IROCZ1989

iTrader: (1)

Yes but they have Optima batteries in the worlds fastest Mercedes.

https://www.optimabatteries.com/en-u...-featured-sema

Think if the battery takes a dump they will have a problem getting another one? To be honest its articles like this the common car guy who bought an Optima or looking at one just doesnt give 2 ***** about. How about a blue collar Joe that has started his daily driver the last 10 years every day without a hitch with an Optima battery. Years ago these type of articles would get your attention. That ship has sailed. No one thinks having an Optima in a 6 figure race car doesnt come without product sponsor intervention. I wish a YouTube channel would take apart a bunch of manufactures batteries and side by side compare them.

OptimaJim

ploegi, you may have missed some of the previous posts and links, but we've covered this before as it relates to batteries. I understand in many instances there are products that are more labor-intensive in their construction, where there is a significant cost savings to be realized by moving to another country. That's certainly one of the reasons there's so much focus on China and Mexico with tariffs. However, with car batteries, it is the shipment of the lead in every phase that is the major expense. The actual production process itself at this point, as indicated by the video, is largely automated. Also, as I've indicated before, if we saw any decline in the quality of our products, we'd lose our biggest customers before we sold a single battery to them. The proof here really is in the pudding. These rumors have been circulating about a decline in quality for 20 years now. If there were any truth to them, it doesn't matter what I'd post online, because our doors would've closed.

GeneralDisorder, most of my time is spent helping people resolve issue they are having with their batteries (and it's not always our batteries). My first post in this thread over three years ago had a link in it on how to recover a deeply-discharged battery. Unnecessary warranty returns are a huge issue for every brand and manufacturer who sells AGM batteries. Most just deal with it by refusing to warranty batteries that have been deeply-discharged. You can get away with that when you have low volume and a handful of retail accounts. When you have batteries being sold at Pep Boys, O'Reilly, Advance Auto, Autozone, Jeg's, Summit, Amazon, 4 Wheel Parts, Interstate and countless other smaller/regional retailers like Farm & Fleet, Fleet Farm and Tractor Supply, you can't tell people to pound sand when they come in with a discharged battery in April, that they let sit all winter long while their car drained it. That would be where the real PR nightmare would begin.

Being pro-active with consumers is not a cheap option, but we think it's the right thing to do. They may still choose another battery brand in the future, but the odds are in our favor that it will still be a battery manufactured by our parent corporation and if the advice offered extends the usable lifespan of a battery and prevents it from being unnecessarily recycled before it's needed, then it's a win for everyone.

IROCZ1989, we have over 1,500 blog entries on our website. I work for the company and even I'm not enamored with all of the subjects they cover, but I'm just one consumer, just like you. There are plenty of blogs on our site that are right in my wheelhouse and perhaps one of the 90+ entries on Camaros would be of more interest to you?

https://www.optimabatteries.com/en-u...s-world-optima

We also have touring walls of power displays that do have incredible stories of our batteries doing amazing things and many of those stories are also found in the blog. As I've been working for this company, I've learned that if you ask 10 different car guys what a “common car guy” or a “blue collar Joe,” you may get a dozen or more answers. We don't make batteries for all of them, but as many of these cars go out of production and the fitment tail on those batteries start shrinking dramatically, we find ourselves in an increasingly unusual position of being one of the few remaining options. We get a lot of requests for 16-volt products, but that volume is just too low. However, we've managed to hold onto our 6-volt production, even though most automakers started phasing those batteries out more than 60 years ago. The same thing is already happening with the direct-fit 75/25 batteries commonly found on third gens. I can't even remember the last time a new car used that battery.

Retailers only have so much shelf space and in their infinite wisdom, automakers have used more than 60 different battery sizes already, so an increasing number of battery sizes become special orders. As our car parc transitions to electric and autonomous, it's going to be increasingly difficult to find just about anything for cars that aren't one or the other or both. I don't know how old you are, but if you're into gas-powered, human-driven cars, revel in the fact that you're probably living in the greatest generation those cars will ever know, because it's coming to an end and that's coming from a guy whose job (at least for now) is tied directly to those cars.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries

dlinger

iTrader: (4)

Are we sure this isn't a thread about Energizer batteries - it just keeps going, and going, and going...

thtanner

iTrader: (1)

Well after 4 years the RedTop has 100% failed in my wifes car. It has been having a harder and harder time starting, kept thinking it was the alarm system draining it, but it would start fine immediately after it came off a tender. Came out today and it was at .9v. Not 9v.. POINT nine volts. Not even a full volt. Yikes.

