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TR2/3/3A Replacement Battery for '60 TR3A

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croz

croz

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Greetings from Calgary. I'm nearing the end of a four year restoration and am searching for a replacement 12V battery. I have converted the car to negative ground and installed an altenator. I am considering an Optima Red Top but would prefer the look of a black sealed unit. I did search the archive and did not find anything. Any suggestions?
Cheers,
Steve
 
Welcome to posting here... Though it looks as though you may have been lurking for a while...

I'll just vote for the Optima. Mine has been trouble free for 15K miles, or so. And CLEAN!
 
The position of the battery in the 4-cylinder TRs is so prominent it becomes a focal point of the engine bay's appearance and (IMO) worth thinking about.

I use a plain jane Group 24 battery (from Wal*Mart, et al), replace the labels with some faux-Lucas and use a set of old battery caps in place of the 3-hole plate/plugs that come with the new battery.

Battery.jpg


Unless the battery is over-filled or over-charged I see no reason why it would be a problem compared to an AGM or other sealed battery.
 
Thanks for the replies.
I have been a member for quite a while. The cars were taking care of themselves so I sort of forgot about this site.
I have a red top Optima in my '74 911 Coupe - great battery.
With all the nice new metal, I'm fixated on a sealed unit.
Steve
 
croz said:
Greetings from Calgary. I'm nearing the end of a four year restoration and am searching for a replacement 12V battery. I have converted the car to negative ground and installed an altenator. I am considering an Optima Red Top but would prefer the look of a black sealed unit. I did search the archive and did not find anything. Any suggestions?
Cheers,
Steve
Click to expand...

Steve: I am very happy with our Lucas Optima. I you do decide on an Optima, be sure to get the smart charger by CTEK. They're not inexpensive, but the battery is also a significant investment and needs to be reliable!

Lucas_Optima_DSC06742_zpsccadda32.jpg
 
Frank-

Clever camouflage! Did you paint the top on that? Ones I've seen have yellow caps..

Randy
 
Steve,

Nice avatar. We had that poster hanging in our old house. :smile:

Scott
 
Well we're going to have to chat about that one when I see you. We have ways of making people talk here in Texas :smile:
 
It looks like an Optima inside a Lucas case -- can't recall the name of the gal who does these but I have seen a few like Franks's. That is really the primo solution if you can spare the $$$.
 
CinneaghTR said:
angelfj said:
TR4nut said:
Frank-

Clever camouflage! Did you paint the top on that? Ones I've seen have yellow caps..

Randy
Click to expand...

No, always black.
Click to expand...

Is it a Tar Topper?
Click to expand...

Not sure what you mean by Tar Topper, but here are the details from the original receipt:

Antique Auto Battery
2320 Old Mill Road
Hudson, OH 44236
(800) 426-7580
https://antiqueautobattery.com/

I have the maintenance free model which is actually and Optima inside.

Product ID:
Triumph 1950-68
G27L/B 12x6.75x9 850 CCA
 
The avatar reflects how we feel some days - a sitting duck!
Your "LUCAS" is a terrific idea. Great website.
I settled for an all black maintenance free DieHard (Gold 24F/50624). It will have the posts towards the firewall. I can remove the usual commercial stickers and add the Lucas banner. It should look and perform well.
I have been using the CTEK charger for a couple of years now with excellent results. I actually heard about it on this site. I got 9 years out of a DieHard in my ’74 TR6 (sold this spring).
Please check our Clubs website at: https://www.vsccc.ca/
Thanks for all your comments and advice.
 
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