How long show a battery last?

Please note:
I did not state that warranty length should be the only consideration.
I also stated that I was not knocking your product, I just commented on its short warranty when compared to most other battery suppliers. I still maintain that a warranty should have some relationship to the MTBF. If it doesnt, then the warranty will bite lots of manufacturers in the bum! Bosch, for example give a 5 year warranty. They would not offer that if they thought most of their batteries would fail after 2 years. I know peeps that have batteries last 8 or 9 years, but i wouldnt expect all batteries to do so. My question to you is "why do you only give a 2 year warranty, when others can offer up to 5 and most suppliers offer a minimum of 3?"

OptimaJim said:

The Mad Hat Man, if the length of warranty were the only consideration people made in making purchases, we'd all be driving Kias.

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Or hyundai's

The best warranty is the one you never need to use but if you want the extra year,reassuring consumers who may not have a great deal of confidence in the quali the YellowTop has it.

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Unfortunately the lack warranty period you offer can be seen as a lack of trust by YOURSELVES in your own product. Until companies like yourself offer a warranty that equals that given by even the crappest of manufacturers, people are gonna go and buy the kia's.

My landy starts first time every time and it doesn't have an optima battery. It runs stupid amounts of high powered electrical items (12000lb winch, 2500lb winch, 400w urn, 400w ceramic heater, lightbar, Jump sockets, 500w inverter etc) and also sits up not being used for long periods at a time (often 3-5 weeks). The tractor battery in it seems to be doing well considering it's now 4 years old and cost me all of £50.

The Mad Hat Man, all our automotive batteries come with three-year replacement warranties. It’s only our BlueTop marine batteries that come with two-year warranties. We’ve found that the average automotive battery life is about three years, so you could draw a connection to MTBF if you’d like.

Many automotive batteries can last eight or nine years and companies that have been producing (or at least selling) batteries for that long can probably give you many examples. We have stories of our batteries lasting more than twice as long as that, although that’s certainly not the norm. When companies are relatively-new to a market, they may try to lure customers with longer warranty periods, just to carve out market share or get their products into certain retailers. As I mentioned before, many of these warranties do come with exclusions and pro-ration in the fine print. Online and mail-order purchases often have to be shipped back to the retailer for warranty service, so it's a good idea to review warranty procedure before making any purchase.

At the end of the day, the goal is to find a battery that works when you need it. If you experience a battery failure in the middle of nowhere, no warranty will get you home any faster.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
www.facebook.com/optimabatteries

OptimaJim said:

The Mad Hat Man, all our automotive batteries come with three-year replacement warranties. It’s only our BlueTop marine batteries that come with two-year warranties. We’ve found that the average automotive battery life is about three years, so you could draw a connection to MTBF if you’d like.

Many automotive batteries can last eight or nine years and companies that have been producing (or at least selling) batteries for that long can probably give you many examples. We have stories of our batteries lasting more than twice as long as that, although that’s certainly not the norm. When companies are relatively-new to a market, they may try to lure customers with longer warranty periods, just to carve out market share or get their products into certain retailers. As I mentioned before, many of these warranties do come with exclusions and pro-ration in the fine print. Online and mail-order purchases often have to be shipped back to the retailer for warranty service, so it's a good idea to review warranty procedure before making any purchase.

At the end of the day, the goal is to find a battery that works when you need it. If you experience a battery failure in the middle of nowhere, no warranty will get you home any faster.

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That being the case why do your blue tops only have a 2 year warranty when you freely admit they are internally identical to your red and yellow tops except for the fact they have the additional connectors for accessories? Why also such a large price difference price difference?

OptimaJim said:

Hello, I noticed your conversation regarding our batteries and wanted to offer some assistance. D27M & D34M BlueTops are identical internally to their YellowTop counterparts (D27 & D34), while 34M Bluetops are identical internally to their RedTop (Group 34) counterparts. All BlueTops do offer additional threaded top posts for accessories and come with a two-year replacement warranties.

All YellowTops are considered "dual-purpose" batteries, suitable (and warrantied) for both starting and deep-cycle applications. They come with a three-year replacement warranty. In general, batteries designed for deep-cycle use will sacrifice some cranking power, in exchange for additional reserve capacity and deep-cycle capability.

The key to long battery life is making sure your battery always maintains at least 12.4 volts. If it is discharged below that level, recharging as soon as possible will help minimize sulfation, which diminishes battery performance and lifespan. If you have any other questions about our batteries, Please don't hesitate to ask.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
www.facebook.com/optimabatteries

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OptimaJim said:

The Mad Hat Man, all our automotive batteries come with three-year replacement warranties. It’s only our BlueTop marine batteries that come with two-year warranties. We’ve found that the average automotive battery life is about three years, so you could draw a connection to MTBF if you’d like.

