Dead Battery
Thread Starter
6th Gear
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 6
Likes: 0
Dead Battery
OK, I admit it. I'm an idiot!
Went out to eat with my son on Thursday night and when I got home I turned on the interior lights to unload a couple of items and forgot to turn them off. Now of course the battery is dead.
My question is, with all the electornics (2004 convertible) on this car, am I risking any damage if I just jump start it or should I remove the battery and have it charged?
Thanks,
Ed
PS. It kind of annoys me that my 03 Monte Carlo is smart enough to save my butt if I pull a stunt like this and the Corvette isn't.
Went out to eat with my son on Thursday night and when I got home I turned on the interior lights to unload a couple of items and forgot to turn them off. Now of course the battery is dead.
My question is, with all the electornics (2004 convertible) on this car, am I risking any damage if I just jump start it or should I remove the battery and have it charged?
Thanks,
Ed
PS. It kind of annoys me that my 03 Monte Carlo is smart enough to save my butt if I pull a stunt like this and the Corvette isn't.
Safety Car
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 3,726
Likes: 368
From: Montoursville Pa
I'd hook up a charger overnight. Jump start isn't a good idea I've heard too many stories of a fried alternator doing that. seems it works to hard running everything and charging up a dead battery at the same time. 
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 5,761
Likes: 1
From: Irvine CA
I had my Vette jumpstarted using cables and my daily driver. When done right, no issues at all. However, turn your radio/cd/radar off. They have the tendency to get damaged by voltage spikes.
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 19,304
Likes: 85
From: San Diego CA
Hold it! Jump-starting will NOT charge your battery up! Do it only to get home if you are not already there. You really should charge or have your battery charged. Simply driving the car with a weak battery will not suffice.
BTW, my 01 will turn off power if I accidentally leave my door ajar. I'm surprised yours did not do the same.
BTW, my 01 will turn off power if I accidentally leave my door ajar. I'm surprised yours did not do the same.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 3,123
Likes: 3
From: Orland Park Illinois
St. Jude Donor '06-'07
Since it appears the car is at your home, hook up your charger and simply charge the battery. Why would you want to mess around jumping it when the battery needs recharging?? Good luck... 
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Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 3,088
Likes: 1
From: NC
Originally Posted by Dave68
Hold it! Jump-starting will NOT charge your battery up! Do it only to get home if you are not already there. You really should charge or have your battery charged. Simply driving the car with a weak battery will not suffice.
BTW, my 01 will turn off power if I accidentally leave my door ajar. I'm surprised yours did not do the same.
BTW, my 01 will turn off power if I accidentally leave my door ajar. I'm surprised yours did not do the same.
Reading is fundamental.
Your alternator is fully capable of charging a fully drained battery
as long as you keep the engine running for only a half hour or so after
first jumping it.
Each successive drive will get it fully charged in no time.
And, electronics have been in cars for a few decades now. There is
really nothing special about the Vette's electronics. Every car has
modules to control functions.
Race Director
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 16,795
Likes: 62
From: Lake Havasu City, AZ
I have never read anyone recommending to recharge a fully drained battery with the alternator.
I understand that the load it puts on them doing that overheats them and severley shortens their life span. Use a charger.
I understand that the load it puts on them doing that overheats them and severley shortens their life span. Use a charger.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 3,088
Likes: 1
From: NC
Originally Posted by rws.1
I have never read anyone recommending to recharge a fully drained battery with the alternator.
I understand that the load it puts on them doing that overheats them and severley shortens their life span. Use a charger.
I understand that the load it puts on them doing that overheats them and severley shortens their life span. Use a charger.
lights-left-on and jumped dead batteries.
I have never owned or used a charger and always charged using
the alternator or generator during the normal course of driving.
Too many people on this forum and especially we C5 owners, think the
car will fall apart if ywe actually use it the way it's intended.
Fine, go out and buy a charger.
Sorry I stopped by.
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 19,304
Likes: 85
From: San Diego CA
Originally Posted by georgec114
I've been driving for over 40 years and had my share of accidental
lights-left-on and jumped dead batteries.
I have never owned or used a charger and always charged using
the alternator or generator during the normal course of driving.
Too many people on this forum and especially we C5 owners, think the
car will fall apart if ywe actually use it the way it's intended.
Fine, go out and buy a charger.
Sorry I stopped by.
lights-left-on and jumped dead batteries.
I have never owned or used a charger and always charged using
the alternator or generator during the normal course of driving.
Too many people on this forum and especially we C5 owners, think the
car will fall apart if ywe actually use it the way it's intended.
Fine, go out and buy a charger.
