Hi Dean,
I am extremely impressed with the red top Optima battery... it's sealed
and tough so you should be able to avoid corrosion problems, takes and
holds charges beautifully. Bought one over a year ago (great price,
locally at an All Parts store, don't know if they are national) for
*eventual* use in my TR4, which is still in pieces all over the garage.
Put a charger on it after sitting for 8 months (yeah, I know)... it
barely took any charge at all! Recently swapped the same battery with
OEM in my L. Rover daily driver (as in, power everything, incl. dual
A/C) and it's working perfectly.
A friend has been using one in otherwise near stock TR4 (OEM generator)
for 2 years, no problems.
I would particularly recommend it if you are still running an original
spec generator. With so little charging going on, you'll have much more
reliability, especially if you ever have a "hard-starting" situation
requiring lots of cranking. (800 CCA, I think)
Downside is the expense, but I got mine for about $120. Try not to pay
to ship it, I think it's about 38 lbs. And, it looks entirely too high
tech under the hood of a TR4... several of us have discussed making a
dummy "Lucas black box" battery to sit the Optima inside!
Eventually, once my TR4 is back on the road, I guarantee you it will
have an Optima in it. Should I ever add more running lights or a winch
to the L. Rover, guarantee you it will have a *second* Optima installed
(haven't decided if it will be the red top, or the "deep cycle" yellow
top, depends on the accessories it's powering).
Recently I saw a custom billet aluminum battery tray and hold-down
specifically for the Optima.... hmmmm, would look good under the LR
hood... not the TR!
Alan Myers
San Jose, Calif.
'62 TR4 CT17602L
Dean_Mericas wrote:
>
> I know this has been discussed before, but I was unable to get concrete
> information from the archives.
>
> Now that I'm nearing completion of the reassembly, I need to get a new
> battery for the TR4. I've been considering one of the new technology
> batteries, such as the Exide Orbital or Optima products. The big appeal is
> long-life and no leakage. The down side of both these batteries is the
> cost: $125 - $175. I also investigated the Westco battery that's popular
> with the Miata crowd, but it seems sensitive to fast charging, and I'm
> afraid that my 35 year old charging system design may be too brutal.
>
> I'd like to get some feedback from folks with experiences with any of these
> designs in an early TR.
>
> Thanks.
>
> Dean Mericas
> 1965 TR4 (CT 37089 L)
> Ann Arbor, MI
--
Alan Myers
REALTOR
408 803-5550
reagntsj@ricochet.net
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