Many automotive batteries can last eight or nine years and companies that have been producing (or at least selling) batteries for that long can probably give you many examples. We have stories of our batteries lasting more than twice as long as that, although that’s certainly not the norm. When companies are relatively-new to a market, they may try to lure customers with longer warranty periods, just to carve out market share or get their products into certain retailers. As I mentioned before, many of these warranties do come with exclusions and pro-ration in the fine print. Online and mail-order purchases often have to be shipped back to the retailer for warranty service, so it's a good idea to review warranty procedure before making any purchase.

At the end of the day, the goal is to find a battery that works when you need it. If you experience a battery failure in the middle of nowhere, no warranty will get you home any faster.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
[URL="http://www.facebook.com/optimabatteries"]www.facebook.com/optimabatteries[/URL]

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:welcome2:

I feel that it would be a well placed message of Love to members of this forum if you could secure us a fabulous rate for the purchase of Optima batteries.

In this way others may sample these batteries and see for themselves...

Also if you could source a cheap supplier for us (me) who are downunder!.... and technically i could test the upside mounting capabilities of these batteries....

James

Hi ratty, I don’t set warranty or pricing policy, so any reply to your questions would be pure speculation on my part. I will elevate your query and see if I can get an official response. I’m sure the additional threaded top posts do add some expense to the manufacturing process of BlueTops and I do know many boat owners do not make an effort to properly maintain their batteries, while in storage. Standard practice for many of the marinas near my home is to just disconnect the battery, without any concern for whether the battery is even properly-charged at the time of storage. As I mentioned before, allowing any battery to sit for extended periods of time in a partially-discharged state will decrease performance and lifespan.

James, my role on the Internet for Optima relates more to providing technical information and assistance. I can provide general information on authorized retailers, but I do not track pricing. When Optima does have special offers or promotions, we do announce them on our Facebook page.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
www.facebook.com/optimabatteries

me battery in me festa is 10 years old.Quite pleased with that really!!!

OptimaJim said:

Hi ratty, I don’t set warranty or pricing policy, so any reply to your questions would be pure speculation on my part. I will elevate your query and see if I can get an official response. I’m sure the additional threaded top posts do add some expense to the manufacturing process of BlueTops and I do know many boat owners do not make an effort to properly maintain their batteries, while in storage. Standard practice for many of the marinas near my home is to just disconnect the battery, without any concern for whether the battery is even properly-charged at the time of storage. As I mentioned before, allowing any battery to sit for extended periods of time in a partially-discharged state will decrease performance and lifespan.

James, my role on the Internet for Optima relates more to providing technical information and assistance. I can provide general information on authorized retailers, but I do not track pricing. When Optima does have special offers or promotions, we do announce them on our Facebook page.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
www.facebook.com/optimabatteries

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It would be good to know what those higher up have to say about the reason for the differences in price/warranty.

As you have said, there are plenty of people that have had their optima batteries exceed the warranty period by a long way. I expect there have also been a fair few who's batteries failed before the warranty period. The same can be said for any battery manufacturer.

There are plenty of twin terminal batteries out there and many of them are not much more expensive than a standard battery. They usually tend to be well known makes too and as such offer an equal or greater warranty period.

Like many others I tend to spend my money on items that offer a decent warranty. I've bought a cheap car battery with a 2 year warranty in the past. It lasted less than a year. The replacement lasted just over a year too. Since then I prefer to buy something with a 5 year warranty.

Until a company like optima extend there warranty to match those of other retailers they are always going to put off people like myself. This coupled with the higher price of the optima just gives more reason to go elsewhere. I work as a breakdown mechanic and most of the people I go out to would rather spend the extra £10 for a battery with a 5 year warranty over that of a battery with a 3 year warranty. I have no ties to any battery manufacturer or supplier and use whoever is closest/cheapest to me depending on where I am.

I hope optima do up their warranty period to match those given by it's competitors. Then I will be happy to spend my money on one of their batteries.

Hi ratty, I did get some further information on your questions. I think the pricing really comes down to your retailer. YellowTops and BlueTops are priced the same on Optima’s site and I’ve even come across sites that list BlueTops for less than YellowTops. While we offer twin terminal batteries in different sizes, only the BlueTops offer the threaded top post terminals, versus automotive-style side posts.

The warranty on BlueTops is less than YellowTops, because of the true deep-cycle nature of many of the BlueTop’s marine-based applications. The specific example given to me was trolling motor batteries, which are rarely charged when the engine is running and are often deeply-discharged down to 6 volts or less, before they are recharged. The fact that many marine batteries are not properly maintained while boats are in storage is also another consideration. As I mentioned before, if the warranty is a concern, YellowTops have three-year warranties in all BlueTop sizes but 31.

The people you assist with dead batteries still end up calling you, whether their warranty is three years or five years. If they’re willing to spend an extra £10 for a longer warranty, they might be willing to spend an extra £20 on a battery that doesn’t leave them stranded and needing to call you in the first place.

Jim McIlvaine
eCare Manager, OPTIMA Batteries, Inc.
www.facebook.com/optimabatteries

So I think it's been established that new batteries are in order - I think I'll take the opportunity to fit a second one as well. The next question is Odyssey or Optima?