neuronbob

My OEM battery has given up the ghost at 50.8k miles. I had the car jumped this morning, but it won't start again. Have an out of town road trip coming up tomorrow. Need new battery, STAT!

My dealer is willing to install another OEM battery for $105 (installed). I say bunk to buying another crap battery. My local Sears has Optima yellow batteries. They don't have the 35/24 series required for our TLs and the Optima site doesn't even list an application for the TL.

What is the correct Optima yellow battery for the TL? If I can't find it today, I'l have to go with OEM for now and then buy an Optima online after my road trip.

Thanks in advance!

joed40

Try this.

http://www.batteriesplus.com/showpro...D=3763&typ=SLI

rimz

are yellow Optima batteries better than Interstate batteries? ...and yes, i'm asking this w/o searching first, so don't hate...

interstate batteries for 2004 TL...

vtec 6300

I work for Kragen Auto Parts (may be called Checkers/Schucks depending on your location) and you can get an Orbital battery ($135) and the size would be Group 78 or ORB78DT-84. Carries a 2-years free replacement from CSK Auto and has 900+ CCA.

pimpin-tl

Interstate Batteries makes the Optima Battery. FYI.

rimz

so interstate makes optima, but optima is priced a lot higher...is that their top battery or something...?

8014-045 OPTIMA 34-78 YELLOW TOP DEEP CYCLE BATTERY - $190

Interstate MTP-24F - Mega-Tron Plus - 85 Months - 800 CCA - $111

just curious for when it comes time to replace my battery....also, our TL lets us know when it's time to replace the battery, doesn't it? i think i remember reading that somewhere...

special-ed

this thread may help:
https://acurazine.com/forums/ramblings-12/mp3-list-129655/

red top and yellow top come in same sizes.

neuronbob

Thank you. You guys rock. The reason I asked was because many threads show people buying or pushing Optimas, but no one except Special-ed had actually installed one in their TL, so I wasn't sure of the size.

My local Sears has the Optima 34-78 Yellow battery for $187 (about the same as some online places). Will be picking up tonight.

joed40

Have a safe and productive road trip Bob!

Repecat

Interstate Batteries does not make any batteries. Johnson Controls manufactures batteries sold by Interstate as well as many Sears batteries.

Black_05_TL_6SP

The yellow top is a spiral cell battery while the Interstate is a standard cell battery. The Optima's can take bullet through them and continue to work. The cells are dry and the battery can be mounted any which way.

pimpin-tl

Well excuse me!

Interstate Battery System of America, Inc., informally known as Interstate Batteries, is a privately-owned company that markets automotive batteries manufactured by Johnson Controls through a system of local independent distributors. These distributors service dealers that mainly include car dealerships and repair shops. Recently, they've started to open "All Battery Centers" which sell batteries for different electronic and cordless devices as well as those for cars.

The company's current owner and chairman, Norm Miller, is a born-again Christian who promotes biblical values. Miller, along with fellow Texan Tom McRae, is a cofounder of the annual Great Race for antique vehicles; and Interstate Batteries remains a primary sponsor of the event. Interstate Batteries is also a cosponsor for Joe Gibbs Racing car #18.

Interstate Batteries is based in Dallas, Texas.

special-ed

hey neuron, since you're in OH, you might want to consider the red top since if memory serves me right, it'll give you a little more juice for cold cranking amps.

Yellow top is good if you really plan on stacking a few extra amps in the trunk to power your "boomin' system."

KatyTL

Okay so I just had to replace tires and with the help of a good friend made it thru the purchase without loosing my mind. I need a little schooling on batteries PLEASE. What is the best kind for our car? Why is the OEM not good? Where can I get the best battery for my car? What size battery do I need? I don't need one yet - but could I buy it to have it on hand? Help. Thanks Brooke

neuronbob

I'm at the dealer now. the 34-78 Yellow Top does not fit. I ended up purchasing a battery from my dealer--they happen to carry Interstate, and had the MTP-24F in stock for $110...similar to what it costs online. I didn't notice it was posted in this thread until I came back to post. Not a bad price from the dealer.....so the Optima goes back to Sears tonight.

