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Top Post Battery Conversion Q's

10K views 17 replies 14 participants last post by  maesstro 
#1 ·
I need a new battery and am sick of trying to move things around so I can get those tiny screws into the battery from the side. I want to convert to a top post battery but have a few questions.

1. Would I need to replace any stock wiring?
2. Can I cut the stock wiring and just use a top post harness?
 
#2 ·
Have you tried looking for the side-post battery tool? You can get a special ratcheting wrench that will get that on and off easily. Would be easier and cheaper then trying to change your harness.
 
#4 ·
Sears and Autozone are the only ones I know of that carrry a top and side mount on one battery still.

I converted mine to a side because of the stereo,air ride,etc. I just cut the ends of the wiring and bought copper plated ones at the hardware store. It gets better voltage, looks much cleaner and is actually cheaper to do.
 
#6 ·
interesting adapter. i never bother to see something like that. as long as the wire is long enough to reach over it's not so bad. only thing that bother me is the positive terminal is exposed so much so unless u gonna tape it to protect any ground from touchin it, its a bad idea.
 
#7 ·
He is growing up...

only thing that bother me is the positive terminal is exposed so much so unless u gonna tape it to protect any ground from touchin it, its a bad idea.
You make me proud, thats the best thing you have said on this forum.....
 
#9 ·
We used to call these

"leave me sitting" battery terminals, because they often develop corrosion where the cables attach and lead to a no-start. My truck has these, and when I replaced the battery I took them off the battery cables. The cable ends (between the strands of wire) were full of corrosion and battery acid residue. Took some scrubbing with baking soda to get everything clean again. If you're replacing the cable ends, I strongly recommend you use crimp-on or solder-on ends. Here's a how-to video on soldering cable ends:


As far as dual-post (top and side post) batteries, I know Deka tried them a few years ago. We carried them in a shop where I worked. I thought they were a great idea, but Deka had nothing but trouble with them. For some reason, the connections to the dual posts would fail internally. You'd test the battery using the side posts and it would test bad, then you'd test it again using the top posts and it would test good. Drove more than a few people (including me) nuts. Probably no longer an issue, but something to keep in mind if a dual-terminal battery gives you trouble.

I've never had trouble with the top-post to side-post adapters, but as someone else pointed out there is a lot of metal hanging out there waiting for a short. It is a good idea to cover as much of the adapter as possible with tape as suggested. I'd also put a film of grease on each electrical connection (adpater to battery and adapter to cable). There are special greases that are designed just for battery connections, but I usually use plain old lithium grease or petroleum jelly. Wipe off any excess to keep it from attracting stray dirt.
 
#10 ·
I've never had trouble with the top-post to side-post adapters, but as someone else pointed out there is a lot of metal hanging out there waiting for a short. It is a good idea to cover as much of the adapter as possible with tape as suggested. I'd also put a film of grease on each electrical connection (adpater to battery and adapter to cable). There are special greases that are designed just for battery connections, but I usually use plain old lithium grease or petroleum jelly. Wipe off any excess to keep it from attracting stray dirt.
I have a dual top and side post in my 1 ton and it works great. I have everything from the truck connected to the top posts and the inverter that I run connected to the side posts.
 
#12 ·
I know most/all manufacturers make dual-posts, I mentioned the problem with the Deka batteries because it was an unusual (to me) failure. With dual-post batteries, it's usually easier to test the battery using the top posts, even if those aren't the terminals that are actually connected to the car. I learned to test the battery using both sets of terminals. If the battery tested good on one set but not the other, I knew the internal connections to at least one set of terminals had broken down. This is an easy problem to overlook, because if a load or conductance test on a battery comes back good, you usually rule it out and move on to something else. This was limited to a bad production run of Deka batteries, but since it doesn't take much longer to test both sets of terminals, that's what I do when I run into a dual-post battery.
 
#14 ·
My Optima Yellow top has dual posts...On a side note...Its been the best battery I've owned and its been worth the cost. Use it for my track car so most of the time it just sits. Very seldom have to charge it. Gets used it for a substitute battery. Only time it ever lost its charge was when I was using it in my street car for awhile and a wiring short caused the electric fans to run while it was parked for the weekend...Takes lots of abuse.
 
#15 ·
My Optima Yellow top has dual posts...On a side note...Its been the best battery I've owned and its been worth the cost. Use it for my track car so most of the time it just sits. Very seldom have to charge it....
I have an Optima red top with dual posts and I agree with all the sentiments above... it has never had any trouble starting my car, it sat for months loose in my trunk while the car has been parked this winter and took very little charge to bring it back up to full, plus the car was my daily driver for nearly 2 years with it including 2 Canadian winters...
 
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