Sorry I stopped by.
http://www.popularmechanics.com/auto...tml?page=3&c=y
Safety Car
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 3,996
Likes: 77
From: Louisville KY
Jump it and drive it. I am a 61 year old and have jumped 100's of cars. I am a retired high school administrator - teenagers never turn anything off!!! Turn off everything in the car and drive it and it will bring the battrey up to the full charge. I have never owned a charger. Too many Vette owners think these cars are specially delicate and go to extremes with them. They are a car - a thing - not a person. They will function just as any auto will. Just my .02 worth!
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 19,304
Likes: 85
From: San Diego CA
Jim, you should read the question/answer paragraph in The Popular Mechanics link posted above. Yes, you can jump it and drive it, but when your student's battery and/or alternator dies a premature death, you're probably not around to hear about it.
It boils down to:
Quick and Dirty Jump start = short life
5-10 amp charger to fully charged condition = long life
I say, if you're going to do it, do it RIGHT!
It boils down to:
Quick and Dirty Jump start = short life
5-10 amp charger to fully charged condition = long life
I say, if you're going to do it, do it RIGHT!
Race Director
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 16,795
Likes: 62
From: Lake Havasu City, AZ
George, Like you I am an old dog ( driving for 35 years) and like you I used to ascribe to the jump it and drive it school of thought. I have rebuilt a number or alternators( generators) in my day. What I have learned over the years is:
1. If you trade or sell your cars often enough, you never find out what your bad habits cause.
2. Heat in the engine compartment these days in higher than in the old days. More engine running at higher revs is packed into a smaller space.
3. Heat is bad for electronics.
4. Things aren't built to last the way they once were... My beer fridge is my grandfather's Leonard (brand) circa 1945. My father inherited it when his father died. I inherited it when my father died..... it has never been serviced and never had the freon recharged!
5. Running an alternator at full capacity to recharge a dead battery can overheat it. The heat can damage the diodes and impact bearing life. I just rebuilt the alternator on my '88 Vette last month. They are known to fail due overheating.
6.. A charger is a lot cheaper than a new alternator. 1/2 to 1/4 the price depending on what you buy for an alternator and what you buy for a charger.
7. It takes a lot less time to hook up a charger than to change or rebuild an alternator.
8. Some old dogs don't want to or can't, learn new tricks.
9. The older the dog, the more often it seems to lift its rear leg.
George, I'm glad you stopped by. But I'm a bit surprised that you decided to lift your rear leg over my shoes.....
1. If you trade or sell your cars often enough, you never find out what your bad habits cause.
2. Heat in the engine compartment these days in higher than in the old days. More engine running at higher revs is packed into a smaller space.
3. Heat is bad for electronics.
4. Things aren't built to last the way they once were... My beer fridge is my grandfather's Leonard (brand) circa 1945. My father inherited it when his father died. I inherited it when my father died..... it has never been serviced and never had the freon recharged!
5. Running an alternator at full capacity to recharge a dead battery can overheat it. The heat can damage the diodes and impact bearing life. I just rebuilt the alternator on my '88 Vette last month. They are known to fail due overheating.
6.. A charger is a lot cheaper than a new alternator. 1/2 to 1/4 the price depending on what you buy for an alternator and what you buy for a charger.
7. It takes a lot less time to hook up a charger than to change or rebuild an alternator.
8. Some old dogs don't want to or can't, learn new tricks.
9. The older the dog, the more often it seems to lift its rear leg.
George, I'm glad you stopped by. But I'm a bit surprised that you decided to lift your rear leg over my shoes.....
Safety Car
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 3,726
Likes: 368
From: Montoursville Pa
Originally Posted by rws.1
George, Like you I am an old dog ( driving for 35 years) and like you I used to ascribe to the jump it and drive it school of thought. I have rebuilt a number or alternators( generators) in my day. What I have learned over the years is:
1. If you trade or sell your cars often enough, you never find out what your bad habits cause.
2. Heat in the engine compartment these days in higher than in the old days. More engine running at higher revs is packed into a smaller space.
3. Heat is bad for electronics.
4. Things aren't built to last the way they once were... My beer fridge is my grandfather's Leonard (brand) circa 1945. My father inherited it when his father died. I inherited it when my father died..... it has never been serviced and never had the freon recharged!
5. Running an alternator at full capacity to recharge a dead battery can overheat it. The heat can damage the diodes and impact bearing life. I just rebuilt the alternator on my '88 Vette last month. They are known to fail due overheating.
6.. A charger is a lot cheaper than a new alternator. 1/2 to 1/4 the price depending on what you buy for an alternator and what you buy for a charger.
7. It takes a lot less time to hook up a charger than to change or rebuild an alternator.
8. Some old dogs don't want to or can't, learn new tricks.
9. The older the dog, the more often it seems to lift its rear leg.
George, I'm glad you stopped by. But I'm a bit surprised that you decided to lift your rear leg over my shoes.....