Just an FYI...stock Acura battery for the 3G TL is a size 35/24 and has 550 CCA, as I just learned from my service rep. It was apparently enough to get me through three winters, but 800 CCA gives me extra peace of mind.

The Yellow top has 750 CCA, so it's plenty, but you're right about the Red top. Unfortunately, I needed something today and the Red just wasn't available.

It's not that the OEM battery is "not good", though some people have noted battery difficulty in recent vintage 3G TLs. My battery lasted over 50k miles (2 3/4 years), so I'm not complaining that much. I WOULD be complaining if, like in another recent thread, my battery died six months into ownership.

Thanks again, all!

special-ed

wow, surpised the 34/78 yellow top didn't fit especially since my 34/78 redtop fit with no problems at all??

neuronbob

Even though the binding posts were on the top, there was an issue with their location on the top.

pimpin-tl

Sometimes you have to strech the cables to make the Optimas fit. They aren't plug and play.

neuronbob

The dealer's mechanics apparently didn't know how to do that.

The issue is the location of the battery posts. The stock has the negative terminal on the opposite side from the Optima, and are closer together. The mechanic said he couldn't stretch the wiring far enough. Hard to believe. Thinking about it after the fact, it would have been a simple matter of turning the battery around. Duh.

pimpin-tl

Right, Battery around then making them stretch a little.

CobraGuy

Yellow top is a deep cycle and more for marine use. If you have a lot of extra stereo stuff, etc, it might not be too bad of an idea to use that. Otherwise, red tops are best for automotive use. Get the Optima mounting kit while you're there.

But I just replaced the battery in my wife's Aviator last week. I decided to go with a Die Hard with a full 3 year replacement warranty. It was still $100...but cheaper than the Optima. The deciding factor for me was it's tough to get a battery to perform up to specs after about 2 years here in the desert. I was told this can hold true for the Optima too. This heat just kills batteries, tires, and brakes. If I'm going to have to replace it in 2 or 3 years anyway, the Die Hard just made more sense. Besides...it was a factory fit where the Optima would have had to be jury rigged.

Black_05_TL_6SP

Actually no, the yellow is not a marine deep cycle, the blue tops are the marine deep cycles. The yellow top is for standard car use and offers a higher CCA and larger battery capacity. It is a beefed up red top. I have used both the Red and Yellow top batteries and love them. I want a blue top for the TL, but not to keen on the lower CCA of the marine style battery.

The spiral cell battery will handle a drain better then a standard battery, but with any lead acid battery, it will still damage the battery. The red top I had in my Prelude took a beating, and held up nicely. The other thing about the optima is the fact that you dont have to worry about the cell ever breaking loose due to vibration. As said before, this battery can also be mounted in the trunk at any angle, and they are also available in the 51r style needed for the supercharger guys.

Rexorg

50,800 miles is good for any battery. Honda/Acura does not make their own batteries. I think they are supplied by GM.

pimpin-tl

The yellow top has less CCA than the Red Top. For automotive use the RED top is still better. Yellow top if you have big stereo equipment.

The RED is only around $120-130 at O'Reileys or Advance Autoparts. It also comes with a 3 year full replacement warranty and something like 7-8 year prorated. It has the best warranty in the market and will out last a plain old Die Hard even in the Summer heat of Arizona.

chill_dog

The dealer wanted to sell you a battery . Have a safe road trip!

Black_05_TL_6SP

Your right, the redtop does offer more CCA, and the Yellow is a Deep cycle for Hydrolics, stereos and high load equipment. Here is a quick reference for the 2.

special-ed

is there an echo in here?

neuronbob

Posting from the road....

Duh! But at least it was a pretty good battery and we cut a deal--those batteries are more expensive elsewhere locally.

They tried to offer me a stock TL battery (they are made by Delco) for the same price. I said "NO!" and asked what other brands they carried. They carried a couple others, as it turned out. I chose the Interstate and we haggled--I used their free wifi to price the battery online! hehehehehehe.

If I hadn't had a road trip coming up, I would have just changed the battery myself. The main reason I went to the dealer was because I needed an oil change prior to this 3k mile + trip...

