Optima Yellow Top Battery in 69 Charger RT

[69RT3X9]

Hi Guys,

I have a stock 69 Charger R/T with stock headlight setup, and despite changing to new Sylvania halogen lights, they are still really dim and yellow.  I was wondering if upgrading to an Optima YellowTop battery would help.  My old battery is now shot and needs replacement anyway.  Optima says YellowTop batteries are best used in applications with accessory-heavy vehicles with demanding electrical systems.  Anybody try a YellowTop in their 69 Charger and see an improvement in headlight brightness?  Thanks in advance for your feedback!

[Gold Rush]

Before you take that leap, run a wire direct from the existing battery (Positive and negative posts) to the lights and see what they look like.  Chances are the old wiring, connectors, and switches are knocking the voltage and current back so the lights are dim.  If you find that is so, use the old light system to activate relays fed directly from the battery.  Should cure that issue.

[TexasStroker]

If you are accustomed to late model lights, you'll never be happy with old sealed beams.  You can run relays for better performance, swap to a 5 3/4 housing with H4s, or just convert over to LEDs.

The lights are part of the nostalgic appeal of the Charger, but that quickly ends after an evening cruise turns into the night.  The light output just sucks if you are out in the sticks, or on back roads.  You kind of have to make a judgment call between all stock, enhanced stock (relays), or safety.

If you will routinely be driving at night, or in the early morning hours I'd start with the relays and take it from there.  If you prefer the aesthetics of a white light vs the yellow glow of an incandescent bulb just go straight to the higher end stuff.

As for an Optima, it will fit just fine.  A Red Top is fine for run of the mill stuff.  A Yellow Top will offer up more reserve and can withstand neglect a little better.  IIRC the Red Tops will have higher CCAs vs higher Reserve for the Yellow Top.  I recently had to pick one up because the old Duralast Gold's that I liked didn't have side terminals (something I wanted for a cleaner installation of some aftermarket gear).

If you don't drive frequently just disconnect the negative cable and call it a day.

There are several posts on how to add the relays.  Several members also have threads showing off their LED upgrades.  Not sure if anyone has done HID stuff.