It had been going bad for at least 2 years now. The car is so rarely driven, and kept on a tender, that it would always fire right off the tender but have a hard time starting if we stopped when driving. I kept a jump pack on me for that reason.

Going with Bosch this time.

IROCZ1989

iTrader: (1)

So I wanted to update this thread. Went today to fire my motor for the first time for break in. Took the Optima off the charger. Read 12.8 volts. Tried cranking the motor and it was struggling. Voltage across the poles measured under 9 volts. Got maybe 2 or 3 ok cranks and battery is done. Its was 7 volts at one crank. Off to the store that sells Optimas. Tested the batterys cold cranking amps. Supposed to be 620 tested 501. Tested cranking amps which is supposed to be 910. Got a 710 reading. Battery is junk. Fully charged it's no more than 12.7. Before it was 13.2 for a couple of days. I had no choice but to get another one because the cables and battery box is set up for this height battery. Against my better judgment. Brought it home and it's on the charger now. Its dated 8/19. If I wasnt at this point I would be looking for other options. Third one a charm? We will see. How many lunches am I going to buy for Optimas sponsored vehicle teams? Wheres Optima Jim?

ironwill

Who cares? The only thing he's offered in this entire thread is way-off-topic "anecdotes," what-ifs, smart-alec replies, and excuses for his company's pitifully poor quality since moving their manufacturing out of country. Typical company rep action in this day and age of "wring every cent possible out of people and leave 'em holding the bag."

Sorry for your continued trouble, IROCZ, but you need to cut bait, make whatever changes your vehicle requires in order to get rid of that POS battery, and then buy something not named optima that will last.

IROCZ1989

iTrader: (1)

I concur with everything.

GeneralDisorder

iTrader: (1)

Like I've been saying all along - they are JUNK batteries. I've never had a single problem with any of my Odyssey's even after running them dead countless times. Just a few weeks ago I ran my Odyssey dead due to a cold weather induced flooding problem on my EBL tune - literally cranked it till it died. Then a few days later I accidentally left the dome light switch on and killed it again. Still going STRONG after a few hours on the charger after those incidents.

GD

ternandes

iTrader: (7)

I'm in agreement. I paid big bucks for an Optima, and barely got 3 years out of it in constant use. It was OK until the first time I let the car sit for a couple of weeks in cold weather. The battery was stone dead. I revived it twice in the next six months using an Optimate 6 battery charger, and it eventually gave up the ghost. I'll never buy another one.

thtanner

iTrader: (1)

Probably outsourced their customer service like they did their manufacturing.

OptimaJim

I'm fresh off a week at the SEMA show, where we charged or replaced just about every battery brand mentioned in this thread, as the vehicles they were in either showed up with discharged batteries or discharged them during the show. I'm in Riyadh now and we're expecting more of the same here, as all the vehicles that were shipped over have been sitting in containers for more than a month. We don't manufacture any proprietary group sizes, so if you want to try another 75/25, the footprint, terminal height and locations are all the same.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries

T.L.

My Dekka sits for 4 to 5 months at a time. It's 6 years old now and starts every time...

IROCZ1989

iTrader: (1)

I had to buy another one. Sorry though. This is the last one. 3 in 10 years time minimal use? The new one totally solved the issue. So the old one even though it passed a load test somewhat and took a charge and held voltage it failed with a real load on it. On a charger it would only charge to 12.8 -13.2 then drop to 12.6 after a few days. New one goes to 13.2 and now holds 12.8 for over a week.
Supposed to be 910 cranking amps old one. Tested at 700. Cca supposed to be 620 tested at 505. So something was up inside it. If the optima chargers were not so dam exspensive I would have one to charge up the batterys. This has been brought up before about not using the correct charger.

