I'm looking into buying a new battery, trying to stick my "nothing but the best of the best"plan for my truck. So far from the search bar I found out weed and hammer prolly wouldn't buy one.. Is it worth the 160$? I have about a 600RMS sound system and more led lights than grizwalds Christmas tree, I no them don't take much juice but I like to leave them on quite a bit.

 

I had terrible luck with optima's in my sports car. They have high failure rates and are overpriced. I wouldnt buy one ever again. My sports car killed 3 of them. I switched to a standard lead-acid battery on it and it was good for like 5 years after that.

 

Seven or eight years ago they were fantastic, but since Johnson Controls bought them, closed the US plant and farmed out to Mexico they are crap!

The yellow top dominated the winch crowd five years ago, now you never see them and everybody has a story to tell how they failed either just before or just after the warranty was up.

The higher end Die Hards are still made here and are tough to beat...

 

Weed and Hammer are probably the two most respected authorities on the board for taking this truck (and other vehicles) apart and putting it back together. Not saying that they are the only ones that know anything or that either one knows everything, by any means, but when either of those guys talk, many of us listen. There's a reason for that.

 

Yup,

What Chet said

 

I just buy mine from Advance Auto. Their Gold series has a 3yr replacement. They are right down t road from me. I buy online using coupon codes that can be found through online searches and get anywhere from $15-50 off on my purchases. So, I buy online and pick up in store. My last 2 batteries only cost me $90 for 65-2 family(large)

I went through 2 Redtops in my Mustang 5yrs ago. Yellertop heldup good, but had to keep trickle charger on it at all times. Autozone's battery is beefy and fairly cheap too. Stay away from Walmart batteries, you CANNOT return them even if they haven't ben used, plus, they dont have online coupon codes like Advance does.

 

If you're worried about powering all your light accessories than you can almost buy two Duralast from Autozone for the price of one Optima. I have recently purchased two Duralast Golds and have not had any issues or concerns.

 

Your alternator needs to keep up on your current draw, so double batteries isn't the best solution per say, especially if your constantly draining them. 2-batteries are good for reserve power for occasional use items such as a winch or plow.
Typically, high current demand items draw power 10x's as quick as the battery can be replenished. Double batteries might mask the issue, but is not really the solution for a High demand stereo or for lights that are on consistently.
Also, an upgraded alternator needs upgraded wiring to support the increase current to be useful. With that said, when I unhook my Batcap 300, my lights do not dim...ever. I have a True 1800wRMS system.

If you want true power of what an amplifier draws, throw away the manufacturers specs unless it's a reputable company like JL or RF. Not many brand list actual power, but waaaay over inflated power. Watts = Volts X Current, so add up your fuses on the side of the amp and multiply that by 14.4v. This is maximum watts. Your amp will NEVER provide this amount of power. The fuses are higher than what the amp will run at or will pop all the time. Plus, your amp isn't more than 80% efficient, even for most Class-D amps. Class A/B are only 70%. So, take that Max figure and multply it by .8 for 80% if it's a Class D. This is the max your speakers will see. Take the max your speakers will see and multiply it by .7 and that is your TRUE RMS.

Anyways, add up your Fuse Amperage and this is the max your amp will draw. The Ram 160A alternator can support 100A easily for an added stereo amp. I have 190A of stero equip draining my system when at full volume. While this is over the output of the alternator, the battery does get depleted if I had it running at full volume all the time, which at that kind of power, you'd go deaf. I'd have to scream to you sitting in the front seat before you could make out what I was saying. This isn't a practical situation, so at moderate volumes, I've tested the system to be draining between 70-80A at all times at moderate volumes with a Max fuse rating of 190A.

 

I bought a yaller top about three years ago to be a combo 2nd battery in the truck and alternate use for the trolling motor in my little 10' Bass/Hunter boat. Didn't get two years out of it. I've since bought a Duracell combo marine cranking/deep cycle and although it's only been in use for a little less than a year I can tell it's still providing just as long with the trolling motor as it did the day I got it. With the Optima, I could already tell it had less "juice" after three months.
I paid $89 for the Duracell at Sam's Club, 625 CCA, 200 min rated at 25 amp draw. They had a bigger dual purpose one for $119 I think was 750 CCA but it was too heavy to be swapping out between the truck & boat and be lugging all around...

BTW if you are thinking dual batteries, you should have an isolator. I have a Stinger I only paid $60 shipped for on Amazon. I've seen the same model on ebay for around $45 + shipping...

 

Optima batteries are a gell battery. They can be mounted upside down and sideways, any angle you want to mount it. They also aren't suppose to blow up, short and acid battery and have it pop in your face and see if you don't regret paying that $160. I have a yellow top in my Ram that's like 4-5yrs old and still going strong. I can pull it out and let it sit on the concrete for several months and it'll be ready to go when I need it. The newer ones aren't as good but I have a red top in my drag truck and it's been great too.