AGM VS conventional wet cell battery

[88WhiteTurd]

Hi guys, so I'm getting ready to do a SAS on my 1988 Toyota pickup with a 22re and I want to address my battery situation. It's a traditional car battery and there is a bunch of corrosion coming out of the fill holes and spilling onto the fenders causing rust and I just hate it ( no performance issues tho ). Also knowing that my truck is going to be doing some cool shit I've heard that they can tend to spill on steep inclines and rough terrain. I'm also going to have a winch and lights so I'm not sure if that right there is going to warrant the upgrade. my questions being what do you guys run in your rigs, what do you recommend I do, and are AGM batteries worth it? and if you know about the 22re am I going to need to change the charging system in any way to accommodate an AGM battery, thanks )

 

[84Prerunner]

I don’t own a single wet cell battery lol. AGM in all my vehicles. Clean everything really well and you’ll get very little corrosion compared to a liquid lead acid battery. No NEED to change anything in the charging system. Slight higher charge voltage can prolong the life of the battery but not required.

 

[88WhiteTurd]

I don’t own a single wet cell battery lol. AGM in all my vehicles. Clean everything really well and you’ll get very little corrosion compared to a liquid lead acid battery. No NEED to change anything in the charging system. Slight higher charge voltage can prolong the life of the battery but not required.

sick thanks

 

[desert_steve]

Maybe its just been my experience, but optima AGMs are total garbage. JUNK. "Le-dog-sheet" as the french say (as theyre retreating).

Anyways, do some homework and theres a more readily available AGM group size that fits in the 34/78 "optima" hold-down that most people run.

 

[Exploder_M]

I have been debating for a while to switch over to an AGM battery. I have the stock size group 65 Napa legend lead acid battery that's going on 6 years strong. It's the maintenance-free flat top battery and it has not leaked acid out ever in the many desert miles I have put.

I do keep it on the battery tender when it is not driven and I have checked the acid levels a few times and they have not gone down. It is just hard to justify spending three times the amount of money on an AGM battery even though I have been heavily thinking of doing the swap.

 

[Mullen]

I’m going with a Costco AGM. $200-ish and plan to warranty it every other year for peace of mind. I’ve been running a Costco lead acid for years on the desert truck with zero issues.

 

[Exploder_M]

That 100% money back or refund from Costco just recently changed. I was talking to the guy about 4 months ago and they don't do that anymore because too many people were abusing it. He said now it's prorated, you might want to look into it and ask them about it.

 

[Mullen]

That 100% money back or refund from Costco just recently changed. I was talking to the guy about 4 months ago and they don't do that anymore because too many people were abusing it. He said now it's prorated, you might want to look into it and ask them about it.

Yes it’s prorated, I just did it with a battery for my other truck. Just after the one year mark was $40, a far cry from buying a new one and cheap insurance.

 

[85Yota]

Yeah i return my tralier and will do it for my camper battery every year to costco. Much rather pay small prorated amount than a full retail again.

My Ford I have Napa Legend AGM batteries. Never used them in the truck, since it'll never get done, but I'm put them in other vehicles I have and they worked great.

 

[zachwabbit]

Maybe its just been my experience, but optima AGMs are total garbage. JUNK. "Le-dog-sheet" as the french say (as theyre retreating).

Anyways, do some homework and theres a more readily available AGM group size that fits in the 34/78 "optima" hold-down that most people run.

Nope not just you, I went through two yellowtop optima’s on my old Bronco 2 in less than a year. I agree with you, optima’s are hot garbage.
Never had issues with the regular lead acid group 65 batteries in it before. Never had issues with lead acid 65s on any of my other Fords. Most of the ambulances I work on run lead acid 65s, and while it’s true that there are other factors at play with those rigs and their charging systems and constant electrical drains, lead acid is what my employer prefers to buy to keep our rigs on the road due to cost, reliability, etc.
Just to be clear though, I have nothing against non-optima branded agms, and our fleet at work has a few exceptions that run agm batteries like our newer explorers and transits, typically without issue for long periods of time.
From what it sounds like your plans are to wheel this rig hard, I don’t think you can go wrong with a good off the shelf agm from Costco like others have suggested, solely for the fact that if you roll or get into an off-camber situation, it won’t leak. Which could also be said for a sealed maintenance free lead acid battery, but those can still leak if damaged.

 

[Connorellisx]

Nope not just you, I went through two yellowtop optima’s on my old Bronco 2 in less than a year. I agree with you, optima’s are hot garbage.
Never had issues with the regular lead acid group 65 batteries in it before. Never had issues with lead acid 65s on any of my other Fords. Most of the ambulances I work on run lead acid 65s, and while it’s true that there are other factors at play with those rigs and their charging systems and constant electrical drains, lead acid is what my employer prefers to buy to keep our rigs on the road due to cost, reliability, etc.
Just to be clear though, I have nothing against non-optima branded agms, and our fleet at work has a few exceptions that run agm batteries like our newer explorers and transits, typically without issue for long periods of time.
From what it sounds like your plans are to wheel this rig hard, I don’t think you can go wrong with a good off the shelf agm from Costco like others have suggested, solely for the fact that if you roll or get into an off-camber situation, it won’t leak. Which could also be said for a sealed maintenance free lead acid battery, but those can still leak if damaged.

I also second this statement, I have had so many batteries for the years, and a lot of them just being Costco swaps. Optima is the first expensive battery I bought and the first to not make it to even its 3 year warranty requiring it to be replaced.
This seems like a common issue sense they moved their manufacturing out of the United States.
Worth noting that Odyssey battery’s are still made in the USA and I’ve heard people have a lot better luck with them. Almost every thing else is a china import these days for nearly the same cost.

 

[4xFoorOffroad]

II hear Walmart has a 5 year warranty on some of their AGM’s. Not sure if they’re prorated however. I think it’s only specific model / sizes - not all of them.