GeneralDisorder

iTrader: (1)

This has been my EXACT experience with SO many Optima batteries. Even before I found Odyssey - for years the Optima's would do this crap. I just figured AGM batteries were sensitive and honestly I felt that a good lead-acid flooded battery was better and I was a dealer for Interstate for a while which seemed to work OK, but they were overpriced and the same thing you could get from Autozone so I switched to their professional battery line which was also OK. In the end though I run a performance shop and I don't want to position myself selling anything but what I feel to be the BEST product and after trying out the Odyssey product I decided to sell them at my shop. To their credit I have not had a single one come back. My dealer has warranted one of the tiny PC680's for a customer but it wasn't bad and it was his car that was drawing it down. Other than that I have had zero issues and I run 6 of them in my personal and business fleet. Never had one that needed to be replaced.

GD

IROCZ1989

iTrader: (1)

So Jim says they replaced every battery in this thread at Sema. General disorder says he has had such a terrible exp running his buisness selling Optima that he stopped selling optimas. I cannot do it or have the facility to do it. But a head to head/ long terms test would be the ticket. With dissasembly and inside look at construction. Put this to bed. I see it like this. 10 years time. 3 batteries $190 a piece. Did I get $570 or in other words my money's worth? No not by a long shot. I've had cheap rebuild batteries from Interstate last in daily drivers 5-6 years. It's a shame really. And all the hype by Optima saying we did this or that doesnt happen doesnt discount the fact I went through 3 batteries in 10 years.

KITT1983

iTrader: (3)

optima's last 3 years if your lucky

JT

iTrader: (1)

I bought an Optima red top 3 years and 7 months ago. Just this past week I've realized the battery is about done. Over the last few months, I thought it was the starter on the car until I realized it wouldn't start another car. It takes and holds a charge but fails to provide under load. And I had the Optima charger and used it. With the amount the battery costs and it lasting just over 3 years, I really expected a lot better. As mentioned above, I've had plenty of cheap batteries with some lasting over 7 years - double what I've gotten from (what I thought was) a premium battery?!

OptimaJim

JT, did you buy both your battery & charger direct from us? If so, you're still under warranty. Send me your purchase information.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries
www.pinterest.com/optimabatteries

JT

iTrader: (1)

No I did not. Both were purchased from Amazon in 2016 as shipped/sold directly from Amazon.

With that said, given Amazon is a reputable retailer, why would it not be covered by the manufacturer unless bought direct? Isn't the product the same?

OptimaJim

We have a manufacturer's warranty on our consumer RedTops, YellowTops and chargers of free replacement for three years, which all authorized retailers are required to honor and provide service on, including Amazon. However, retailers are allowed to offer additional warranty coverage above and beyond our standard warranty coverage, if they so choose. For example we had one retailer in the Midwest, who offered three-year free replacement warranties, as well as three additional years of pro-rated warranty coverage on all Optima battery sales. As a retailer of our own products, we opted to add an additional year of free replacement warranty coverage to all batteries purchased directly through our website, if the customer also bought our Digital 1200 Charger at the same time. We would love it if all our retailers would even carry our Digital 1200. If they extended the warranty by the additional year, we'd be onboard with that as well. However, many of our retailers won't even carry our full product line, which is understandable in some instances- how many Prius or 6-volt batteries would 4 Wheel Parts locations expect to sell?

I'm going through lab in the next few weeks, so if you're not in a hurry to replace this battery, I can see if we have any discharge-only warranty returns that I can send out to you. What size battery are you using and what is the year/make/engine of the vehicle?

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries

thtanner

iTrader: (1)

Nobody at Optima tried to replace my 2 year old dead battery when I called. The small shop I bought it from said sorry, we don't keep records. I was left in the cold (literally and figuratively, that thing left me stranded so many times).

I guess if you complain on the forum enough they'll do something for you. Not a great look that you have to basically be the admin of the board to get a warranty replacement.

To clarify... a 2017 dated battery failed in 2019. Optima said I must take it back to where I bought it. The small mom and pop I bought it from said sorry, talk to Optima. A second call to Optima circled me back around to the mom and pop, and well... at that stage I was smart and bought another brand of battery. So if you see me pop up in this thread to offer my experiences, that's why.

