Chevrolet Suburban Battery

The Chevrolet Suburban has been a reliable workhorse for the driving public for decades, hauling just about anything that fits inside it's cavernous interior and towing everything else behind it, often at the same time! Engine options and battery choices for the Suburban have varied over the years, but we'll help sort through the dizzying array, to find the right replacement battery for your Suburban, starting with the newer models.

From the 2015 model year, through the 2022 model year, the following Suburbans use a Group 94R battery, also known as an H7, for which OPTIMA Batteries offers a direct-fit replacement in our DH7 YELLOWTOP. These Suburbans would include the 2015-2022 Suburban equipped with a 5.3-liter V8, the 2019-2022 Suburban equipped with the 6.2-liter V8 and the 2022 Suburban with the 3.0-liter diesel.

The Group 48/H6 (OPTIMA offers a DH6 YELLOWTOP) battery is listed as an auxiliary battery for the 2019-2020 Suburbans with a 5.3-liter V8 and the 2019-2020 Suburbans with the 6.2-liter V8. The one oddball fitment is the 2021 Suburban with the 3.0-liter diesel, which uses a Group 49/H8 battery.

What about the Suburban 3500 HD trucks? From the 2016-2019 model years, those trucks use the DH7 YELLOWTOP, with a DH6 YELLOWTOP listed as an auxiliary battery. From the 2007 model year through the 2014 model year, the DH6 YELLOWTOP is the direct-fit replacement for just about every Suburban on the road, whether it came with a 5.3-liter V8 (like the one pictured above) or 6.0-liter V8, in half-ton or 3/4-ton variations.

Prior to the 2007 model year, the standard battery for the Suburban from 2000-2006 (GMT800 era trucks) is a Group 78 battery, which we offer in a REDTOP. That includes the small block 5.3 and 6.0-liter engines, as well as the 8.1-liter big block, flex fuel or gas engines. The Group 78 battery is a side terminal only battery and our REDTOP will offer plenty of cranking amps for any Suburban engine, but if you have deep-cycle accessories, like a winch, aftermarket entertainment system or auxiliary lighting, we would recommend a YELLOWTOP, which we also offer in a variety of sizes that will fit in your Suburban.

Prior to the GMT800 era, Suburbans going back all the way to 1960 generally use a similar variety of OPTIMA batteries with the same premise as the GMT-800 Suburbans- if it's starting duty only, a REDTOP is fine. If you have airbags or other significant electrical accessories, then you'd want to use a YELLOWTOP. You can use the fitment guide at the top of our page to zero in on the exact OPTIMA battery options you'll have for your Suburban.

The final thing we'd like to mention about Suburban batteries is how they've grown in size over the years. A 2003 Suburban with the giant 8.1-liter engine can start reliably with a variety of OPTIMA batteries, including our 33.1-pound Group 75/25 REDTOP battery. Fast forward to a 2022 Suburban with a smaller displacement 5.3-liter V8 and the recommended battery is a DH7 YELLOWTOP that weighs in at a whopping 60.5 pounds.

Why does an engine that is 34% smaller require a battery that is nearly 83% heavier? It's not about cranking power, but reserve capacity. Newer Suburbans are jam-packed with all kinds of electrical accessories, many of which remain powered up, even when the truck isn't running. That extra electrical demand requires more reserve capacity found in physically larger batteries. 

One thing we recommend for owners of all modern vehicles is to periodically charge their batteries with a quality battery charger or maintainer, to ensure proper voltage is being maintained in the battery. At a minimum, 12-volt lead-acid batteries should measure at least 12.6 volts (OPTIMA YELLOWTOP batteries should measure about 13.0-13.2V). If you find in monthly checkups that your vehicle's battery is below 12.6 volts, you should charge it more frequently, until you reach a cadence where the battery voltage is being properly-maintained. If the opposite is true, you can extend that maintenance interval window even further out.

We're so confident proper voltage maintenance will maximize the performance and lifespan of batteries, we will extend the free replacement warranty on your OPTIMA battery by a full year, if you purchase it from us at the same time as purchasing an OPTIMA Digital 1200 battery charger.