Once I get to Colorado, I would like to submit this thread for the Garage--I looked for lots of info here about the Optima batteries and couldn't find everything. It's now all in this thread......I love this place, you all rock!

MR1

Glad you got it kinda worked out. Just curious what are you communicating with, laptop, tablet, smartphone? Hope this is a vacation and a good one.

neuronbob

Nope, laptop with free hotel wifi.

Yup, it's a well-deserved vacation......taking the new baby to meet his other set of grandparents in Colorado....

A_UFO

I need the cliff notes version of this thread. So what battery size of Optima Yellow and Red top battery can replace the OEM battery size of 24F?

mn2trance

My battery had crapped out on me this afternoon after owning the car for 14 months with 24,176 miles on it, and not an issue yesterday. After getting a jump from Acura TLC, I drove to AutoZone to get an Optima Red Top battery. It took me ages to get the damn terminals to connect. Finally, I took off the battery tray and was able to stretch the positive terminal to the battery and all is good now. I had posted this earlier in Problems & Fixes.

CobraGuy

Whew! For a second there, I thought I was going nuts! I swear I had just read where the yellow top was a deeper cycle battery!

By the way, Costco has excellent prices on Optima batteries. They always seem to be out of red tops though. But I think the red top goes for just over $100 IIRC and $145 for the yellow top.

rodneyc77

iTrader: (1)

I personally have the Optima Yellow Top D75/25 ($134). It fit like a glove in the 3G TL. I purchased it from bigtimebattery.com (great service and fast shipment).

Kracker

I just installed a 34R Optima battery.

I just had to move the battery a tad more toward the ground to make it reach.

http://store.summitracing.com/partde...5&autoview=sku

cvosburgh

My battery died and left me stranded this weekend (05 TL Auto, 18 months, 19K miles).

I will definitely look to upgrade very soon.

It is amazing and also confusing to me that the Info Display can provide a warning for when the tire air pressure is low, or the gas cap is open, but there is no warning for low bat.?

I got a tow from Acura Roadside, they were pretty good in the sense that they stay in touch with you, ie "Tow Truck will arrive in 90 minutes", and it did exactly that, and they called to confirm again again and again.

Never-the-less, a battery should be able to last longer than 18 months. When I was at my dealer they were like "We know....from all the 04's that have come..."

Until I upgrade this OEM I will have to open the hood every month to look for the little green light indicator I guess. It is better than getting stranded.

frenchnew

Just to add some information to this thread.

Batteries life is deeply shorthened when exposed to high temperatures (95 deg F and more).

It does not need to be 95 deg outside for this to occur as you drive around the engine heat is dissipated but when you park you car and shut off the engine, all the heat from the engine has nowhere to go and heat the engine bay compartment.

There are 2 things that car battery manufacurers and dealers love. Extreme cold weather and Hot Scorching weather. Those are the 2 most prevalent times when a car battery will go south!

Some car manufacurers even when to the extent of having insulating battery blankets installed at the facory to minimize warranty replacement.


best regards

frenchnew

Bob289

I know this is a late post but i have to throw in my 2 cents. Ive have dealed with red, yellow, and blue top optima batteries. They are all pretty good. Ive have used them in mostly in generators and aircraft support equipment. Way better than an standard lead-acid battery.

1. You never have to worry about the battery drying out on you ( you have to make sure the battery has enough liquid ).
2. Sealed so you dont have to worry about spilling
3. Holds a better charge longer
4. High CCA's
5. Even you end up with a dead optima most places will give you cash back for returning an dead one back in.
6. When you end up with an dead optima its very easy to recharge the battery up "near brand new" status still holding a good charge.

So if you want a good battery I would recommend shelling some extra bucks for an optima. Never used it myself on my cars only because everytime I need a new one they are never in stock >_<.

acura911

hey what's up so i need help what is the right part number for the yellow top battery?please help thanks

Inaccurate

If you mean "Optima Model 51 Deep Cycle Yellow Top"... The 51 has been DISCONTINUED. I was some upset when I discovered that it was discontinued. It would had made a great weight-saving mod.