JT

iTrader: (1)

What you describe has been fairly typical in this day and age. Companies use online engagement to not only help sell their products and/or service but to help resolve online complaints. Defects occur. Problems happen. People take note when that happens but they also look to see how the company responds to those problems.

My personal experience is this was my first Optima battery purchase. I paid a premium price for the battery that I thought was a premium product. As such I would have expected to last a little longer than what it did. I've had many batteries, half the price, last just as long or twice as long. As much as I paid for the battery, I was disappointed.

Although I feel Optima's product did not meet the claims or expectations, in my personal experience, I do think your "mom and pop" holds some failure in your experience. The retailer is supposed to take care of the customer's warranty issues while they work with the company behind the scenes. According to my warranty sheet from Optima and Amazon, if my battery was to fail within the 3 year warranty then Amazon was to take care of me and the battery. Your mom and pop store should have as well. Not keeping records was one problem. Passing off the customer is another. Although I'd hold Optima accountable for a battery failure that shouldn't have occurred, I'd blame your retailer for not helping you.

battmann

iTrader: (9)

Just go buy an ACDelco battery and be done with all this nonsense.

thtanner

iTrader: (1)

No disagreement there regarding the mom and pop, they do shoulder some responsibility.

The fact Optima was unwilling to help when I had a dated battery really was the last straw. Those types of customer service interactions really are make or break. I have a lot of vehicles, and none of them are going to be getting Optima as a result.

It's not like Delco makes their batteries.

T.L.

All I know is my Dekka AGM battery (purchased in April of 2013) is still going strong after 6-1/2 years. I couldn't care less that it doesn't have a pretty red or yellow top on it...

ironwill

Maybe not, but at least we know Optima doesn't make them!

thtanner

iTrader: (1)

Most aftermarket car batteries sold in the U.S. are made by three companies that build them for retailers: Johnson Controls, which supplies more than half of the market; Exide; and East Penn

Indeed.

OptimaJim

thtanner, I'm sorry to hear you had a negative experience. The correct course of action was to seek warranty service from your original retailer and it's unfortunate to hear they didn't keep records of your transaction. What was the name & location of that retailer? It's also understandable that not everyone saves receipts on purchases they've made over the last three years. However, retailers can accept other forms of proof of purchase, like canceled checks or credit card statements and our call center can assist retailers in those situations.

Unfortunately, we seem to run into a lot of situations where folks walk into a store with $200 in cash to buy a battery and if they don't hold onto a receipt and the retailer doesn't keep records (like all the major autoparts retailers do), then it's hard to distinguish who has a legitimate warranty claim and who bought a $20 dead battery off craigslist in the hopes of getting a free warranty replacement. We help as many folks as we can, but we need to establish some purchase history. The battery I'm offering to JT is not a new battery and not a warranty replacement. It will carry no warranty coverage, but it did pass a load test once it was properly-recharged.

ironwill, our parent corporation, Clarios, does manufacture Delco batteries. While there are far more than three battery manufacturers supplying batteries to the US market, Clarios does supply more than half of those batteries.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries
www.pinterest.com/optimabatteries

JT

iTrader: (1)

Jim, at this point, as a customer, I have concerns with the quality of Optima's batteries and now their customer service. I can't speak about the other stories in this thread as they're not personal experience where I know all the facts. In my personal experience, I paid a premium price for a battery that was marketed as a premium battery. It has failed just outside of Optima's standard 3 year warranty. Despite using the Optima charger. I've paid far less for "regular" batteries that have far outlasted my Optima battery. Some of those batteries even having a better warranty than Optima's. This was also my first Optima battery. Does this experience sound satisfactory to Optima??

I'm not so sure I want to trade a bad battery for a battery that isn't new, has no warranty, and is really unknown. It appears this battery being offered was turned into Optima as a failed battery and Optima can't sell the battery but has gotten it recovered enough to do something with it. Offering that battery to a customer, who had a bad experience with a battery that should have lasted longer than it did, is not a good way to take care of a customer and wash away the previous experience of a failed battery that shouldn't have happened in the time that it did. That battery being offered might last only 30 days. That Optima wouldn't even warranty it shows their own confidence in that battery! Now, I wouldn't expect a warranty on a used battery. Nor would I expect a new battery or a new battery with a new warranty.

