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Optima battery bad "again"

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by PriusGuy32, Jan 2, 2014.

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  1. PriusGuy32

    PriusGuy32 Prius Driver Extraordinaire

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    SO when I bought my Prius in Sept 2012, I replaced the ailing, occasionally down to 9.9 volts, original 12v battery with a yellow top optima from Advance Auto. (y)

    Got a bad one off the shelf, full of dust and a date stamp 10 months before the date I bought it. Wouldnt hold a charge past 12.1v.

    The replacement wasnt that much better, but I was happy with 12.2v and a newer (still sitting on the shelf for 7 months) date code.

    Well fast forward what - 14 months? And my yellow top Optima is going down to 11.6v. WTH.

    When I exchanged the first defective Optima, the 17 year old kid at Advance Auto gave me a really hard time - telling me 12.1v was "fully charged" "anything above 12.0v means the battery is GOOD". Does anybody get trained anymore or do they just spew anything they feel? Anyways I digress....

    I called Optima today, and just got a pre-recorded loop about their warranty (36 months) policy. I wanted to speak to a person to see if I could exchange the battery direct through Optima and NOT advance auto. Any suggestions?
     
    #1 PriusGuy32, Jan 2, 2014
  2. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    So when you saw that the voltage was so low, did you charge the new battery prior to installation? You should expect a fully-charged AGM battery to be at ~12.9V.

    If you didn't, then depending upon your driving patterns, the battery may have been operating in a partially discharged state much of the time which will shorten its service life.

    Even if you did fully charge the battery, if you don't log 12K miles or more per year, it would be good to periodically charge the battery to help extend its life.
     
    #2 Patrick Wong, Jan 2, 2014
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  3. PriusGuy32

    PriusGuy32 Prius Driver Extraordinaire

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    Thanks Patrick.

    Not only did I originally charge it, but I also periodically use a 1.5amp maintenance (read: float/trickle) charger.

    I also logged a tick under 21k miles in 1 years time.
     
    #3 PriusGuy32, Jan 2, 2014
  4. uart

    uart Senior Member

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    Hi Priusguy. What were the conditions under which you measured the 11.6 volts. Was it under no load/acc mode/ ignition on mode etc. Also, were you using the MFD diagnostic mode or measuring with an actual volt meter. Finally, what was the outside temperature prior to the measurements.
     
    #4 uart, Jan 3, 2014
  5. Flying White Dutchman

    Flying White Dutchman Senior Member

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    that can be your problen
    what kind of tricle charger
    you can damage your battery with a cheap trickle charger


    go for a C-tek. those stop charging when the battery is full and start again after the voltage drops to some degree.

    [​IMG]
     
    #5 Flying White Dutchman, Jan 3, 2014
  6. PriusGuy32

    PriusGuy32 Prius Driver Extraordinaire

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    Oh lord. The battery is bad guys. Its nothing I did- I knew it was exhibiting subpar performance when I bought it. :rolleyes: Buuut to answer your questions, I already use a "smart" charger. It does the different steps.. load/unload, desulfate, float, maintain blah blah blah. Its a Even after a successful charge, it will maybe go to 12.5v max and start decreasing over time with nothing hooked up to it. After a day or so in the Prius, when I use my DVM on the battery posts, it will be down in the 11.x volts range. Also, the battery is inside my Prius in our heated garage , which is currently set to 69f degrees.

    My real question is- is there anyway I return it through Optima? I would normally ask Optima this kind of question, but I called yesterday and just got a recording. I figured with all of the people here who use Optimas, and the reported problems Ive read about, has anybody used Optima directly for battery warranty replacment?
     
    #6 PriusGuy32, Jan 3, 2014
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  7. ski.dive

    ski.dive Active Member

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    You got a lemon . Take it back to Advance Auto, tell them your story.
     
    #7 ski.dive, Jan 3, 2014
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  8. CLUBGUY

    CLUBGUY Member

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    May wish to try...
    [email protected]

    explain you problem via email since you are unable to contact Optima by phone...
     
