Leaking Odyssey Battery

[mattn]

Odyssey Model 925. Two installed in my 1972 911T. The battery has white powder on top but not at the posts where I would have expected it. Could the battery be leaking somewhere other than the posts?

The car has also been having trouble holding a charge but I have to admit I haven’t been driving it as much in the hot summer. Second battery appears to be fine. They were installed in September of 2016.

Is the battery just toast and that would explain the leaking and the failure to hold a charge?

Thanks,
Matt

[Bigtoe32067]

Yikes. That’s ugly. I’d charge it and load test it to see if it has the amps it’s supposed to have.

[mattn]

Thanks. Might be time to invest in a load tester...

[AG81]

Just lost my 31 month old 925 to bad voltage. Replaced this morning with same. I figure after almost 3 years I got my money's worth.

[stcan]

What charger you guys use. I thought I saw something about Ctek damage Odyssey battery. My Ctek is not charging my Odyssey properly and that was a new battery.

[Quicksilver]

Ne question, that battery is toast. Not sure how you'd get it to fail like that. Depending on age I'd contact Odyssey and see if they will give you a new one.

[SiberianDVM]

Must be battery month. Just replaced my 5 year old PC925 yesterday, the M3 Group 93 last week, and now the Cayenne is saying she wants one too (holding a 50% charge).

The ancient Interstates in the car trailer and the Supra are still going strong.

[porsche930dude]

Just changed my 13 year old walmart everstart, It did alright

[PCA7GGR]

New batteries are garbage and the manufacturers know it. Had a WallyMao one take a dump after 2.5 years. Replacement was prorated but only has the balance of the old battery’s warrantee.

Was told that all the manufacturers are changing their warranties to reflect Their product’s marginal performance.

[Ian Comerford]

It’s also worth checking what your battery is receiving in terms of charge in case your VR is faulty

[Bigtoe32067]

Originally Posted by Ian Comerford

It’s also worth checking what your battery is receiving in terms of charge in case your VR is faulty

^^^^^This^^^^[

[Quickstep192]

It's interesting how some batteries seem to last forever and others (even expensive ones) have short lives. I wonder what makes the difference?

[Quicksilver]

Originally Posted by Quickstep192

It's interesting how some batteries seem to last forever and others (even expensive ones) have short lives. I wonder what makes the difference?

I've found that as long as the alternator is charging in range the less frequently you use the car the faster the battery fails. I've never had a battery go less then 10 years if it is driven at least 3 times a week unless there was a 'major abuse incident'.

[Quasimoto]

Originally Posted by Ian Comerford

It’s also worth checking what your battery is receiving in terms of charge in case your VR is faulty

Spot on I think...have never seen an AGM get this messy.

[Danimal16]

Originally Posted by mattn

Odyssey Model 925. Two installed in my 1972 911T. The battery has white powder on top but not at the posts where I would have expected it. Could the battery be leaking somewhere other than the posts?

The car has also been having trouble holding a charge but I have to admit I haven’t been driving it as much in the hot summer. Second battery appears to be fine. They were installed in September of 2016.

Is the battery just toast and that would explain the leaking and the failure to hold a charge?

Thanks,
Matt

Matt,
Are you using a trickle charger? Have you had to recharge the battery using a charger?
Dan

[mattn]

Dan,

Recently bought a trickle charger (Battery Tender) but that was after the appearance of the white powder. Apparently I’ve been in denial. And after coming out to a car that wouldn’t start a couple times. I again have to admit that I don’t drive it as much as I should…

But suspecting the battery. This a relatively new problem. The fact that the posts were clean was strange.

Matt

[Danimal16]

Matt,
I had the same experience about 15 years ago. My 1200 swelled. It was due to using the wrong charger. I still use Odyssey's but with a recommended charger. I have even reconditioned deeply discharged Odyssey's. The key is that the charger not exceed 15 volts. There is a list of approved chargers, including trickle chargers, at Odyssey's website: https://www.odysseybattery.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/ODYSSEY_approved_12V_chargers.pdf
I hope this helps.
Dan

Originally Posted by mattn

Dan,

Recently bought a trickle charger (Battery Tender) but that was after the appearance of the white powder. Apparently I’ve been in denial. And after coming out to a car that wouldn’t start a couple times. I again have to admit that I don’t drive it as much as I should…

But suspecting the battery. This a relatively new problem. The fact that the posts were clean was strange.

Matt

[Danimal16]

Here is the list.