However, some companies not only take care of their customer but they also exceed expectations and make things right when something does go wrong. That doesn't appear to be the case here with Optima. To swap a bad battery with a returned battery that isn't new, has no warranty, and hasn't exactly been refurbished to like new, is a risk Optima is taking by having me swap a failed battery for one that is likely going to do the same thing in short time. When that battery fails, possibly in short time, you think that's going to help the customer's image of Optima?!

OptimaJim

JT, I know a lot of people selling used batteries use terms like “remanufactured” and “refurbished,” but what does that really mean? Batteries are sealed, so it's not like they're taking out the cells and replacing them with new cells. In almost every instance, they're just charging a battery someone else mistakenly believed was “bad,” they're wiping it down with a wet rag and calling it a day. Maybe they'll run a brush over the terminals to shine them up a little, if they're feeling really ambitious.

If using a deceptive term like “refurbished” exceeds your expectations, then I'd rather be honest and fall short. I am taking a risk by offering to send you a used battery, but I have enough confidence in our products to believe that the used battery I would send you would meet or exceed your low expectations for it. The battery you would receive will probably be at least six months old and was already used in a consumer application. I know if our batteries fail because of a manufacturing defect, it's going to happen very early in their lifespan (often within the first few days).

The fact that someone else used this battery already, deeply-discharged it and mistook it for dead and we were able to fully-recharge it, get it to pass a load test and have it hold voltage ever since, gives me a high degree of confidence that there's not a thing wrong with this battery. The fact that you also have one of our chargers gives me an even higher degree of confidence that you'll be able to keep it properly-maintained throughout it's useful life. Additionally, you've already established that you believe the battery I send you is likely to fail in a short amount of time, so your level of expectation is pretty low at this point. If you'd like to give this battery a shot, DM me your shipping address and I'll get one sent out to you.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries
www.pinterest.com/optimabatteries

T.L.

SMH...

ironwill

Gonna replace one POS battery with another POS battery that someone else returned defective?

REALLY?







Back IN for yet another 5000+ word post full of excuses from "Optima Jim."

JT

iTrader: (1)

Jim, it's one issue when a customer has a problem with the company's product. Yes, you've got a disappointed customer because they spent a premium dollar for what they believed to be a premium product only to have it fail too soon. My Optima battery lasting only 3 years and 7 months is not what I consider to be good enough nor is it typical in my personal experience. In fact, this Optima battery only lasting 3 years and 7 months may be the shortest lasting automotive battery that I've had in the last few decades. You understand why I'm unhappy? And others who appear to have similar results?

You're picking up on my disappointment and negativity due to the experience I've had. Instead of taking the opportunity to show me, and others reading, on how the company takes care of a customer when they have been let down, you're offering leftovers while also provoking me. You're talking to a customer where your product failed them. You're confident about that used battery and stated that defects usually occurs within days. How do you explain my Optima failing just outside of 3 years? Or is it normal for Optima batteries to only last 3 years?

One reason why I'm bumping this thread is because today was an above average temperate for my area and so I ran the cars. I put my Optima battery on my Optima charger the previous day and it shown 100%. I left it on the charger for a few hours to maintain that "100%" despite I knew better. Today I put that Optima in two of the ThirdGens and just got a quick and faint starter kick followed by clicks. I took my 6 year old Walmart battery out of another car and it started both cars with no issue. That Walmart battery, once again, confirmed to me that I got double the life of the Optima for atleast half the cost.

I will not likely purchase another Optima battery again due to the failure and seeing how the company responds to a customer who has a failure. Unless the company actually steps up and makes matters right, I'm not likely to have another Optima ever again. They cost more money, didn't last as long as almost every other battery I've had and the customer service forgets they're talking to a customer of theirs that was let down by a failure with the product.

