Definitly worth the money IMHO. My brother inlaws 84 month battery just died after one year in his suburban (shorted cell). The first two years were not prorated like the Optima. Talked him into getting a refund and applying it towards an Optima, it will last. One of the great things about the Optima is that they are very vibration resistant and almost imposible to short out because the sprial cells are separated by a membrane. Check out this thread from a while ago
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...ghlight=optima BTW heat is much harder on batteries than cold, the cold can just limit amperage ouput in shoddy ones. My other inlaw handles sales for a large battery manufacturer. He loves hot summers!