Battery went bad...What should I get?

The battery in Barney went dead this week. I took it to Autozone for a test and it was bad. The guy said likely one bad cell.

They sell Duralast Gold there, which has an 8 year warranty... Sounded pretty good. Then again, there are those Optimas with side terminals.

The truck is still under warranty, but I doubt batteries are covered.

Any recommendations?

Hans, the battery is covered under the original warranty. I had mine replaced by the GM dealer back in May at no charge. I was about to spend my hard earned money but decided to drive to the dealer and the service rep gave me the welcome news.

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Hot dang! I'll be giving Rippy a call on Monday then. Free is better than not free! :wink:

Thanks for the news, Luis.

Hans3T said:

Hot dang! I'll be giving Rippy a call on Monday then. Free is better than not free! :wink:

Thanks for the news, Luis.

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Bad news: The Warranty becomes immediately void the moment you use the term: "Hot dang!"

HAHA.

Plus you don't want an optima anyways. They are not the same Optima of 10 years ago.

What Big said. My OEM one lasted till recently (4 years). Had dealer replace it. They're very good batteries. Not sure who manufacturers them. There are some very good aftermarket ones that are better, but the OEM one is above average. Stay away from Optimas. They're a hit and miss product, with more misses than hits.


"Ex Umbris Venimus"

One look at that lift and they will say that caused the battery to die. . Should be covered by warranty. My OEM battery lasted 4 years. I will take that.

3Hummers said:

One look at that lift and they will say that caused the battery to die. . Should be covered by warranty. My OEM battery lasted 4 years. I will take that.

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you got to hate how a lift caused a battery to die :gaah:

If/when I do have to pay $$ to replace my battery, I've already decided that I'm going with the Odyssey battery:
https://www.powerstridebattery.com/hummer-h3-battery-2010-2007-l5-3-7l

IMO, the qaulity of Optimas turned to crap after they were bought out by Johnson Controls and they started making them out of cheaper materials in Mexico but people still buy them because over 10 years ago, they used to be really good batteies.

3Hummers said:

One look at that lift and they will say that caused the battery to die. . Should be covered by warranty. My OEM battery lasted 4 years. I will take that.

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:giggle: Rippy has actually been pretty good to me so far...eons better than the place in VT, VA, WV etc...

Probably a good idea to go with the gel batteries in our AZ heat. I've been on the steady rate of a new battery every two years as they break down in the heat.

Note...many GM Delco batteries are made in Mexico, Korea and somewhere in the middle east. Eventually, you will see almost all battery manufacturing (especially lead/acid) going overseas due to the environmental laws in the USA vs. other countries. The wiring in your Hummers most likely was made in Mexico.

Mexico DOES NOT denote poor quality or components. It all depends on the manufacturer. Some of GM's vehicles made in Mexico have higher quality ratings than the same vehicle made in the USA. My new Silverado was made in Mexico. The Saturn VUE when switched to a Mexican factory had better quality.


Optima batteries are a bit tricky; especially the yellow tops. They will drop below 10.5 volts and the greater majority of the chargers people buy for home will NOT charge a battery that dropped below 11 volts. The right charger will bring an optima up to operating voltage and the battery is still good. So when the battery drains below 11 volts, and your little charger can't charge it, they are returned to the store and the store replaces them. (Probably for two reasons; one they don't have a charger that will charge it and/or they don't want to make the customer wait a few hours.)

I have a friend who is a manager of a parts store and the returns on the Optimas are next to zero and the store sells a ton of optimas due to the off-roading in this area and the fact that AGM and gel batteries take a beating and the heat better than plated lead acid batteries. (Plated lead acid batteries fail three times as compared to AGM or gel batteries in hot climates.)

Interstate batteries are also owned by Johnson Controls.

Optima are NOT gel batteries, they are AGM.

And just because something was made in Mexico does not denote cheaper materials, in fact, it does not even denote poor quality (when compared to the US). It all depends on the manufacturer of the vehicle.

And most of the complaints on the net can be attributed to the fact they Optima is not charged correctly if it goes dead. Optimas are not for everyone.

I have an optima yellow top that is getting close to 7 years old. It was ran in a daily driver, installed in the my camaro drag car(which was ran with no alternator, electric water pump, electronic ignition, two fuel pumps, 3 nitrous solenoids, 3 fuel soleniods, a Nitrous bottle heater, and a transbreak). I was asking a lot out of that battery. So I was throwing a charger on it every round. I think that battery was ran 2 years like that and now is in another daily driver.
I think that optima has outlasted any thing else I could have used.

Take a look at the O'Reilly Auto brand AGM battery. http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/SuperStartAGMBatteries.oap

It's a re-stickered Deka Intimidator and the best deal you'll find on an AGM battery, which are far better than a lead plate battery for offroad use.

I've heard allot of good thing about old Optima but recently they are crapping out. I've had a good luck with Interstate batteries. Never had a customer to come back and complain about it. Plus it got 5 to 7 years warranty.

You guys are gunna laugh at me, but I recently put a Kirlkand Signature 850 CCA battery from Costco in my H2. So far it has been great. We have had cold weather here all week (-24C or lower). Truck sat outside in my driveway since Monday and fired up repeatedly today, didn't even hesitate.

The Kirkland battery has dual post sets and was under 1/2 the price of the OEM which the dealership was going to give me at cost.

Hans3T said:

The battery in Barney went dead this week. I took it to Autozone for a test and it was bad. The guy said likely one bad cell.

They sell Duralast Gold there, which has an 8 year warranty... Sounded pretty good. Then again, there are those Optimas with side terminals.

The truck is still under warranty, but I doubt batteries are covered.

Any recommendations?

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A big 12volt battery.

f5moab said:

And just because something was made in Mexico does not denote cheaper materials, in fact, it does not even denote poor quality (when compared to the US). It all depends on the manufacturer of the vehicle.

And most of the complaints on the net can be attributed to the fact they Optima is not charged correctly if it goes dead. Optimas are not for everyone.

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Yeah, that's the same crap Optima spews. Apparently, even the alternator of a daily driven vehicle is not the "correct" way to charge an Optima. Funny how other AGM batteries (Odyssey, Deka, etc.) don't seem to have these problems

I replaced mine several years ago with a Sears Platinum battery. Rock solid performance!! Will not buy another Optima again after using this battery!!! Hope this helps!!