OrangeBird

iTrader: (1)

Throughout this thread I've been trying to give Jim the benefit of the doubt . I have an Optima bluetop going on around 4 years now in my Firebird without issue . But these last few posts between JT and Jim have caused me to rethink my defense of Jim , for this reason ;

Jim , do you believe someone with JT's forum cred is trying to pull a scam on you to get a free battery ? I would hope not , the Man deserves beyond the benefit of the doubt here as I highly doubt he'd risk his well earned reputation to score a free battery . So , here we have a universally respected forum administrator reporting a VERY early failure of his expensive battery , and the best he's offered is a used battery ? And gets attitude to go along with the used battery ? Jim , dude , you blew it big time here , your used battery offer is nothing short of an insult and if you think that's OK I then don't blame the board in the least for having a problem with you , because to be honest with you I now DO have a problem with you and am proud to have seen JT tell you to keep your used battery .

I was given my optima as a leftover from my friend's abandoned boat project , but when it finally fails I can't see myself ever shelling out the cash for a top dollar battery with what appears to be no warranty support , and a PR rep who needs a refresher course or two in "Customer Service 101"

QwkTrip

iTrader: (22)

So how's it workin' for ya, champ?

Dumbest job description ever, endless arguing with random people on the internet.

TTOP350

iTrader: (8)

I don't have much of the (FB) story but said it's 2 yrs old, maintained and happened after 15 mins of driving. No alternator issue was mentioned.

IROCZ1989

iTrader: (1)

Really sad. If you search Optima this is all you find now is complaints and bad exp. vs years ago. One things for certain you will always get the **** end of the stick buying these batteries. No good feedback I can find from direct company interaction over problems with their product. Basically it's all your fault if you dont use their 200$ special charger. You basically will get what you get in terms of life out of it. Then that's it. I've never had issues like this with Interstate batteries. Hell even refurbished batteries I bought from Interstate lasted 5 plus years. Remember buying my first battery in my first car in 1993. 1987 2.8 camaro.$25 no name battery lasted 8 years in that daily driver. Batteries lasting 3 years is nothing to brag about.

JT

iTrader: (1)

I have a couple 2x4s laying on the floor inside my garage. So far, my Optima battery is able to hold the boards down so they don't stand up on their own.

In more seriousness, I have no interest in buying another Optima battery after having a defective battery and seeing how the company responds. Not just for my case, but for all others reported. It's one thing to have a defective battery and the company take care of it. It's another to have a defective battery and the company's response boasts about their product while not taking care of the defective battery or they offer a used left-over.

88RS

iTrader: (7)

I have been silently watching this thread play out for awhile now. Even though I have had good experiences with red tops that are out of warranty in 2 of my vehicles, I can't support a company that conducts themselves in this manner. With that 3rd world manufacturing, you'd think they'd be a lot better with handling warranties. Instead, they employ this Optima Jim character to go online and really damage their image. It is because of this thread I purchased an Odyssey for my wife's car recently. Also, I've had no issues using my 10a/2a automatic charger on the 2a setting in all the years I've had them.

T.L.

My Honda battery (not a AGM) lasted 9 years. That's 9 years of the brutal conditions that a daily-driver experiences.
My DEKKA AGM battery in my old Ford is still going strong after 6 years (7 in August). It is driven only in the summer, and sits all winter. I never even used a battery tender on it until this year. I'm a bit bummed that DEKKA doesn't list a AGM battery for my '83 Firebird...

scooter

iTrader: (11)

I put a Deka in my 92 Firebird. not sure if it is a different group, but there is one that will work

TTOP350

iTrader: (8)

I dd a 08 G5 pontiac. I just pulled out the original working battery last fall (2019). Probably would still be good but since it's a dd I figured 11yrs and 205k miles was a great run..

IROCZ1989

iTrader: (1)

Lol, I guess as a $200 doorstop they do excell at that.

RICH92RS350

I have yellow tops that are lasting more than ten years. These cars are not driven daily or even weekly.

-Rich

OptimaJim

I apologize for losing track of this thread! OrangeBird, it's a tough position to be in, when I encounter any customer who had a battery fail outside of warranty coverage and didn't feel like that battery met their expectations. It becomes an even tougher position when that person is the admin for a forum like this one or an Instagram user with 500k followers or someone else who may be perceived to be a person of influence.