    #8 CLUBGUY, Jan 3, 2014
  9. PriusGuy32

    PriusGuy32 Prius Driver Extraordinaire

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    Thanks guys. :)

    My problem is Advance Auto Parts wants to "load test" the battery and of course, it passes. When they charged it in the past with their charger and it returned 12.1v, the kid states thats a GOOD battery :rolleyes: Thats why Im trying to contact Optima. I'd rather go through them for warranty exchange because to be quite honest - I seem to get the biggest dolts at the auto parts store. 12.1v is clearly NOT a fully charged healthy battery, especially when Optima states the resting charge of their yellow top should be 12.6-12.8v+.

    Not to mention, who knows how long the battery has been sitting on Advance Auto Parts shelf..... last time it was 10 months without any activity (charge cycles) and likely sulfated.
     
    #9 PriusGuy32, Jan 3, 2014
  10. Mike500

    Mike500 Senior Member

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    I've had AGM batteries killed by keeping them on the Battery Tender, Jr.

    Surprisingly, I've found the $5 (with coupon) battery maintainer to be one of the best deals out there.

    Battery Float Charger, Automatic


    The maximum output is not more than 13.2 volts, which means that it will NEVER "fry" the battery.
     
    #10 Mike500, Jan 3, 2014
  11. usnavystgc

    usnavystgc Die Hard DIYer and Ebike enthusiast.

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    Wow, I'm sorry your having this problem. Unfortunately, I don't have a good answer for you. That sucks.
     
    #11 usnavystgc, Jan 3, 2014
  12. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    The instructions for that charger clearly state "To prevent battery damage. Do not use on AGM batteries use for flooded lead acid batteries only". The Prius battery is an AGM.
    AGM batteries need to be float charged at 13.6 to 13.8 volts.

    John (Britprius)
     
    #12 Britprius, Jan 3, 2014
  13. css28

    css28 Senior Member

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    Whereas the Battery Tender Jr. specifically claims to be OK for AGM.

    Regarding Advance, maybe the staff has turned over since your first experience there. Can you return it through a different store?
     
    #13 css28, Jan 3, 2014
  14. PriusGuy32

    PriusGuy32 Prius Driver Extraordinaire

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    I hope the staff has turned over.... over and on to higher education! lol :D

    FWIW, OptimaJim - an Optima battery representative has chimed in these threads before and clearly stated that you should charge an Optima AGM like a regular wet cell. He stated that is isnt like other AGM's and to charge it like a regular ol' battery is best.
     
    #14 PriusGuy32, Jan 3, 2014
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  15. Mike500

    Mike500 Senior Member

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    I'll stick with regular batteries and replace them in a few years.

    A NEW battery is always better than a used one that is three (3) years old.

    I hate PRORATED BATTERY WARRANTIES beyond the full exchange period. To me, they are almost worthless.
     
    #15 Mike500, Jan 3, 2014
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  16. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    Optima state there batteries if trickle charged or left on charge indefinitely should be charged at a minimum of 13.8 volts.

    John (Britprius)
     
    #16 Britprius, Jan 3, 2014
  17. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    Perhaps we are fortunate in the UK/EU We rarely get prorated guarantees on anything. About the only things I can think of that does are tyres.

    John (Britprius)
     
    #17 Britprius, Jan 3, 2014
  18. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    How many more posts about brand new dead optima batteries are we gonna read before Toyota and Auto parts stores no longer reccomend Yellow top Optima batteries?They are total garbage batteries and the only reason they are popular in Prius is because the hybrid battery does all the heavy lifting in this car... I mean geez... You could take all your batteries out of your kid's toys and duct tape 'em all together and have it run your Prius better than a brand new yellowtop optima made by a company that fired their quality control department to increase profits.
     
    #18 PriusCamper, Jan 4, 2014
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  19. Frank06

    Frank06 Junior Member

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    DOES Toyota recommend them?

    Nexus 7 ? 2
     
    #19 Frank06, Jan 4, 2014
  20. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    No. Toyota would recommend buying replacement 12V batteries from its dealership parts departments.
     
    #20 Patrick Wong, Jan 4, 2014
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