URGENT! Jumping an optima red top battery..Is this a bad Idea
 

Not a mercedes but I left my lights on in my 1986 chevy 6.2l diesel today and have to go start it in about an hour. Ive already attempted and its to drained to start. it has two optima red top batteries. Is jumping these really that bad, or do I need to take em home and charge them all night? I dont want to hurt them, so fast input would be great...

thanks,
Zach

Ive jumped my box truck at least 100 times. Dont use cheap cables otherwise they will melt.

Just connect it to one battery, wait a few minutes, then crank.

Yeah, no reason not to jump the Optimas.

I've jumped Optimas many many times.

on the diesel truck with it's HUGE starter, don't just JUMP the optimas
connect BIG jumpercables, and CHARGE them for at least 30 minutes... otherwise you will kill your alternator, and likely not be able to start the truck anyway.

You have a bit of a point there. Most of the times I've "jumped" Optimas, I was using NATO slave cables, which are pretty beefy, and I almost always allow a few minutes charging time before attempting to start the dead vehicle.

You should have seen me and my friend trying to jump off my 300D (not an Optima) after I pulled it out of a year's storage last month. The cables were pretty small, and the current was provided by a Toyota MR2 which has a battery only a bit bigger than what you find in a Harley. It took a while.

According to their website, Optimas can take a 100A charge without any ill effects! ("unlimited amperage input" it's worded...) I charged mine with the charger in 100A "start" mode and it (amazingly) worked! 3 min from flat to full chg!

I stand back and wear safety glasses anyway.

FWIW I think MBs do not like Optimas. And Optimas are waaay overpriced, unless you need a battery that can mount upside down. their reserve capacity number is total bull****. I have been thru 3 (seperate) incidences where they die in only 10 to 15 minutes when rated for ninety. I put the stock gigantic MB battery in and drove the car 2 hrs and that's with a 10 yr old battery!

Isn't it worth it to fix the underlying cause rather than jump something a hundred times? :eek: :D ;)

He's a pretty good delivery guy, just forgetful... But I have thought about "fixing the problem" a few times :D

The "100 amp start mode" amperage isn't a problem, but the voltage might be, test it and you might find it pushing 17vdc or more with a light load.

Optimas have worked great on my 300D/TD/E320s. I have no complaint. I buy them from Autozone when they go out of date (1 year) for $35.00 as a "used battery".

I had no idea they did that! I just ordered one online for the boat and arrived 2 days ago.....darn! I thought I had a pretty good deal :(

Do you just go in and ask every once in a while?

Whenever I'm in there I ask if there are any used batteries. There were two "professional series" (Bosch I'm told) Group 49s there last week for $35/ea.

In my show truck I had a pair or the red tops, and I also have one in my 87. I would constantly have to jump the truck after a long day at the show due to running the show lights, stereo etc... no issue at all. (I had to do it so often that I made a quick connect to jump it like you see on race cars etc) The 87 I have jumped a few times, leaving the lights on by accident etc. (that damned switch for the rear dome lights on the dash gets me every time).. again... no issue.

Sorry this thread took a turn. I was at Advance Auto and all the used batteries are $35, except they wanted $60 for the small used Optima yellow top (didn't even know they sold used ones). Still a good price, but $35 would have been a steal. Thanks for the info!!!!!

Aren't used batteries typically returned because somebody else was having problems with them? ...