after 3 years and always using a battery tender on it over the winter it suddenly won't hold more than 9.7v. started and drove to work fine, went to leave work...dead. trickle charged it overnight says 13.8v. one turn of the key, nothing...9.7v.

so is this a problem with optimas i've never heard before or is mine just retarded? any better options i should look into??

 

I just bought the Optima red top and I found that the warranty is 3 years. If your warranty isn't expired you should be able to get a new one. I was told that you should be able to process the warranty from any place that sells Optima batteries, regardless if you bought it from them or not.

 

yeah if i bought in feb 09 the warranty is 36 months, before that date, 12 months +12months prorated so i'm sol

 

batteries fail. i had a red top last a year in a non-freezing climate.

 

i'm just annoyed, do i bother buying another optima or just get a regular battery? or even something else, like a braille....

 

I worked at a Western Auto many summers ago when I was in college. We would have 60 and 72 month batteries die in only a couple of years in an otherwise OK car (we always checked the charging system with a diagnostic cart). The heat down here kills them I think, even the good ones. Optimas were not prevalent back then but there were AGM batteries around.

But I see you are in PA, and the battery is in the trunk, so there goes that theory on two fronts.

 

My experience with optima batteries over the last few years has left a bad taste in my mouth. We use them exclusively in our non tactical vehicles, and seldom get 1 year service from them. compare this with a typical life of 2 year from OEM vehicle batteries e.g., Delco, and Motorcraft. We truly go threw optima batteries by the pallet.

 

so it gets even stranger. Yesterday i took the battery out and stuck in my garage. tested it again today now it's sitting at 12.9v. monday i'll test it on a midtronics at work.

 

never tried optima, but ive heard good things about the deka batteries. Supposedly they are the same as the braille ones

 

I've been a long time user of optima batteries on many cars, and maybe the quality got worse or because I started putting them in the trunk (due to various turbo kits or intakes) but the last 2 I bought died in less than 2 years. Warrantee covered it, but it left me stranded. I'm using a interstate OEM replacement in the miata now, 1 year and still cranking.

 

I've had my red top for over 6 years now. I've drained it at least a dozen times by listening to the radio as I worked on the car, leaving the lights on, jumping cars and motorcycles with it, whatever. I usually charge it at the maximum setting on my charger for 5-10 minutes, just enough to get it to start, then just use higher rpms while I drive for a little bit to charge it up. Usually if my drive is longer than 15 minutes its fine until the next time I forget to turn something off. I've left it in the car for 6-8 months during rebuilds, not driven it for months, etc... its never skipped a beat.

Dunno where you guys are getting your crappy red tops, and I don't know where I got my amazing one. (knocking on wood, after all this it'll die tomorrow probably.)

 

I have had bad luck w/ Optima red tops, and wouldn't spend the money on another. Go the lightweight route - there is a thread at the top of the autocross forum on m.net about batteries; Deka makes some good options that are much cheaper than the Optima, and less than half the weight.

 

Braille is a ripoff - their batteries are the original Deka batteries with the sticker replaced and their retail price formed by multiplying the Deka price by 3.
For example the 6-7lbs Deka ETX9 which can be found for around $50 is labeled by Braille as B106 and offered by them at their web site for $140 ...

Looks like their scam is working though because there are lots of fools buying the Braille **** thinking they are getting some light weight unobtanium Even Flyin' Miata were offering those some time ago ...

Here is some more info on lightweight batteries:
MX-5 Miata Forum - Which Light Weight Replacement Battery ?

 

Btw in USA there are only 3 battery manifacturers: Exide, East-Penn Deka and Johnson Controls.

Everything else sold under whatever names is coming from one of these three manifacturers, and is just a different label slapped on the box and some reseller making money off this.
That's why I buy Deka - I know I get the original models

Even WestCo who are claiming they are selling their original Miata battery (and advertising a lot at m.net) are actually selling a Deka 8AMU1R battery with just their name on the sticker

The Deka 8AMU1R can be found for much cheaper than what WestCo offer it for. Others also sell it as Marathon 8AMU1R (still cheaper than a WestCo sticker):
Mazda MIATA Battery: BatteryMart.com

Or also as Duralast Gold 8AMU1R at your local Autozone store (still cheaper than WestCo sticker)

 

If your battery still looks new, go buy a new one and return the broken one :-x

 

I'm looking at getting an Odyssey batteries. Who's the major manufacturer for them?

 

So far 19 years on the original Mazda factory battery

 

EnerSys. So, add that name to the Exide, East-Penn Deka and Johnson Controls list.

 

in my experience, duralast batteries outlast the optimas.

 

Braille is awesome to deal with if you ever have a failure. They usually send a new battery with no questions asked.