Agm or Lead Acid? Whats everyones favorite?

52172

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 5, 2007
Location
Buellton, Ca
TDI
2001 Golf TDI GLS
Looking at Interstate or Odyssey or Bosch even DieHard or the walmart brand. Want a very high quality battery that will last. I think AGM is the way to go?
 

csstevej

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 12, 2004
Location
north nj
TDI
2001 golf tdi 4 door auto now a manual, mine, 2000 golf 2 door M/T son's,daughters 98 NB non-TDI 2.0, 2003 TDI NB for next daughter, head repaired and on road,gluten for punishment got another tdi 2001NB,another yellow tdi NB
I usually get the Wally World battery ….they seem to last…..I usually get a good 5 years out of them….sometimes I’ll get 7.
This is over 6 cars in the house hold.
 

irvingj

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 28, 2006
Location
Etna,NH
TDI
2005 Jetta Wagon TDI (PD/BEW)
I've been using NAPA Legend series VRFLA. On my second one now; first lasted about the same as OEM, 8 years +/-.
 

Zak99b5

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 30, 2021
Location
Albany NY
TDI
2003 Jetta TDI
FLA, as repeatedly said above. AGM also has a different charging profile than flooded, and your car is designed to charge an FLA. An AGM would work, of course, but the charging wouldn’t be ideal—possibly shortening battery life. And as also stated above, your car really won’t make any use out of the benefits of an AGM battery anyway.
 

Lug_Nut

TDIClub Enthusiast, Pre-Forum Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 20, 1998
Location
Sterling, Massachusetts. USA
TDI
idi: 1988 Bolens DGT1700H, the other oil burner: 1967 Saab Sonett II two stroke
Aren't AGM, (Absorbent Glass Mat), VRLA (Valve Regulated Lead Acid), 'flooded' and gel (silica instead of a mat) all using lead plates and sulfuric acid as the electrolyte?
It comes down to simply a purchase cost issue.
 

JDSwan87

Black Swamp Thing
Joined
Feb 9, 2014
Location
Michigan near Toledo
TDI
2001 Jetta TDI, 5 speed Lagoon Blue Metallic(sold); 2005 Jetta TDI Wagon auto
Napa Gold group 94R, lead acid. I put a Napa AGM battery in my BEW and it only lasted 4 years. The previous Napa Gold lead acid is still going strong 7 years from new (I moved it into my fourwheeler).

I run all Napa Gold batteries in my vehicles, Deka makes them for Napa.
 

jettawreck

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 2, 2004
Location
Northern Minnesota-55744
TDI
2001 Jetta and 2003 Jetta
Aren't AGM, (Absorbent Glass Mat), VRLA (Valve Regulated Lead Acid), 'flooded' and gel (silica instead of a mat) all using lead plates and sulfuric acid as the electrolyte?
It comes down to simply a purchase cost issue.
Yes, AGM are simply flooded lead acid with fiberglass mats between the plates to help with durability from vibration was the take I got from them. I've used them in motorcycles, snowmobiles, ATVs. Never found them to last any longer but they are typically "sealed" so no leakage.
I wouldn't pay any extra to put one in a passenger vehicle.
 

Ragdude

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 18, 2021
Location
Phx
TDI
2015 VW Golf SEL TDi
I believe Costco only carries Interstate AGM , Costco has such an awesome return policy and batteries generally only last maybe 3 years here with our heat , thats why I buy them.
 

Abacus

That helpful B4 guy
Joined
Nov 10, 2007
Location
Relocated from Maine to Dewey, AZ
TDI
Only the B4V left
I buy AGM for the TDI’s because they are the largest I can get to fit in the space. They normally last longer for me than Wal-Mart or other batteries, which had to be replaced a lot more often. Don’t bother with Optima, they’re junk now and I had one die a very early death. The AGM/LA is probably preference but I prefer AGM.
 

pruzink

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 25, 2004
Location
Granbury, Texas
TDI
GLS, 2004, silver
I would suggest staying with a basic lead/acid battery purchased locally. Buy the battery with the best warranty & be certain to save your receipt in the glove compartment. I purchased two Odyssey batteries from on line websites. I was very pleased with the life of the 1st battery which is why I purchased the 2nd. The 2nd battery failed after about three years, I contacted the seller and was told that I would have to ship it back to them so they could determine why it failed & if they determined the cause to be something wrong with the battery, they would pro-rate a replacement (batteries are rather expensive to ship). I live in Texas, the heat is hard on battery life. When you buy a battery from a car parts store & it fails you just bring it in & they typically replace it with no questions.
 

PakProtector

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 5, 2014
Location
AnnArbor, MI
TDI
Mk.4's and the Cummins
I have the NAPA flooded H8's in mine. They are not to 'spensive and they seem to last quite well as long as you don't ventilate their cells in an accident.

