The battery in our 2003 went south yesterday. The info on the old battery was: 75P-7YR, AGM, Non-Spillable Absorbent Glass Mat Battery.

I gave this info to our local Chevy parts department and they sold me a 75-6YR AC Delco Professional Car & Truck Battery ($98).

The new battery doesn’t say anything about AGM or being non-spillable. Having heard of some of the problems encountered by Vette batteries leaking on the electronics underneath it, I’m concerned that I may have the wrong battery.

Any help is appreciated.
Brad

 

My understanding is that the AC-Delco AGM batteries installed at the factory during model years 2001 through 2003 were discontinued due to the number of premature failures GM was experiencing with these and AC-Delco currently does not have an AGM battery in their line. For model year 2004, GM went to an AC-Delco top-post standard lead-acid battery for the C5 from the factory. Thus far I have not heard of anyone having problems with this top-post battery. The AC-Delco batteries installed by the factory during model years 2000 and earlier that had the leakage issues were side-post standard lead-acid battery. If the battery they sold you is a side-post battery, you might want to consider trying to return it to the dealer.

AGM batteries are available from several manufacturers - the Exide Select Orbital®, the Exide Select Orbital® XCD and the Optima Red Top and Yellow Top to name a few. Sam's Club also markets the Exide Select Orbital batteries under their NASCAR XLT line of batteries (XDT34 and XDT35).

Hope this helps.

 

i have used excide orbital and in arizona batteries only last 3 summers, but have had this one since 2002 and still strong, cost 150...

 

If you have a Sam's Club in your area, check out their NASCAR XLT line of batteries. Exide manufactures the NASCAR XLT batteries exclusively for Sam's and Sam's markets the Exide Select Orbital batteries under the NASCAR XLT line of batteries (XDT34 and XDT35). Last time I checked prices on these, one was around $94 and the other just over $100. However, thus far I haven't seen a version of the deep cycle Exide Select Orbital XCD at Sam's. (See my post above for links to the Exide Select Orbital and NASCAR XLT batteries.)

All the reviews that I have seen on the Exide Select Orbital series of batteries have been excellent too.

 

I had the Delco in my 2004 Z06 go bad after two months of ownership. My warranty replacement Delco went bad last month after two years- these are the new-designed Delco batteries...

 

Going bad, is "bad". But my bigger concern is the new side post Delco battery leaking. How likely is that with the new side post Delco lead/acid battery? Maybe I'm worrying about something that is very unlikely to occur.

Thanks,
Brad

 

I would take the battery back and exchange it for the 04 one or get a refund and get the top post from Sam"s. In either case go to a local auto supply store and buy the adapters for side post to top post conversion. Much cheaper and easier than changing the cables. You won't have to worry about battery cracking and leaking acid into your car.

 

Just don't reef on the terminals when you install the battery.

 

Who's to say, but you likely may never have a problem with it leaking. However, I would inspect it on a regular basis for any signs of bulges and cracks that could lead to leakage. Too, be sure to maintain it properly.

Regular maintenance can help extend the life of any automotive battery. Even the so called "maintenance free" batteries require some regular maintenance. Regularly check and clean the terminals of any corrosion and insure the terminal connections are kept properly secured, but be careful not to over tighten them. Also, one of the hardest things on any automotive starting battery (not to include the deep cycle type batteries) is repeated deep discharging. Several articles that I have read in the past have stated that automotive starting batteries can withstand only so many deep recycles (generally thinking is around 10) before sustaining sufficient damage to the point of permanent failure. The articles concluded that battery life can be prolonged by keeping automotive batteries charged to at least 80% of their capacity. If your car is not driven regularly, you may want to consider purchasing a battery tender. When looking for a battery tender, look for one that switches the charge automatically to a float level. Don't use a trickle charger for this purpose. Battery tenders (float chargers) are inexpensive and work quite well for keeping your car's battery properly charged. I often wonder how many of the premature battery failures we read about here on the Forum are really the fault of the battery and poor quality versus the owner's failure to keep them properly maintained.

The following link contains more information on maintaining automotive batteries:

Batteries…Did you know

….and another good link with lots of info:

CAR BATTERY FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

 

The NASCAR XLR AGM XDT34 and XDT35 batteries carried by Sam's Club are dual top/side post batteries like the Exide Select Orbital batteries, so a side post adapter is not needed for them.