27F AGM battery option (1 Viewer)

[Dissent]

I have an 80 but this is all about the X2Power 27F battery so it counts.

I just purchased the Batteries Plus X2 27F online. I'm picking it up after work.
X2Power Premium AGM BCI Group 27F Car and Truck Battery P/N SLI27FAGMDP. There's a $20 mail in rebate and a 10% discount code I used; CDP10011.
It will be $333 after all discounts including the $18 core charge. I had a note to buy this battery from 6 months ago, it's gone up almost $50 in that time. I used to have a Diehard Platinum Marine 31M and it died after 1 year, hoping this AGM experience trumps that one!

Charging and Use Overview
I'm running a 2007 Sequoia alternator in my 80 so I'm hoping that it will maintain it properly. I have an ARB 50 fridge running full time and plug my truck into AC power at night and on weekends. AC power feeds the fridge and a CTEK AGM compatible charger. I run the fridge for 1-2 days camping and run a 12v electric blanket for 2x-3x 90 minute sessions per night. I charge it back up with a Renogy 100W solar panel and Morningstar PWM controller. I have only 1x battery and a rely on a NOCO jump pack for when the clouds prevent solar charging. My old wet battery (3 years old Sears Diehard Gold) made it Fri-Sun last months with all clouds and rain (no solar charging) and still started the truck with 11.3v. Not too shabby but it's not holding a charge like it used to.

 

[TheDan]

Im deployed and my wife didnt drive my cruiser enough to keep the mystery interstate battery from dying. She texted me when it failed to start today. I ordered a x2 brand 27f today. 370 w/tax (-18 for core charge)
The northstar version of the battery is 332 plus tax on amazon right now but id rather pay an extra few dollars for being able to warranty it without mailing it back if problems arise.
Thank you guys on the forum for the legwork on all the research and reviews that saved me alot of time/hassle.
Could be two weeks before it arrives in store f/ pick up though. Hoping sooner.

 

[trdcorolla]

Don't forget these AGM's need maintenance too. I charge mine every 3 months with a AGM compatible charger.

 

[bucfl]

OEM has a 84 month warranty. Mine was exchanged a year later no questions asked. Just in case you wanted to save some cash.

 

[jLB]

OEM has a 84 month warranty. Mine was exchanged a year later no questions asked. Just in case you wanted to save some cash.

I assume that you're talking about the TrueStart battery. Yes it is substantially cheaper. While it is true that it has an 84 month warranty, it is a 24 month "free" replacement warranty + 60 month pro-rated warranty:

https://www.toyota.com/toyota-owners-theme/pdf/03_Batteries2015_final[1].pdf​

Compared to a 60 month "free" replacement warranty on the X2:

SLI27FAGMDP - X2Power Premium AGM BCI Group 27F Car and Truck Battery at Batteries Plus Bulbs​

 

[SWUtah]

I assume that you're talking about the TrueStart battery. Yes it is substantially cheaper. While it is true that it has an 84 month warranty, it is a 24 month "free" replacement warranty + 60 month pro-rated warranty:

https://www.toyota.com/toyota-owners-theme/pdf/03_Batteries2015_final[1].pdf​

Compared to a 60 month "free" replacement warranty on the X2:

SLI27FAGMDP - X2Power Premium AGM BCI Group 27F Car and Truck Battery at Batteries Plus Bulbs​

You can buy 3 OEM’s for the price he is paying for that other battery . Just Saying. By the way happy Veterans Day and Semper Fi

 

[jLB]

You can buy 3 OEM’s for the price he is paying for that other battery . Just Saying. By the way happy Veterans Day and Semper Fi

True, but the OEM (or really just a Toyota branded battery, because that is not what came from the factory in mine) is not a "deep cycle" battery. If you are regularly discharging the battery, you might be able to justify the additional cost of the X2. If it's just a daily driver and you don't really abuse the battery, you might not be able to justify the additional cost.

 

[TheDan]

It is pretty pricy. I completely agree. I -currently- dont have any mods that will require the extra juice, however i do have plans within 2019 (some ridgid ind lights and a arb fridge) that i plan on doing.
I figure its better to have the truck ready to go with the extra juice, than to save $ now and then be unprepared with a regular batt. Also, the un-prorated warranty you speak of sounds pretty good.