Douglas
 

52172

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 5, 2007
Location
Buellton, Ca
TDI
2001 Golf TDI GLS
I currently have an h6 group 48 Interstate. I think im going to buy another h6 group 48 Odyssey from FCP euro as it is covered under its lifetime warranty. Ill send it back once it fails after buying a new one for a full refund. Probably not thar cheap to send back, but better than buying another battery at full price? Are all h6 group 48 batteries the same size? Anyone else fit a h6 group 48 in their mk4?
 

52172

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 5, 2007
Location
Buellton, Ca
TDI
2001 Golf TDI GLS
Looks like its about 100 bucks to ship 45lb battery cross country. Still better than spending 225 on a battery
 

Judson

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 18, 2001
Location
Cheyenne, WY
TDI
2001 Jetta
I think Project Farm on youtube did extensive testing of batteries. Damned if I remember the outcome. Anyway I overspend on agm batteries from the local batteries+ store. They work for me.
 

ducatipaso

Airhead Butcher
Joined
Nov 17, 2001
Location
norcal
TDI
2002 Jetta TDI
I have a bosch AGM in my TDI - it's great. I admit I get a discount, so the price difference was worth it to me.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
I'm surprised that no one has suggested this so I will: Buy one at your local VW dealer. I've had great luck with VW's batteries. The older ones (Varta) easily last 8+ years, and the newer ones (I forget who makes them) seem good, too. Pricing is competitive and you don't have to ship it.
 

P2B

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 11, 2006
Location
Toronto & Muskoka, Canada
TDI
2002 Jetta, 2003 Jetta, 2003 Jetta Wagon
The OE Varta batteries in our MK4s lasted 10 and 12 years respectively, but unfortunately replacements were not available.

The newer dealer batteries are made by Enertec. The first one I got wouldn't start the car the on the first -25c morning it encountered, less than 6 months old. The replacement made it through it's first winter then failed the following winter.

That's when I gave up on dealer batteries and switched to AGMs from Canadian Tire. The oldest one l have is on it's 5th winter and still going strong. They go on sale a couple of times a year for not much more than the dealer, but regular price is pretty $pendy.
 

hskrdu

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 17, 2003
Location
Maryland and New England
TDI
2003 Golf GLS 4D 5M, 2015 GSW SE 6M
Replaced both the batteries in our Mk7's from the dealer in 2022: One was Varta, made in Germany, the other was Enertec, made in Mexico. Used the "parts specials" coupon on the dealer websites for $20 off each time.
 

shift957

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 22, 2015
Location
Asheboro, North Carolina
TDI
'02 Jetta
Go to YouTube and check out Project Farm channel. He did a pretty good test on many batteries, noting that some are made in the same factory, look and have identical specs, yet are priced differently. I believe the Walmart battery did well overall.

In my experience, I bought 3 large agm batteries from Advance Auto when they sold Auto Craft batteries. 2 for my diesel e350 van and one for the TDI Jetta. Unfortunately, they were all junk and failed between 1 and 3 years. Some were replaced under warranty while others died just out of date. Advance Auto has since switched back to Die Hard batteries. So I now have Die Hard Gold (lead acid) in both vehicles. No issues for the last 3 years.

Had I seen the project farm video prior to my latest battery purchases, I probably would have tried a Walmart battery.
 

wonneber

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 12, 2011
Location
Monroe, NY, USA
TDI
2014 Jetta Sportwagon,2003 Jetta 261K Sold but not forgotten
I've had good luck with Die Hard batteries.
I only recall one going bad under warranty.
Got mine from Advance Auto (mentioned above)
Just my 2 cents (US)
 

PakProtector

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 5, 2014
Location
AnnArbor, MI
TDI
Mk.4's and the Cummins
Just treat PbA gently. Over discharge gives them PTSD; don't let them go dead, and for sure don't get them cold while dead( the acid concentration keeps them from freezing ). Frozen is usually a game-over situation. Don't let 'em sit at low SoC either. If they're going to sit, keep them charged. Buuuuuut...don't just hook a charger to 'em and leave them constantly 'hot'...charge at 3-4A until voltage gets up to 14.3-4V and let 'em sit for a while again.

Save the iron phosphate Li for cars whose charging system talks to the battery management system in the battery. Don't even think about NMC Lithium...LOL

As to what, the flooded PbA H8 do quite nicely for me.

Douglas
 

Zak99b5

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 30, 2021
Location
Albany NY
TDI
2003 Jetta TDI
That's how I care for my FLA camper battery (deep cycle)--take it out of the rig at the end of the season, then slap the charger on it. Repeat every other month till camping season opens again. Never go below 50% soc, which is around 12.1v measured without a load.
 
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