[MattJB]

Our '01 HL has 135K miles and the OEM Panasonic battery. I'm religious about watching electrolyte level, using distilled water, never overfilling, keeping terminals clean, and running a trickle charger (yes, the kind used for motorcycles) when the HL is not run regularly. I should mention that until recently we used the HL for trips, that is, turn the engine on, drive 300+ miles, and turn the engine off. Then repeat. That helps with battery longevity. One day I'll change to either an Interstate or an Optima. I'm still researching the Optima and am interested in it primarily for longevity and the usually very cold-weather starts (-20F) in Northern VT and Canada where Mobil 1 helps, too. If we remove the added expense of the Optima from the discussion, does anyone have any take on the Optima for this application?