 

[SWUtah]

That makes sense

 

[jLB]

Just before heading home for Thanksgiving, my kid finally killed his 27F X2 battery, after 3 years and 8.5 months. I won't say that he abused the battery, but he has exercised its deep cycle capabilities.

The local Batteries Plus (550 miles from home) was extremely pleasant to deal with, and was able to look up the receipt/sale by my phone number (the kid had "cleaned" the receipt out of his glovebox). They didn't have a 27F X2 in stock, but they did have a 24F X2 in stock that he could use until his new 27F arrives in the store.

None of the Sears "let us exercise/test it for 24 hours and we'll decide if it's covered" BS of the DHP.

I'm still pleased with the product, and pleased with how the store handled the warranty (the kid was just pleased that it cost him $0).

 

[TheDan]

Wow. So he will have a new (expensive) batt for free to use for another 4 yrs

 

[jLB]

Wow. So he will have a new (expensive) batt for free to use for another 4 yrs

Yes, although we might look into adding a 2nd battery for his "accessories" sometime over the summer, to try to extend the life of his primary battery.

I'm more impressed with the "no fuss" replacement/loaner, but as @SWUtah pointed out, it came at a price. The question is how many Toyota branded batteries would he have burned through, with his draining the battery flat antics, in the same amount of time? I suspect we're still at a net loss, but if we can get another 4-5 years out of the replacement battery, maybe not. I'm still happy with our choice, and grateful to @Hayes for pointing out the Batteries Plus X2 27F.

It was somewhat amusing, walking someone (who already knows everything) through removing/replacing a battery over FaceTime...

 

[dogdaysindurham]

I like the AGM batteries as they don’t leak acid if turned on their side and less likely to leak with a cracked case. Also you can get the Duracell Platinum agm line also availible from Batteries Plus. I believe these are rebadged Deka for about 200-220 bucks with a 4 year full replacement warranty.

 

[TheDan]

I heard good things about deka batteries in forums a long time ago on various other forums (not land cruiser related), at that time people had chased them down to napa nuto parts' top shelf batteries(which is currently not the situation). How current is the Duracell/batteries plus bulbs/deka info? And where from? (Not calling you out, but i got duped before following an old thread with outdated info--- nothing bad happened of it though as i had no problems with those aforementioned batteries)

 

[TXLX100]

I have a Duracell 31 AGM from Sam's club, no complaints. Think it was around $200.

 

[TheDan]

Battery came in today, it fits, and man its heavy too. Cleaned the engine bay and took the engine cover off.

 

[mrahc]

View attachment 1836109 Battery came in today, it fits, and man its heavy too. Cleaned the engine bay and took the engine cover off.

I'm gonna need a write up on how you cleaned that, holy cow. You could eat off the manifold (not sure why, but ya could I guess).

 

[TheDan]

I used a spray bottle filled with simple green mixed with a little bit of dollar store car wash. I then spritzed the engine compt with misting water (not strong AT ALL) and wet it down. Then take a brush you dont care about (like a old wheel brush) and scrub away softly. Repeat 2-3x.
After that take a full size bath towel you are saving for engine work or dog drying, and dry it down. On all the plastic surfaces i used 303 areospace protectant for the shine. Its not gummy when it dries at all and lasts a long while. We will see how long it lasts under the hood though.

 

[Fisher67]

The s***ty red top optima I bought in August finally stopped taking a charge and all Advance Auto parts would do is offer to give me a replacement. Went to Batteries Plus and bought the X2 Power AGM in 27F and it fit perfectly in my 2007. Not cheap but got 20% off by purchasing online and picking it up in the store. Use code CDP13175 through March 7th and save a bunch of money.

 

[jjdeneen918]

27F lead acid = $100
27F AGM = $300

unless your worried about being hundreds of miles away from civilization by yourself, I don’t see the need for the AGM.

You could just bring a jump pack to restart or cables & a buddies rig to get back to civilization.

I don’t wheel alone, or go days long drives from a town, so I can’t justify the added cost.

I currently have an AGM (dead, lasted 4-ish years), but don’t think I’ll shell out the extra coin for another.
I could replace the lead/acid every 3 years. Get 9 years of total battery life, for the same price.
As opposed to 4-ish with AGM & another $300 to replace.

YMMV, but that is my rational.