If I sent JT a brand-new battery, I open myself up to criticism that I only took care of JT, because he is the admin on this site and I would have to agree with that criticism. I shouldn't offer JT any special treatment that I wouldn't offer to other customers, just because he is the admin of this site. In JT's case, I've offered and shipped many discharge-only warranty returns to people who were having trouble with batteries that were outside of warranty coverage. In some cases, I took the battery one guy returned because he was having trouble with it, charged it, load-tested it and sent it off to someone else to use. If I treat everyone the same and hand out new batteries to everyone who has a bad experience, it won't take long for that news to travel around the interwebs. Then we'll have people lining up for a battery they hate so much they'd never spend money to buy again, but would take a new one for free.

It's not an easy position to be in and I've watched other battery companies deal with the same issue in forums, where people threatened them with the digital version of “don't you know who I am?” I'll tarnish your good name on the biggest ____ forum on the Internet if they don't acquiesce to their demands. I might be guilty of posting a popcorn eater in those threads from time to time, but if you sell enough of anything, you'll eventually find yourself in those crosshairs.

TTOP350, I was sent that same photo over the weekend from a friend of the owner of that car, along with this information:

So last night I had a friend have an unfortunate issue. I figured I would message you to find out how to get things resolved or fix somehow. He is super unhappy right now. He bought a redtop a couple years ago for his 2000 WS6 Trans Am. He keep this thing in a heated garage and baby's the car. He doesn't keep a trickle charger on it and didn't have much issues year 1, but this year he can't keep it charged, or I should say couldn't. Sadly the battery exploded last night. I had taken a photo to message that he was having issues keeping it charged. He purchased it at XXXXX, so I don't know how old it really was when he even bought it. He is a major car guy and knows how to care and maintain batteries well. So I guess my questions are: who or what path should I send him on? Have you ever seen them explode? What would cause that? The charging system on the car is in great shape. I told him to get a yellow top since he doesn't drive it a whole lot, and the small charger to keep it charged. Sorry to be a little winded, on a side note (knock on wood) my battery seems to be good so far!

Here's what I sent back to him:

Hi XXXXX, if I'm reading what you sent me correctly, your friend babies his car and is a major car guy who knows how to take care of and maintain batteries, but when he stored this battery, he didn't keep it on a maintainer. If that is the case, I would say your friend abuses his battery and alternator just like someone who lives in Phoenix, who knows the sun will damage their paint and tires, but stores their car in direct sunlight anyway.

All the major car guys I know keep all their vehicles on maintainers, whether they are running our batteries or someone else's. Whenever any battery is discharged below 12.4 volts and is left sitting in that state, sulfation starts forming in the plates. The longer it sits and the more-deeply the battery is discharged, the worse it gets. This can be reversed by some extent charging at a somewhat higher amperage rate (we don't recommend exceeding 10 amps), but eventually it will become unrecoverable.

When that happens and people still try to push current into a battery that cannot accept that current, either with a battery charger or the vehicle's charging system, those black vent ports on top of the battery will try to release the excess pressure that builds inside the battery. When that pressure exceeds the vent port's ability to vent it, the battery explodes. We see this most often during this time of year, as people are bringing vehicles out of storage, that haven't been properly-maintained while in storage. They may jump-start the battery to get it going or hit it with a high amperage charge, but the end result is still the same. Fortunately for your friend, he was using one of our batteries, which usually doesn't make nearly the mess that a flooded battery makes when it explodes.

He should obviously use baking soda to neutralize the acid mess and if your friend's battery is still within it's three-year free replacement warranty, he can try to get it replaced. Our warranty specifically excludes batteries that have been destroyed by abusive overcharging or improper maintenance, either of which would apply here, but if he just plays dumb and lies, his original retailer will probably take care of him.

So at least you guys know I'm consistent in my responses. As I keep seeing false information posted about our products, I'll keep doing my best to set the record straight. You don't need a special charger or our charger to keep our batteries charged, but if your vehicle sits for extended periods of time, you should use some kind of charger to keep the battery voltage properly-maintained, whether it's our battery or anyone else's.

