Hope this is in the right place. I know everyone says optima red tops will fit in an MCS I have been running it for about a year and a half now. My question is more so about how high should it be sitting? mine sits high enough where the battery terminals are tearing away the foam on the bottom of the boot carpet (right term>?) The reason im asking is because I had a slight issue this morning where I went to start my car and all the lights went out (car was completely dead) When I opened the boot to take a look at the battery as I was removing my things that were sitting on top of the cover the car came back to life (dome light on etc) the car started with no issue (everything was reset though)
I've been running with the 34R red top for 3 years or so. I've not experienced what you have. My red top doesn't seem to be any higher than the oem battery.
Thats what I was wondering, i've been running it like this for a while and really just noticed it has been touching. I guess ill pull it out tonight and see if there is a way to drop it down a little more.
If you find that for some reason yours is going to be that high make sure & insulate the positive terminal well. Edit*** Just back from the garage. memory is a funny thing. My battery appears to be like yours. I'm wondering why you had the power drop? Could be you have a loose connection at the battery. Might want to check & clean them. Edit 2 *** The jump post under the bonnet has been know to get loose causing problems. Might as well check that too while your in a checking mood.
I will check that as well. I just found it odd how it just all of a sudden came back to life with me not doing anything really. The stuff I took out of the boot wasn't heavy, it was just my mountain biking gear... To insulate the positive connection should I just electrical tape the heck out of it? the cables looked good when I was in there this morning I just noticed all the foam shavings sitting on the terminals.
I am running my second 34R with no issues. There is a slight indentation where the posts hit, but no real damage.
I never did get around to playing with the terminals last night, Im still unpacking/fixing things in my house. However this morning my car started with no issues... until I pulled out of the garage it didn't stall but the radio turned off for a second and a bunch of lights flashed on the dash. I figured maybe it will start behaving I made it 200ft down my street it did the same thing just long enough for me to see a check engine light and the battery light blink on. I also noticed my scan gauge was still reading 13.8V. I turned around and went back home, I quickly loosened the jump terminal and tightened it back down (didn't seem loose but figured it couldn't hurt) I also removed the positive cable and snugged it down on the post as much as I could, I then wrapped it with electrical tape. After doing all this I didn't have anymore erratic behavior. But seeing how the issues appear to pop up after the car sits overnight I suppose I won't truly know until tomorrow morning.
I thought my 34R was too low! I stuck a hockey puck under the metal retaining strap to keep the battery in place because it was shorter than stock.
The strap isnt touching the top of mine. I actually need to get in there and do something similar as the battery can slide around a little. Also an update from this morning, The car started with no issues and I never had the light show either. It appears snugging up some connections may have done the trick. I will see how the next few days play out.
I put a spacer under the strap on mine too. If the battery is sliding around even a bit it could contribute to loose connections. Glad the snugging worked for you.
Well my battery decided to be a pain again today. Although this time every time I turned the wheel without reving the voltage would drop to 7V (and everything would blink off for a second). Once I got to work and turned my car off.. car acted completely dead as if the battery was gone. I decided to check the terminals as I was lifting the boot cover the car came back to life. Just as a safe measure I pulled the positive cable off and pushed it back down and really snugged it up. I turned the car back on and tried to reproduce the issue I was having a minute before. The car behaved well.. even with the wheel at full lock at idle I only saw as low as 10V. I am hoping this was just another loose connection but time will tell. My battery is still in warranty so I may get my friend to swap it out just to see. I should also add that I was lazy and only about a week ago I finally added some rolled up cardboard to the battery tie down to hold it in place. I am hoping that the terminal was just loose because of it sliding around prior to me snugging it up.
Sort of a thread jack, but here goes… I’ve been involved with Jeeps since 1998. For many years, Yellow Top Optimas were the ‘Go To’ battery for anyone that was in the market for a replacement battery. The Optimas were very dependable and handled the abuse of pounding around off road and of running a winch. My first Yellow Top lasted longer than eight years. Then, things changed. Many feel that the when Optima sold out and manufacturing was relocated to Mexico, their quality suffered. My second Yellow Top that was purchased after the relocation failed with a bit over three years on it – a sudden and total failure where it cranked without hesitation one start and was unable to turn the starter the next time. The battery would only take a partial charge and went back to flat as soon as subjected to a load. The new favorite in the Jeep world seems to be Sears DieHard Premium – Not cheap in the least, but reviews are very good. Should a replacement battery be needed, the Sears DieHard Premium might be worth a look… and no, I don’t work for Sears or a battery manufacturer
@AAONMS, i've actually heard from several people of the declining quality of Optima's before I bought mine I figured just dumb luck I guess. Then when I started having my issues I went straight for the battery. although my issue seems to be with the terminals getting loose i'm hoping this last round of tightening will be my last. but my car does rattle quite a bit (still suspension, engine mounts, etc) so I kinda doubt that.
I've heard the same thing about Optima batteries & declining quality. When I need another battery I'll buy another Optima Red Top, they have been good to me. jefster06 you may have to add checking the battery terminals to your regular maintenance checks.
I think you might be right on that one. guess I can add that into my normal routine for tire rotations, so they'll get checked every 5k.