Hey Folks,

I was curious as to what type/make battery you had in your 'Z'

Right now I have a regular lead acid battery in the 'Z'... after I drive the car and park back in the garage, I pull the battery, put it on the bench and hook up my smart charger to it to keep the battery charged... This get's to be a pain, BUT I'm worried about the acid boiling out, and getting all over the place in the engine bay if the charger goes wonky...

I also have a Red Top Optima that I have another smart charger in the garage, but it doesn't fit the factory battery hold down frame... I would prefer to switch to the sealed Optima that way I think I'm safer from battery acid getting all over the engine bay when it's hook-up to the charger.

I've never had a problem with a leaking battery... I'm I being paranoid??

thanks....

-Phil

A dead one at the moment!

Autozone Duralast gold 700 CCA. Works well.

I have a conventional battery with reversed posts (positive near the engine) and keep a maintainer on it most of the time. I've never had a leakage problem in all the 43+ years I've owned the car but have always had a good tray and drain tube under the battery. If a car is going to be stored/unused for a long period, pull the battery.

A dead one at the moment!

Hahaha...... Yeah been there, after I've forgotten (actually just lazy) to put the charger on the battery

The charger shouldn't cause any more leakage than the alternator in the car. The alternator can put out 60 amps if it needs to. Subtract out electrical load and you're still probably around 45-50 amps at normal driving speed, but only if the battery is discharged. Most chargers are in the 4 - 5 amp range I think. The voltages are about the same also, maybe higher for some alternator systems.

Lead acid from Auto Zone for last 4 years with reversed terminals. Still working fine.

What I discovered is that the charger I had wanted to overcharge causing acid to come out. I bought a battery tender and it doesn't overcharge the battery so it does not release acid. My thinking is that the battery tender has smarter voltage sensing so it does no harm.

On the battery itself, I found out that Costco sells their own brand of battery, but it is made by the same company and to the same specs as the Interstate, but at 2/3 the price. Good deal? Yes, I got one for my Subaru daily driver and have been pleased with the result and the savings. Next time the Zed needs a battery that's where I'm going. Currently on my Zed I use a "Battery Tender" on a NAPA brand lead-acid battery and have had no leakage or problems and it sits idle most of the winter. I do start it occasionally and let it warm up before shutting down. Never a problem, always full power.

Cheers, Mike

On the battery itself' date=' I found out that Costco sells their own brand of battery, but it is made by the same company and to the same specs as the Interstate, but at 2/3 the price. [/quote']

I needed a new battery for my '71 a couple weeks ago and went to Costco for that exact reason. I took my old battery in for a match and asked for a battery for a 1971 Datsun 240Z. First question was, "Who makes Datsun?". That was followed by, "Sorry, we don't carry or have a listing for that size battery, try the Interstate Battery store across the street.".

Instead, I went to Sam's Club and bought one off the rack for a reasonable price with a good warranty.

Dennis

Red Top in the White 72 - somewhere in this forum, I believe one person posted a diagram that shows how to build a custom top battery bracket for the Red Tops.

Interstate - in the Blue 72

Interstate Absorbed Glass Mat's {AGM} two of them in the BRE Z

All kept on battery tenders..

Important to note - that all of todays batteries have Posts that are no longer in the exact same position - as batteries from the 70's. The result is that the OEM Battery Hold Downs - now come very very closet to the terminals on the cables. I've had to wrap battery top hold down brackets with electrical tape - to assure that the positive terminals on the battery cables - don't come into contact with the bracket.

I bought a Firestone "FOREVER" battery in 1976… Firestone has been replacing it free of charge since then. They were lasting 3 to 4 years, when not kept on modern battery tenders. The last one lasted 7 years when kept on a battery tender. It was replaced by Firestone with an Interstate, which is what they now carry.

I say "battery tender" rather than "Battery Tender" because mine were made by Guest.. Battery Maintainer/Charger - charges at 3 amp if necessary. Otherwise it is a microprocessor controlled - Float Charger. It kicks on and charges when battery voltage drops to around 12.2 volts, kicks off when the charge is back up to 12.6. These Float Chargers keep your battery fully charged - and won't overcharge like the older Trickle Chargers could. There is no need to take the battery out of the car.

FWIW,

Carl B.

Optima Red Top

4 + years