gave me for scrap 6ish years ago?

I've also had great results with Interstate. Let my tractor sit since new years of last year (2014) and fired right up Friday (diesel on top of that).

 

[bentroia]

Oriely carries a super start branded AGM for Cherokee. For my 97, I went with the larger size for a the 1999 Cherokee. This required trimming one edge off the mounting tray. Simple work with a hacksaw or sawzall. The battery works great. I had an Odyssey in a landcruiser previously. This battery runs my ARB cooler longer than the Odyssey before discharging to the point of being unable to start the jeep. TWO THUMBS UP for Super Start AGM from Oriely.

fwiw.. I have owned optimas too and think AGM is better, more reliable, runs accesories longer before complete discharge...

 

[old_man]

I'm and electronics test engineer with 40+ years experience and have designed and tested a wide array of chargers for everything from AGMs through all types of lithium ion batteries. AGMs ideally need to be charged a bit differently from regular wet cells in order to prolong their life. AGMs by design don't handle extreme discharges well. Even their "deep cycle" batteries don't seem to be as good as wet cells. If your vehicle sits for extended periods of time, I recommend at least a solar trickle charger.

I run them due to their no-leak feature.

 

[OutkastBoss]

I run the Optima D34M blue top, it is chemically the same as the Yellow top but it has the aux terminals on top. They are rated for more power vs the smaller side mount aux terminals on the yellow top. The other blue top 34m shares the same relationship with the red top. People like to say they suck but I don't think SOME people know how to maintain them properly. A lot of them are also misdiagnosed as being bad when they could be saved by a decent charger with agm modes with deep discharge recovery and desulfation.

Here are a few quotes from conversations I had on here when I was deciding.

"An absorbed glass matt battery (AGM) like an optima likes being trickle charged. AGMs and really all batteries should be trickle charged at a very low amp. My electrical teacher used to say Low and slow, like good BBQ. Once they are deeply discharged they wont take a high amp charge to get them started. They don't like it. Better chargers are out there for AGM batteries and they can be brought back with older chargers with a trick. http://www.hotrod.com/how-to/interior-electrical/hrdp-1009-how-to-charge-a-agm-battery/

"If an optima hits less than 10v most chargers with a protection circuit read the battery as having an internal short and won't charge them. more info here:http://www.optimabatteries.com/en-us/support/faqs#charging "

"I pull optimas out of the core pile at work every time we get one in and I would say a good 60% of them are still good, they just need the right type of charger. hell I have one with an '05 date code on it, and it came out of the core pile in 2011."

People seem to like Odyssey better these days though.

 

[RedHeep]

I shouldn't have to treat a battery special for $200. It should be jumping out of the jeep and climbing into the driver's seat to blow me.

 

[Talyn]

I have an Optima in the XJ and its been good for the past 4 years or so. I also have a Die Hard Platinum in the ZJ. I've only had it for two years and its been fine to. When the optima goes I'll replace it with a Diehard Platinum.

 

[jcshaney]

Is the die hard platinum the same internally as the odessy batterys?

 

[sidewaysstarion]

It should be jumping out of the jeep and climbing into the driver's seat to blow me.

I dont know, I think battery acid on your unmentionables would probably be rather uncomfortable if you ask me.

I used to love optimas back in the day, but in recent years they've taken a serious nose dive in terms of quality. The redtop I put in my jeep has been in there about a year and is already showing signs of failing (slow cranking, not being able to run the radio for long... etc). I have a die hard platnium in my superduty and that thing is 1.5 years old and it still has as much cranking power as when it was new.

 

[DeftwillP]

I have whatever oreilly's in house AGM battery is and for what I remember, it's made by deka.