OEM Battery VS Aftermarket?
 

hey guys, i cant seem to find the answer to the question:

Is there any benefits to using an OEM battery over an aftermarket one (or vise versa). Or will an aftermarket battery last as long or longer than OEM? i don't have any significant audio equipment yet, but i plan on putting in a sub down the road...

(sorry if this is in the wrong place for this question, i figured you guys would have the most experience in changing the battery.)

an aftermarket battery, depending on the one you buy can have a longer reserve, higher CCA, and be more durable. aftermarket is always the way to go.

i like using deep cycle on my hobby cars once the factory battery dies. aftermarket or not it really depends how you take care of the battery... like keep it on a manager while the car is not in use for a week or so... or if you do constant short distance driving... or, keeping a charger on the battery while you are tuning your stereo or working on electronics while the engine is off.

but for quick voltage regulation for stereos dont you usually want to use a capacitor?

The OEM battery, as usual, is overpriced crap. It's a 36 month battery that barely makes it that far.
I put an Optima in my 350z that I bought direct from Optima for $150, which was about $40+ less than Autozone for the same battery. It was a 5 year battery if I remember correctly.

Well, if you're going to go big on the audio (or whatever)... it's not the battery you should be concerned with. Unless of course, you plan on using said audio equipment while the engine is not running. In that case, then a deep cycle battery should be your first choice.

If you plan on using the new stereo while driving (perhaps), then you want to look at upgrading the alternator. A larger amperage model.

Good luck with that.

my G35C is a 2004 (im the original owner) and have not switched out the battery... i understand some can be defective out of the box, but most of my factory batteries lasted minimum 6yrs. out of the 20+ new cars ive owned only 2 had weak batteries that were replaced within 2yrs under warranty.

the trick has been to keep the battery well charged at all times and keep it away from super hot conditions.

as we speak im trying to revive an old yellow top i bought 8-9yrs ago that have not been charged... per optima, they commented that if i use a AGM compatible charger i should be able to get it up and running again. :D keeping my fingers crossed. it's been accepting a 0.75A charge since 4days ago... hoping for full charge by tomorrow (5 days). :p and will check cca.

yea not planning on going too crazy, single 10" sub in the spare tire well most likely... this all started because the stealership told me my battery is bad, which i didn't believe anyway, now he changed his story to you should change the battery before the winter... $160 for a 2 year battery is horrendous!

Im an Optima fan, they offer the Red, Blue, & Yellow top. Look into them, excellent batteries.

I've had a yellow top and it gives me a peace of mind that I won't need to add water or be stuck in a parking lot randomly

I'd have to agree with that.

I have a yellow top running my stereo system alone. 3 amps, 2 subs

Has anyone bought aftermarket batteries and replaced them? It's a stupid question since we've only had our cars since '09. Well, the OEM battery in my 370Z is probably one of the shortest lived batteries since I've owned a Z. It quit on me quick over the weekend and left me stranded. That's barely 3.5 years or so.

I don't know if I should get an aftermarket cheapie from AZ, O'Reilly's, etc. or step up to a gel battery. I read about Optimas, and the worse complaint I've seen is either the battery prematurely failing (due to old stock) or only lasting 3 years.

As for my audio system, I recently dropped the dual NINE.2 amps for a single tiny JL XD500. It was installed last week, but I have not had the chance to power it up before the battery died over the weekend.

I did a test to make sure there were no shorts, and the voltage measured 12.64 or so. Doesn't seem like a short.

Yellow top is definitely a good choice. When looking for a deep cycle battery, be sure to go with an AGM model over a Gel-cell.
AGM's are designed to accomodate rapid discharge, and re-charge, and If I'm not mistaken, you need a special regulator to charge a gel-cell.

Battery Options
 

I replaced the factory battery with a bosch battery that has more cranking amps/longer warranty for less money.

I'll look up the suggested batteries on my next purchase. I went for something lower priced than the dealer battery. Hope it lasts at least 3 years. I also found out the ground cable was loose. Wonder itf it contributes to the failure?

The main thing I don't like about the factory battery is that it is not a no-maintenance battery. Why in the world would they do that, yet one can't even check the A/T fluid? I'll be going with a no-maintenance battery when the factory unit fails.

There are also lightweight options like Braille batteries that can cut down a healthy amount of weight, while sacrificing a small amount of cca and charge capacity.

After being stranded twice over the weekend I prefer not to sacrifice CCA.

IMHO go for a AGM battery with a great warranty. It's more of a hassle to go through a niche AGM battery specifically designed for something like car audio in the event of a warranty issue. I've had Sears Diehard Platinums in all my car audio builds and have seen a SIGNIFICANT, tangible, non-biased improvement in every car I've put them in over wet cell batteries. I have seen a few optima batteries die or have problems at car meets.