Odyssey or other AGM?

[TacoFergie]

Going to be upgrading to a new H8/Group 49 battery for my 23 F150 from the widely known undersized H6. I prefer X2 batteries from Batteries Plus based off past experience of long term reliability where the one in my previous Tacoma lasted over 8 years, but they don’t make that size. From everything I can see, Odyssey is of the same quality. I recall NorthStar used to make Odyssey and X2, but now it seems Odyssey is made by Enersys, which seems to be high quality too.

Anyway, I was dead set on an Odyssey. But no where in town has one in stock. While that’s not a big deal, I do like readily available parts just in case. On the flip side, Everstart AGM has a 5 year warranty (compared to Odyssey’s 3 year) and is quite appealing as well since its posted specs are quite similar. I haven’t kept up on what manufactures make who’s batteries and current manufacture build quality, so any help would be very appreciated!

Any recommendations?

 

[CleverUserName]

I usually get Deka or Odyssey. Napa Legend may be East Penn or Clarios, you would need to check what they give you.

I ordered an H8 Odyssey AGM from NAPA last month. They got if from one of their warehouses in a couple days.

If you don't care about quality and are buying strictly for the warranty, 5 years is the best you can get.

 

[Jmlo96]

I have been buying Everstart batteries at Walmart. The ones stocked where I live in Pennsylvania are East Penn. Usually the prices are half of what the part store wants with a better warranty. I've looked into brands like Odyssey and X2, but you can usually get 2 Everstart batteries for the price of 1 of them. You can tell if an Everstart battery was made by East Penn because the serial number starts with "EP."

 

[Hohn]

These days I only buy Northstar/Enersys batteries, usually the X2 sold by Batteries Plus. I think it's a 4 year non-prorated warranty. Best battery I've ever owned. Might be the same as Odyssey, not sure.

 

[Devo242]

I have an Odyssey PC925T I put into the MGA in my signature in the beginning of 2022. Battery health checks with the Topdon tester I use even recently show it as near perfect health (resistance) and it holds a charge like no other battery I've experienced, even compared to the OEM flooded Honda, Toyota, and Volvo batteries I use in everything else.

The car sits in storage quite a lot and I occasionally put it on the battery charger / maintainer as it has an exercise function built in, but I am not even sure it needs that.

I will say the battery is mounted behind the seats, so it does not reside under the engine bay and experience any heat cycling so that may factor into its resilience.

Had to order mine via Autozone, no pickup option but it was delivered for free which was acceptable and made it easy to return to the local store if I had any issues. From what I saw of the delivery it appeared to be drop shipped direct from Enersys, it was packaged extremely well.

My options for the car were very limited but 4 years later and I am still pleased with the quality of the Odyssey.

 

[TacoFergie]

I usually get Deka or Odyssey. Napa Legend may be East Penn or Clarios, you would need to check what they give you.

I ordered an H8 Odyssey AGM from NAPA last month. They got if from one of their warehouses in a couple days.

If you don't care about quality and are buying strictly for the warranty, 5 years is the best you can get.

I prefer quality over warranty for sure. I haven’t seen Deka in my area at all. I’m still leaning towards Odyssey though.

I know the majority of batteries are made by East Penn or Clarios, but I’m sure of different quality materials.

 

[JohnnyG]

Who makes AC Delco? I've always had good service from them, and recently saw some great prices for them on Amazon.

 

[Wheel366]

Last I heard, Odyssey and X2 are made by the same company but X2 is a Batteries Plus brand and comes with a 4yr warranty and price to match. Napa usually can get them for you and often have a 20% coupon you can use.

 

[TacoFergie]

These days I only buy Northstar/Enersys batteries, usually the X2 sold by Batteries Plus. I think it's a 4 year non-prorated warranty. Best battery I've ever owned. Might be the same as Odyssey, not sure.

Yeah, I’ve been a big fan of the X2 batteries I have used. One lasted over 8 years with multiple discharges below 9v while sitting for months. Recovered just fine and kept on going. I’m sure it was degraded, but it never skipped a beat otherwise. Granted, that was on a simple 2015 Tacoma without much draw when off. But the fact that it survived severe discharge cycles and never being garaged in temps from -20F to 110F i pretty impressive. I’m hoping Odyssey could have a similar survival rate.

But I also wonder if that was luck of the draw or if other AGM’s would have survived the same?

 

[TacoFergie]

Last I heard, Odyssey and X2 are made by the same company but X2 is a Batteries Plus brand and comes with a 4yr warranty and price to match. Napa usually can get them for you and often have a 20% coupon you can use.

I’ve seen those 20% deals from time to time. I might just have to stop by Napa to see when that is. I recall at our local Napa there is a certain day of the month for the first few hours it’s open that they have 25% off everything. That would considerably lower the cost if it applies to Odyssey batteries.

 

[CleverUserName]

I prefer quality over warranty for sure. I haven’t seen Deka in my area at all. I’m still leaning towards Odyssey though.

I know the majority of batteries are made by East Penn or Clarios, but I’m sure of different quality materials.

Deka is the East Penn house brand. I got one this month from Rockaut.com, an independent battery store may have them in stock in your area.

 

[CleverUserName]

I’ve seen those 20% deals from time to time. I might just have to stop by Napa to see when that is. I recall at our local Napa there is a certain day of the month for the first few hours it’s open that they have 25% off everything. That would considerably lower the cost if it applies to Odyssey batteries.

