Odessey mini batteries... anyone?!

[Tripper]

I'm to the point of selecting a battery for my PU & have always been intrigued with the new mini batteries but wondered if anyone has any experience with these...

http://www.odysseybatteries.com/battery/pc680.htm

BoB

 

[FlatBroke]

Don did something like that on his roadster if I remember right.

 

[donsrods]

Yeah Bob, Flat is right, I have one in my 23. It has now been in use for 3 years and has been flawless. Car sits for weeks sometimes and always fires right up as if it has just been used.

I was very skeptical when I started looking into one (I have the same model you are looking at) so I called the factory. I told the guy (the President of the company) that I wasn't sure if that little battery would start my 350 Chevy. He told me he is using the same battery to start his blown BBC! Every one who sees my little battery can't believe it works, but it really does the trick. You can also mount it laying on it's side or under a cowl if you need to.

My Son Don put an Optima in his T about the same time I got my Odyssey, and his is a POS. He has to keep a trickle charger on it all the time or it goes dead on him over a week or two.

Here are some pictures of the one in my 23.

Don

 

[Tripper]

Don did something like that on his roadster if I remember right.

Thanks Flatster!!!

Yeah Bob, Flat is right, I have one in my 23. It has now been in use for 3 years and has been flawless. Car sits for weeks sometimes and always fires right up as if it has just been used.

I was very skeptical when I started looking into one (I have the same model you are looking at) so I called the factory.

My Son Don put an Optima in his T about the same time I got my Odyssey, and his is a POS. He has to keep a trickle charger on it all the time or it goes dead on him over a week or two.

Don,
I have Optima's in my cars & haven't really been impressed with them either. I can't wait to get an Odyssey now!

Thanks,
BoB

 

[FlatBroke]

Whatever you do, just don't ask how I remembered that out of all the info Don posted in his build.

 

[Tripper]

Whatever you do, just don't ask how I remembered that out of all the info Don posted in his build.

Weird... I'm surprised because I follow Don's build posts pretty closely & never saw that B4!

BoB

 

[donsrods]

When I was in the marine business we always recommended Optimas for boats, especially high performance offshore type boats, because they take such a beating and wet batteries fail a lot quicker from the bouncing up and down. However, the new Optimas seem to be not of the same quality.

I heard a rumor that Optima pulled kind of a *****y deal on their American workers. Supposedly, they told them they needed them to train a new batch of workers in Mexico how to do their jobs so they could run a second plant down there. Then they closed up the American plant and started making them only in Mexico. Don't know if that is correct , but just what has been said. If it is true, it looks like their new workers missed a few classes because the ones coming out of that country suck.

Don

 

[rustybeercan]

I heard a rumor that Optima pulled kind of a *****y deal on their American workers. Supposedly, they told them they needed them to train a new batch of workers in Mexico how to do their jobs so they could run a second plant down there. Then they closed up the American plant and started making them only in Mexico. Don't know if that is correct , but just what has been said. If it is true, it looks like their new workers missed a few classes because the ones coming out of that country suck.

If that's true, it's a real good reason to avoid buying another Optima!

Beercan

 

[BloodSweat&Whiskey]

Has anybody used the ER 40? It has a deeper cycle. I am going to be running a compressor on the new project and need the reserve. Says 87 minutes at 25 amps which would work. I also have very limited space and was going to run 2 Optima 6 volts. This will work out better if they are good.

BSW

 

[AEROCOLOR]

Have one in my `55 that`s going on five years. Turns the big block over like a banger. Just remember to use only an AGM(absorbed glass mat) compatible charger so you don`t void the warranty. I got my charger from Summit Racing for $85.00 but I`ve heard they can be fooled and charged thru a standard twelve volt battery used as a jumper.
Charger to standard battery to AGM battery.

Bill

 

[TubularFab]

I custom fit a Hawker Energy Odessey PC925 in my Panoz Roadster when I built it 10 years ago. It held up quite well over the years, but did not survive the last 2 years of sitting after a woman in a daycare bus ran into the the car while I was sitting at a stop sign. I never got a charger that was set up for AGM and did not have a way to keep it up. Nor did I think the car would be apart long enough to matter...

Anyway, I got the car back together last week, and no matter what I tried I could not get the battery to recover. The current price on that battery is about $170 where it was around or under $100 when i put it in. Instead, I happened on an almost new AGM jet ski battery on the used battery table at Advance auto parts over the weekend. It tested out so I gave them $35 for it and it kicks the 302 over just fine. It's not very big, but according to the test data from the tester they have it was good for 660 cranking amps...

Anyway, over that 8 year period I generally drove the car some in spring and fall with it sitting several months over winter. It always started the car with not even the slightest maintenance charging!