Battery issue

[Tess McMillan]

Optimas might originally have been engineered for marine applications.
http://www.optimabatteries.com/home.php

I'm not sure and have never investigated why the 'aftermarket Optima
style' gel batteries don't seem to last as well as genuine Optima
batteries. I replaced the battery in my Quattro with one of the original
'orange' Optimas shortly after I bought the car in 1990. Ever since then,
I've been a happy camper. But I've found the aftermarket styles to be very
lacking in quality.

I used to lose power a lot in my Spider due to trickle-down by the alarm
during the night. After a few weeks of not driving, I'd have to use my
battery tender to help start the car. I tried using the battery tender to
tether the battery when I wasn't driving (but that process got pretty
old). Then I had the idea of installing a kill switch on the battery
terminal. Even with a kill switch and the battery disconnected, I
lost two brand new 'aftermarket' gel batteries by leaving the car
(and battery) sitting in the garage for a couple months. Contrast
that with my track car, which has the Optima that used to be in my
Quattro. That car is driven once a month from February to November and
doesn't get much driving other than those times. I know I should protect
the battery by putting it on a tender, but I haven't gotten around to it.
My point is that I've not had any trouble with the genuine Optima battery.
Course, there's no radio ... LOL.

Seattle/Bellevue temps hover around the freezing point during winter, with
some weeks staying completely below freezing. It's not the same as
Minnesota.... but it is very wet and humid.

When I finally get my Spider running again, it will have a Genuine Optima
battery too. Gee, do I sound like a Poster Child?

That's my $0.01!

Tess