Article by:Glen Profile | E-Mail

Summary:

Why should you want to upgrade the battery in your Mustang? It seems to work "ok" and it's only a couple of years old! Well things are not always what they seem.

Problem Number One:

Corrosion creeps up the cables under the protective coating where you can't see it and causes extensive damage. In addition, corrosion is eating away at the bottom of the battery tray under the plastic. You don't know it's happening! This happened to me on my 94 Cobra after only 10K miles. The corrosion had eaten away the cables by almost a full 12" from the terminals and it cost me $75.00 to replace them.

Problem Number Two:

Regular Flooded batteries are ticking time bombs. I had fully restored a muscle car and I put a regular flooded battery from an auto parts store in it. I had less then 100 miles on the whole thing, when one hot afternoon I went to start it and I heard a muffled pop from under the hood. Needless to say the car did not start and when I checked under the hood, I discovered that the battery had exploded and battery acid was dripping all over my brand new engine compartment and my highly polished motor. Acting quickly I grabbed some baking soda and neutralized the acid. But no matter how hard I tried within days the paint and chrome was peeling. Think this is a rare occurrence? It's not! Batteries produce hydrogen and any spark could set it off. Luckily, I was not working under the hood.

Problem Number Three:

The life expectancy of an average battery is 2-4 years and there is never any warning when they go bad and will not start your car.

Solution:

I learned these things the hard way and I searched for a product that would solve these problems. After talking with several hot rodders, I discovered the Optima Battery. I talked with people that have had them in service for more then 10 years! From that point on, the first thing I would do to any project car is put an Optima Battery in. As it turned out, I ended up working in the battery industry and I can tell you that I have sold thousands of these batteries and it is by far the best battery you can get! This battery can be mounted upside down, dropped, and even cracked wide open and it will not leak a drop of acid. Zero corrosion on the terminals. Made with spiral wound technology, its separators hold all the acid against the plates (kind of like a saturated roll of paper towels). The battery cannot explode and will not sulfate. Its life expectancy is 3 to 5 times that of the best flooded batteries.

The Installation:

I installed an Optima Battery Model 35/75-925 in my 2000 Mustang. This particular model is new for Optima and it is much smaller and less expensive ($125.95 Street Price, cheaper then the previous model 800U ($139.95). It has 925 Cranking Amps (about 200 more then the factory battery). The battery will fit any year mustang following the simple hold down modification and install instructions below:

Details:

 

1. Remove the old battery and hold down.
2. Clean and neutralize the tray and terminals (baking soda and water).
3. Place the new Optima battery in the tray with terminals closest to engine.
4. Place the new hold down in the tray. New hold down is the 78 Optima adapter, ask for it when you order your Optima.
5. Mark where to drill the new hold down bolt hole in your tray.
6. Remove the hold down and battery.
7. Drill your hole with a 1/4" drill bit in the plastic and metal tray.
8. Put the battery and hold down in.
9. Insert a new 1/4" X 1.5" bolt & washer into the new hold down.
10. Tighten with a nut and washer on the underside.