FAQ: Good Battery Replacement?

Sears often sells the Red Top for $120 with core exchange.

turtleman wrote:

I can tell you they do not vent gas because the gas is a the product of the liquid electrolyte in your typical battery. The optima is composed of a gel compound and is spiral packed. You could put an arc welder to the terminals and you will melt the terminals through the case before you get the hydrogen gas out of it.

Thanks for this info. I didn't realize their construction was so vastly different from a 'normal' battery!

-Derek

AA wrote:

Sears often sells the Red Top for $120 with core exchange.

im not sure if you saw that price recently or a little while ago but working in a parts store, i did notice the price go up on optimas. not long ago, we sold them for 120 too

I relocated my battery to the trunk and installed an Optima... A battery should be readily accessable.

well my bat is dying it wouldnt crank half of the time today but the dealer is closed so i guess im going to HOPE they have a 975 CCA 76-7yr bat in stock. the one i have in right now is a acdelco and its the second bat in 11yrs so thats not too bad, but with all the sitting with my radio on and car off i cut this one short by about a year
btw i ran a multi to it and only showed 10.7volts so either the bat is on its last leg or my alt has stoped working...anyway to test the alt. for free? (still stock AFAIK)

Was the 10.7V reading with the car running or off??

off, i pulled the bat out of the car to have autozone double check to verify my reading

If you can get the car started, and it measures 14-15v, it's the battery (or a short somewhere). If it still measures 10.7v, it's the charging system.

went to the dealer and found, as stated earlier in this topic, that the 76-7yr is hard to find (discontinued) and the have a 79-6yr to replace it. the 76 has 975CCA but the 79 has 880CCA, will that be a problem?? i t doesnt get cold here in FL so i dont think so.
also are the dimentions/weight of the 79 the same as the 76??
TIA
btw they have the 79 for $89!!! and maybe ill get credit for the old one

ok i got my new bat and everything is dandy the 79-6yr fits better than the 76-7yr and its lighter too!
the dealer said the 79-6yr was $144 but since he misquoted me earlier he gave it to me for $89 and no credit for the old one.

i just got a 3 yr. tittanium bat. my old bat was reading only 9.5 volts $128

If it isn't one thing it's another haha.. I got up for work yesterday, got in my car.. normal routine. I go to turn the key, and nothing. My ignition chime was faint and my interior lights were all really dim, so I figured it was electrical related. I took my back seat out, (first time ever) and took a look, to my surprise, the battery was an acid battery which sort of scared me.. I pulled out the battery charger, hooked it up and let it sit for a bit. I didn't have my multimeter at home so I couldn't check my voltage/amperage. long story short, the battery wouldn't hold a charge, so I went to disconnect the terminals, and as I loosen the positive, acid starts pouring out of the battery... that's exactly why having an acid battery in my car without me knowing scared me, if it had been leaking earlier, that could have ended badly for me haha.. so I picked up an Optima gel battery, ran me a little more in price, but i'd rather pay the price for a better battery now.. so if any of you have recently bought your riv, or have never checked out your battery, it might be worth a look

Damn, that's scary! I checked mine out last fall a couple months after I bought the car. Nice clean GM repl battery there, vented, a couple years old. I'd say your last owner took the cheap way out, and endangered you in the process.

for sure, the little vent attachment was broken off, and he just threw in some everyday battery, brand was like auto craft or something

I have AC/Delco batteries in both of mine. I do check them now and then but am not too worried about having acid batteries in them as long as the vent tubes are hooked up the way they should be.
It is a shame that someone took the cheap way out and didn't put in the correct replacement battery though.

the acid battery wouldn't have been so much of a problem if the retard just left the vent tubes in lol, I lifted up my seet, and the assembly was in two pieces

RhinoFLA wrote:

the acid battery wouldn't have been so much of a problem if the retard just left the vent tubes in lol, I lifted up my seet, and the assembly was in two pieces

That would definitely suck!

My original OEM battery is still running strong at 10 years old and 141k miles, most of them not only powering the car, but pushing a 300 Watt stereo. I check the battery yearly.. green light is still on! I never really looked into it, but always assumed the stock battery was a lead acid battery, just vented to the outside. Can anyone explain exactly what it is if this is not the case?

AA wrote:

..............I never really looked into it, but always assumed the stock battery was a lead acid battery, just vented to the outside. Can anyone explain exactly what it is if this is not the case?

Lead-Calcium Grid
The maintenance-free batteries, such as Delco Freedom batteries, uses calcium. The lead-calcium grid is strong, more resistant to corrosion as well as overcharging, gassing, water usage, and self-discharge, all of which shorten battery life in conventional lead-acid batteries. Lead calcium is used in Maintenance Free batteries. Battery construction provides a deeper well area to allow a slight water loss over the life of the battery. No provision for adding water to the cells is provided because the battery is sealed.

[quote="AA"]My original OEM battery is still running strong at 10 years old and 141k miles.........../quote]

I believe that is possible because it is sheltered from the elements in our car's interiors.

Well, it seems lead-calcium battery technology is no BS. When the time comes I need a new one, If I can't find an exact replacement from the dealer, I'm getting the closest one they sell. Or, a Red Top. Depends, if I can find one on sale or not.

got an exact replacement from an ac delco dealer here in macon Ga. for a little over $100.00 about 3 years ago. Why buy anything else if the acdelco last this long. its almost unheard of to get this many years out of a battery, mine lasted 9 1/2 years

I just replaced my battery - not because it had died, but because it did not test well (CCAs dropped below 600). It was about 10 years old, and was the OE battery in my Riv. Got a replacement form the dealer for a little over $100. I noted with amusement that the ACDelco sticker covers the hygrometer eye (the green eye) now.

Be sure io get a replacement battery that uses the factory vent tubes. Otherwise the acid fumes will over a relatively short time corrode the floor. If you look at old service bulletins, you will see that there was a problem with acid rot of the floorpan under the battery. I understand that some AutoZone stores stock an exact replacement battery (that fits the vents and everything) but you have to ask for it.

My original battery is still starting the car at 12 years old. I'll probably replace before winter, but I really can't complain about it being a bad design. It's been TOTALLY maintenance-free for the entire life of the car. I may hit 200k miles before it finally comes out.

12 years old? wow....you should take it into museum....relly....batterys here where i live...they least 4-5years MAX!....winter just hurts them alot..