1. If you trade or sell your cars often enough, you never find out what your bad habits cause.
2. Heat in the engine compartment these days in higher than in the old days. More engine running at higher revs is packed into a smaller space.
3. Heat is bad for electronics.
4. Things aren't built to last the way they once were... My beer fridge is my grandfather's Leonard (brand) circa 1945. My father inherited it when his father died. I inherited it when my father died..... it has never been serviced and never had the freon recharged!
5. Running an alternator at full capacity to recharge a dead battery can overheat it. The heat can damage the diodes and impact bearing life. I just rebuilt the alternator on my '88 Vette last month. They are known to fail due overheating.
6.. A charger is a lot cheaper than a new alternator. 1/2 to 1/4 the price depending on what you buy for an alternator and what you buy for a charger.
7. It takes a lot less time to hook up a charger than to change or rebuild an alternator.
8. Some old dogs don't want to or can't, learn new tricks.
9. The older the dog, the more often it seems to lift its rear leg.
George, I'm glad you stopped by. But I'm a bit surprised that you decided to lift your rear leg over my shoes.....
when I first posted here I had quite a few nay sayers.
if my information is not good i do not want to pass it around I'd rather find out im wrong than keep on being wrong! quite a few alternators have been prematurly ruined by overheating and charging a compleatly dead battery is a good way to do it!
That said you pay your money and you take your chances. many times we (corvette junkies) go over board in our zeal. however a little extra never hurts.
Last edited by ErnieN85; Aug 15, 2005 at 08:55 AM.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 3,088
Likes: 1
From: NC
Geez guys, 
I'm confused at who's pizzed at what.
The original poster drained his battery....ONCE.
Jump it and be on with your life. It "ain't" going to melt away.
It's not like he was doing this on a daily basis to a battery that is
constantly drained. It's a one time deal.
Some components die prematurely under the best of conditions and
some never die under the worst conditions. Predicting this is like
throwing a dart at the stock market page in the newspaper.
You want to do things right? Did anyone suggest checking the water
in the battery? Does he have a bad cell? Are his cables corroded?
No? Why? Because he left the lights on and you all assume everything
is OK and therefore nothing else needs to be done except to go out
and buy a charger for a "one time event."
Oh, and when you all check your water level and it's low, do you all
have distilled water hanging around the house to fill it? I bet not.
You just use tap water.
But all this talk about leg-lifting and somebody's beer fridge is totally
irrelevant. All I gave was a quick answer to a small question based on
my exprience over the years. Take for what it is.
But someone is calling me an old dog not wanting to learn new tricks and another is complaining of lifting my leg on him? Where's that come
from?
I have my opinion and because it diesn't agree with you, I'm somehow
lifting my leg on your shoes?
Plus someone is implying blame for other "good" people leaving the forum.
Wow!...I didn't know I had that much influence.
What next, [dripping sarcasm]global warming?[/dripping sarcasm]
Oh...And according to Popular Machanics and its brother Popular
Science, I should have been flying my own jet/car/boat 20 years ago.
If I use enough of these,
will it make this post any better?
I'm confused at who's pizzed at what.
The original poster drained his battery....ONCE.
Jump it and be on with your life. It "ain't" going to melt away.
It's not like he was doing this on a daily basis to a battery that is
constantly drained. It's a one time deal.
Some components die prematurely under the best of conditions and
some never die under the worst conditions. Predicting this is like
throwing a dart at the stock market page in the newspaper.
You want to do things right? Did anyone suggest checking the water
in the battery? Does he have a bad cell? Are his cables corroded?
No? Why? Because he left the lights on and you all assume everything
is OK and therefore nothing else needs to be done except to go out
and buy a charger for a "one time event."
Oh, and when you all check your water level and it's low, do you all
have distilled water hanging around the house to fill it? I bet not.
You just use tap water.
But all this talk about leg-lifting and somebody's beer fridge is totally
irrelevant. All I gave was a quick answer to a small question based on
my exprience over the years. Take for what it is.
But someone is calling me an old dog not wanting to learn new tricks and another is complaining of lifting my leg on him? Where's that come
from?
I have my opinion and because it diesn't agree with you, I'm somehow
lifting my leg on your shoes?
Plus someone is implying blame for other "good" people leaving the forum.
Wow!...I didn't know I had that much influence.
What next, [dripping sarcasm]global warming?[/dripping sarcasm]
Oh...And according to Popular Machanics and its brother Popular
Science, I should have been flying my own jet/car/boat 20 years ago.
If I use enough of these,
will it make this post any better?