I love a good conspiracy theory as much as the next guy and there are certainly plenty floating around these days. I know people are convinced that “something's changed” and will try to connect dots with ownership or country of origin, but the truth is right in front of them. Anyone buying a a replacement battery for a 1990 third gen with a 350 is probably looking at a Group 75 battery, which weighs about 31 pounds. Anyone buying a replacement battery for a 2010 Camaro with a V6 is probably looking at an H7 battery, which weighs around 43 pounds.

So in a day & age, where automakers are trying to shave weight to improve fuel economy, why would they stick a battery in a 2010 Camaro to start a V6, that weighs 38% more than the battery they used in the past to start a Camaro's 350 V8? It's certainly not because the V6 needs more cranking amps to get started. That same Group 75 is a direct-fit replacement for many Chevys with 454s. Newer cars get bigger batteries because they are more demanding than ever before from an electrical standpoint and they need more reserve capacity. Some cars are so demanding, they even come with battery chargers from the factory. Even older cars that sit for extended periods of time end up discharging batteries if they aren't properly-maintained. Keep a battery properly-maintained and you'll maximize performance and lifespan. Let it sit and you'll roll the dice on how things turn out.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries
www.pinterest.com/optimabatteries

IROCZ1989

iTrader: (1)

I will agree most dont know how an alt and battery work together. So many times I've comes across people with batteries on their way out and just are barely able to get the car started and just assume the alt will recharge it back up. Best way to kill and alt in short time, never mind the battery. Same thing applies to a battery that has sat a long period of time and maybe charged, maybe not or charged just enough to get the car started. Then the owner assumes the alt will take care of the rest. Furthest thing from the truth.

With all that said I kind of thing your response was a bit harsh on that exploding battery. Even if the battery is way out of warrenty or not even the original owner maybe a little bit of understanding is in order even though a 100% you were not going to cover it. Not every one is a "major car guy" whatever that means.I guess you can say you have heard this and that about other batteries having problems. But most if not 98% here had have a lot of different brand batteries from agm to lead acid on alot of different cars, and the consensus here seems to be Optima was good once, not anymore. I had one that was maintained and not abused always was on a agm maintainer but when it came to put into service it checked out. So you have a guy that you say abused batteries and me who took care of one. Is there a third scenerio we dont know about???The last two scenerios played out the same way with the battery taking a dump.

T.L.

You're funny, Jim.
I don't think anyone is buying your B.S. though, or anymore Optima batteries for that matter...

JT

iTrader: (1)

You mean news that your company would step up to take care of your end-user that experienced a defect in a product that probably shouldn't have occurred? Creditable businesses do this and know that it's good business and advertisement for them. My battery didn't fail 3 years after warranty nor did I have unreasonable expectations. My battery failed a few months after warranty. And actually, as I stated, looking back my battery did start to fail within warranty but my fault was assuming I was seeing a weak starter. Especially since my Optima charger would show the battery at 100% charged.

That said, even though you never offered me a new battery, I have no interest in your products for two simple reasons:

1) My first and only experience with my Optima Red Top was a bad experience when it lasted just 3 years from purchase and not covered under warranty. The cost of Optima Red Top batteries cost significant above a conventional battery, yet I've had conventional batteries last significantly longer. I currently have a Duralast battery that is over atleast 6 years old and still performs. I'm working to find the exact date because I can't believe it's a 11 year old battery as indicated by the 11/08 sticker. While I expect an Optima Red Top battery, that is led to be considered a premium battery, to last longer than 3 years - especially given the cost - I also don't expect a battery to last 11 years.

2) Your customer service - especially your attitude - keeps me from wanting to do any further business with your company. You've been a little loose with your attitude to your customer when it's your product that failed and let the customer down. It's not just to me. Even your recent communication exchange for the exploding Optima battery shows how you view and treat your customers by claiming the battery was abused and taking a bit of a dig at the customer about how all the major car guys use maintainers. It's not exactly that I completely disagree with the information. It's your attitude toward people who purchased your product and experienced failure.

IROCZ1989

iTrader: (1)

Easy experiment for all those here to try. Google Optima Battery Quality and watch what google fills in for the rest. Speaks volumes.

ironwill