It usually does. I got 25% off during Cyber Monday on an Odyssey H8 with an online purchase to pick up in store.

 

[Wheel366]

I’ve seen those 20% deals from time to time. I might just have to stop by Napa to see when that is. I recall at our local Napa there is a certain day of the month for the first few hours it’s open that they have 25% off everything. That would considerably lower the cost if it applies to Odyssey batteries.

Sign up for their emails or keep checking their website. I got my 2 Odyssey batteries for 20% off. But sometimes there are rules. One of them I had to order online and ship to home. Picking up in store wouldn't give me the discount. The other I was able to pick up in store. For the record, I got a 24 and a 35.

 

[Hohn]

Yeah, I’ve been a big fan of the X2 batteries I have used. One lasted over 8 years with multiple discharges below 9v while sitting for months. Recovered just fine and kept on going. I’m sure it was degraded, but it never skipped a beat otherwise. Granted, that was on a simple 2015 Tacoma without much draw when off. But the fact that it survived severe discharge cycles and never being garaged in temps from -20F to 110F i pretty impressive. I’m hoping Odyssey could have a similar survival rate.

But I also wonder if that was luck of the draw or if other AGM’s would have survived the same?

My loyalty to them comes from having one survive being pulled below 4V and then recovering and serving another 3 years. Still going when the car was sold.

 

[TacoFergie]

My loyalty to them comes from having one survive being pulled below 4V and then recovering and serving another 3 years. Still going when the car was sold.

Agreed, I know one time my X2 was below 6v, but I can’t recall the actual voltage. Never saw a battery come back from that, but by golly the X2 did! I used 9v as a catch-all reference because that’s usually a death sentence to most batteries.

I think you’re affirming my preference towards Northstar/Enersys battery. But dang I like saving money when I can. Haha

EDIT: I should mention that I don’t NEED a battery ASAP. But Ford decided that an H6 is the appropriate size for an F150 that is trying to do over the air updates. I constantly get app notifications saying “my connected services are not available” and even the dome lights and exterior approach lighting doesn’t function when that happens. Had the dealer look at it, of course the battery is “fine”. I’m also going to get into Forscan and change the SOC monitor from 80% to 90% or 95%. Not sure why Ford decided 80% was sufficient?

 

[TacoFergie]

Sign up for their emails or keep checking their website. I got my 2 Odyssey batteries for 20% off. But sometimes there are rules. One of them I had to order online and ship to home. Picking up in store wouldn't give me the discount. The other I was able to pick up in store. For the record, I got a 24 and a 35.

I’ll have to do that. I normally hate signing up for email services. But to save nearly $90 is pretty enticing!

 

[Hohn]

Agreed, I know one time my X2 was below 6v, but I can’t recall the actual voltage. Never saw a battery come back from that, but by golly the X2 did! I used 9v as a catch-all reference because that’s usually a death sentence to most batteries.

I think you’re affirming my preference towards Northstar/Enersys battery. But dang I like saving money when I can. Haha

EDIT: I should mention that I don’t NEED a battery ASAP. But Ford decided that an H6 is the appropriate size for an F150 that is trying to do over the air updates. I constantly get app notifications saying “my connected services are not available” and even the dome lights and exterior approach lighting doesn’t function when that happens. Had the dealer look at it, of course the battery is “fine”. I’m also going to get into Forscan and change the SOC monitor from 80% to 90% or 95%. Not sure why Ford decided 80% was sufficient?

They set it to 80% because that reduces warrantable nuisance trips for service, no doubt.

Once the car is started, a lack of voltage is the charging system’s problem, not the battery.

 

[70GS455]

These days I only buy Northstar/Enersys batteries, usually the X2 sold by Batteries Plus. I think it's a 4 year non-prorated warranty. Best battery I've ever owned. Might be the same as Odyssey, not sure.

Yes, the X2 is made by Enersys. I believe their TPPL technology is patented

 

[Wheel366]

I’ll have to do that. I normally hate signing up for email services. But to save nearly $90 is pretty enticing!

I will say, that if it weren't for the discount I would have gotten the EverStart Platinum. I went with the Odyssey 24 in my Legacy because the 25 wasn't available. Plus, a lot of what I was readying was that Subaru was replacing all the bad 25s with 24s. Not sure that is true but that was what I was reading. The OE batteries in both my Subarus (25 and 35) were something like 500cca. The 24 is an older 24 from Odyssey with 725cca but the new ones are now 755. Not a huge difference. The battery that I was sold was from November 2022 and I purchased in January 2025. I care and I don't. It still has a 3 year warranty so if it dies, it gets replaced. Hopefully it will last the life of the car.

 

[TacoFergie]

They set it to 80% because that reduces warrantable nuisance trips for service, no doubt.

Once the car is started, a lack of voltage is the charging system’s problem, not the battery.

Well, if they set it to 80% for warranty purposes…it’s backfired on them. Following the F150 pages and forums, there’s tons of complaints and plenty of people who have brought their vehicle in for battery related issues. If my wife didn’t have me like the average consumer, she would have been to the dealer multiple times by now and probably gone through a couple batteries based of their charging strategy.

However people like me would rather take matters into our own hands and fix it once and for all. Clearly their charging strategy isn’t saving the battery or Ford any headaches or money.