Safety Car
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 3,726
Likes: 368
From: Montoursville Pa
Originally Posted by georgec114
Geez guys,
I'm confused at who's pizzed at what.
I'm not pissed. just reminding folks your thoughts don't come through just what you type. Some times it comes across different than what we intended.
Oh, and when you all check your water level and it's low, do you all
have distilled water hanging around the house to fill it? I bet not.
You lose my tap water is so bad I do (it'll kill a battery in a week)
But all this talk about leg-lifting and somebody's beer fridge is totally
irrelevant. All I gave was a quick answer to a small question based on
my exprience over the years. Take for what it is.
Plus someone is implying blame for other "good" people leaving the forum.
no blame to you personally probably all of us have typed something which came across wrong!
Wow!...I didn't know I had that much influence.
You sure do most any of us can make some one feel bad (me included)
What next, [dripping sarcasm]global warming?
Darn last winter that's just what I was looking for!
It's summer now big heatwave cool looks better.
[/dripping sarcasm]
Oh...And according to Popular Machanics and its brother Popular
Science, I should have been flying my own jet/car/boat 20 years ago.
If I use enough of these,
will it make this post any better?
I'm confused at who's pizzed at what.
I'm not pissed. just reminding folks your thoughts don't come through just what you type. Some times it comes across different than what we intended.
Oh, and when you all check your water level and it's low, do you all
have distilled water hanging around the house to fill it? I bet not.
You lose my tap water is so bad I do (it'll kill a battery in a week)
But all this talk about leg-lifting and somebody's beer fridge is totally
irrelevant. All I gave was a quick answer to a small question based on
my exprience over the years. Take for what it is.
Plus someone is implying blame for other "good" people leaving the forum.
no blame to you personally probably all of us have typed something which came across wrong!
Wow!...I didn't know I had that much influence.
You sure do most any of us can make some one feel bad (me included)
What next, [dripping sarcasm]global warming?
Darn last winter that's just what I was looking for!
It's summer now big heatwave cool looks better.
[/dripping sarcasm]
Oh...And according to Popular Machanics and its brother Popular
Science, I should have been flying my own jet/car/boat 20 years ago.
If I use enough of these,
will it make this post any better?
Might never can tell
Drifting
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 1,607
Likes: 1
From: San Francisco CA
If someone who writes for Popular Mechanics says it then it must be true 
Odds are this guy has no clue about the electronics in the modern voltage regulator inside the alternator or the amp/hr ratings of modern alternators. If he did then he would know that modern voltage regulators are as smart as any found in a battery charger and that modern alternators have an amp/hr rating much higher then any fully drained battery can accept. In other words modern alternators can safely charge a fully drained battery without breaking a sweat.
The '97-'00 C5's have a 110 amp/hr alternator and the later ones have a 145 amp/hr alternator.
It used to be that cars had a more primitive regulator and smaller rated alternators combined with larger batteries. Advances in technology made the regulators smart and higher rated alternators combined with smaller batteries are lighter, smaller and less costly to produce.
So file this article where it belongs....in the waste basket
Odds are this guy has no clue about the electronics in the modern voltage regulator inside the alternator or the amp/hr ratings of modern alternators. If he did then he would know that modern voltage regulators are as smart as any found in a battery charger and that modern alternators have an amp/hr rating much higher then any fully drained battery can accept. In other words modern alternators can safely charge a fully drained battery without breaking a sweat.
The '97-'00 C5's have a 110 amp/hr alternator and the later ones have a 145 amp/hr alternator.
It used to be that cars had a more primitive regulator and smaller rated alternators combined with larger batteries. Advances in technology made the regulators smart and higher rated alternators combined with smaller batteries are lighter, smaller and less costly to produce.
So file this article where it belongs....in the waste basket
Safety Car
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 4,743
Likes: 0
From: Omaha Nebraska
St. Jude Donor '06
Easy folks!!
We all know that we come here for OPINIONS and FACTS... and every body's got one or the other.. many times both. But we come here for those opinions and the advice because we're interested in what others have to say...
I'm **** so right now my charger has been on my Vette since yesterday afternoon...
My barber lives on the other end of town and he jump starts his or charges it only enough to start it and then drives it for an hour or so...
Either way, neither one of us drives our Vettes enough to keep 'em charged so we end up charging the battery when needed, or letting the car do it for us...
I personally feel that charging a battery every so often for a 24 hour period bodes well to "cook" it a little... get the crud stirred up off of the plates and IMHO, it makes it last a little longer.. do I have facts to back this up, nope!! But I THINK it makes a difference... Bottom line, I have had a battery charger since I've had my own vehicle.. You need one in Nebraska... We use them a few times a year too...
That's my two cents worth... Mostly opinion!!
Drive on, Vette lovers!!!
