help with changing the battery
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Safety Car
Joined: Dec 2001
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help with changing the battery
I went out this morning to move the car for a minute only to find the battery is dead. Turn the key over and I get that dreadful 'click, click, click' sound, so I'm hoping it is just the battery. Tried to jump it from the second vehicle with no luck.
Is changing the battery something a novice should be able to do? I haven't tried it yet, it looks like the hardest part will be getting the fender off and sliding the battery out. I'm hoping the gear right above the battery won't have to come out as well. Can anyone give me some pointers on this?
Thanks!
Dave
Is changing the battery something a novice should be able to do? I haven't tried it yet, it looks like the hardest part will be getting the fender off and sliding the battery out. I'm hoping the gear right above the battery won't have to come out as well. Can anyone give me some pointers on this?
Thanks!
Dave
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Re: help with changing the battery (Dave91)
Dave, try searching the archives on this, but I can give you a brief summary as I did it this spring. You have to take out the bolt on top of the panel when you lift the hood, as well as the three torx bolts in the fender well. In addtion, there is a lower bolt that you can access via a slot along the bottom of the panel. I think that that one is 10mm or so, and you just have to loosen it a little. Slide teh panel off and set it aside. Then just remove the hold down bolt and the terminal screws. Lastly, make sure your new battery is the exact same size, as the clearance is tight. Get one with the side terminals only and not dual terminals, as the top ones won't clear.
Team Owner
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From: San Pedro CA
Re: help with changing the battery (Dave91)
batteries are not hard to change... just takes about 30 minutes!!!!
you must remove the gills, it will not come out otherwise... well. it will, but you have to remove anything above it!
remove the bolts that hold the gills on, and gently pry it back and then the battery can be pulled out.
you must remove the gills, it will not come out otherwise... well. it will, but you have to remove anything above it!
remove the bolts that hold the gills on, and gently pry it back and then the battery can be pulled out.
Thread Starter
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Re: help with changing the battery (Black94LT1)
Thanks. I'll give it a shot. I didn't think it would be to hard, just wanted to make sure I didn't make a bad situation worse. Consider how the day has started, anything can happen. After pushing the car back into the garage after a failed attempt at jump starting it, I forgot to remove the keys. Of course, the remote to open the garage door is on there, so it is now locked safely inside an unattached garage with no way to get in. Gonna have to call the apartment office tomorrow to see if they have a key to open the door from the outside. Fun never stops! :)
Thanks for the advice.
Dave
[Modified by Dave91, 9:32 PM 12/2/2001]
Thanks for the advice.
Dave
[Modified by Dave91, 9:32 PM 12/2/2001]
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Re: help with changing the battery (Dave91)
Dave, if your 91 is set up the same as our 96, it should be relatively easy to change the battery.
Start by removing screws in the front fender well which attach the front of the quarter panel.
Look in the gap at the bottom of the quarter panel. You should be able to see a nut (you will probably need a flashlight). Use a 10mm wrench to loosen this nut (don't completely remove, just loosen). Once the nut is loose, you should be able to pull out the bottom first, then the top of the panel. Don't get too aggressive at this point, take it slow and work through any other attachment points there may be.
Once the panel is removed, disconnect the battery and slide it out sideways through the opening where the quarter panel was.
Since you now have the battery out, this is a good time to install a battery cut-off switch which will save your battery during those "down times" when you're not driving the Corvette. The most common type have a green **** to turn.
Start by removing screws in the front fender well which attach the front of the quarter panel.
Look in the gap at the bottom of the quarter panel. You should be able to see a nut (you will probably need a flashlight). Use a 10mm wrench to loosen this nut (don't completely remove, just loosen). Once the nut is loose, you should be able to pull out the bottom first, then the top of the panel. Don't get too aggressive at this point, take it slow and work through any other attachment points there may be.
Once the panel is removed, disconnect the battery and slide it out sideways through the opening where the quarter panel was.
Since you now have the battery out, this is a good time to install a battery cut-off switch which will save your battery during those "down times" when you're not driving the Corvette. The most common type have a green **** to turn.
