I turned the car off while waiting for a train and when I tried to start it back up it was completely dead. Everything had been fine when I started it a half hour earlier.

After it was jumped and I was driving home I got a Service Vehicle Soon message on the DIC and the active handling and ABS lights on the dash came on. Is this related to the dead battery?

Is there any battery warranty with the car (I couldn't find one in the owners packet)?

Thanks.

 

If your can has the original battery. Its a Delco AGM and is warrented for 7 years. Just take it back to the dealer but make sure thay replace it with an AGM not acid filled battery. I am sure you haveheard of the acid filled batteries leaking. The battery will be prorated. :chevy

 

Glad to see yours lasted that long. Have owned 3 Vettes and they have never lasted longer than a year. Last friday I purchased an 04 Vette for my wife and a new Optima will go in it on Sunday. Am not waiting for it to fail.

Bill :cheers:

 

The AC Delco AGM is discontinued (75P-7YR. Best offered now is a 75-7YR. If non-spillable is preferred, see if the dealer will allow an Optima Red Top 75/35 (at least one CF member got reimbursed under warranty). Hawker/Odyssey makes an even better AGM battery than Optima (spec-wise: both starter and deep cycle in one battery). See http://www.odysseybatteries.com .

I'm using the dealer (warranty) supplied replacement AC Delco 75-7YR Professional series battery (non-AGM). GM went back to spillable (but top post) batteries for '04. If battery leakage was a major issue, they would not have done this due to warranty costs (damaged wires/computers are expensive).

The CF favorite is the Optima Red Top (both sizes). However, after researching batteries, every brand has had failures (including Optima and Hawker). Some people recommend the cheapest battery that will fit (and that Optima and other 'high-end' brands aren't worth the cost). When the factory AGM died, I went with the best warranty replacement available. In a non-warranty case, I'd probably try a Hawker/Odyssey (won't leak, lightweight, can be fully discharged without damage, about the same price as Optima).

AGM's have a durability issue: they don't tolerate heat as well as standard lead-acid batteries. See http://www.stealth316.com/2-dynabatt.htm, including the table near the bottom of the page.

 

just went through this also :mad :mad , GM would only put in the specified 6yr lead/acid battery as replacement. They declined an Optima and Chevy assistance also did when complained.

 

Somewhat same thing happened to me one day last Fall after I came back from work. I parked my '02 coupe in the garage, went inside to change for a party and then went to leave and found my 'Vette wouldn't even do the click-click-click a somewhat dead battery might produce.

I had the battery tested at a local auto shop. It only had 22 CCA remaining and was hardly taking on a charge. Added to that, the battery was slightly bulging. (Could the battery have been 'overcharged' @ some point? Hmmm.)

A fellow club member who had a similar problem loaned me his AC Delco 78P-7YR, which I then used to go to a suppplier and get one of my own.

The battery was OEM. I'm not sure what caused the problem. Chevy eventually said my alternator, etc. was fine. However, I had the 'Vette overseas with me while stationed in Germany. (I'm in the USAF.) So possibly, the idiotic shippers :jester the gov't contracted with to ship my car back from Germany left my key in the ON position, knocked the A/C on and tried letting the car cool the container and/or ship's hold on battery power all the way across the North Atlantic. :cuss Of course, they then would have tried charging up my battery before I showed up to take delivery. But, did that affect the battery's future operation? Who knows.)

Alternative to this replacement: Optima Red Top. Posted CF feedback has been positive.

Good luck with the problem! :thumbs:

Oh yeah...Chevy declined to replace the battery under warranty. :boxing


[Modified by kedvesh, 10:09 PM 1/9/2004]

 

Damn, that sucks. I replaced my Camaro's battery after 5.5 years just because, and my vette still has the original battery after 4. Guess I got lucky in that department.

Dope

 

Your battery should still be under warranty. Take it to the dealer and get it replaced - or ask if they will give you a credit towards an Optima Red Top.

 

My 98 still has the origional battery. No leaks and it is still in good shape!

Bill

 

Watch it like a hawk!

 

:iagree: you must have got a good one, don't take any cross country trips. :lol: :lol:

 

Did my Redtop so I wouldn't have to worry about the GM crap.

 

:iagree: Your computer, and a ton of wires are under your acid filled battery. The Redtop will not leak, comes with a 3yr free replacement. Why wait untill the AC/Delco battey leaks or leaves you stranded????

Bill

 

Talk about "living on borrowed time." Man, if I were you, I'd consider myself one lucky guy and dump that original battery NOW. A few years ago, the original battery in my '98 was fine. I checked it one week later-----and the positive terminal was leaking acid like a faucet. Lucky for me...no damage, I'd caught it right in time. :yesnod:

 

Don't take a chance, any regular lead-acid battery can leak. I had a DELCO leak in a new Pontiac Bonneville. In your C5 if it leaks, the computer and the wiring harness can be toast ! They are located directly under the battery.

I replaced my DELCO with a Champion XLT (AGM Battery) size/number DT35/CHXDT35 made by Exide. Got it at SAMS Club for $90-95. It has 690 CCA, 850 CA, a 36 month free replacement and free jump-start, and a 108 month limited warranty.

 

:lol: Mine only lasted 9 months. :rolleyes: Optima has been great ever since. :cheers:

 

Thanks for all your responses. I took it to the dealer where the battery was replaced under warranty. Hopefully I'll have better luck with this one. If not I'll go with the Optima.

I noted on the invoice that the labor rate was listed at $95/hour. Is this a normal rate? Perhaps that is a "special" rate for Corvette work.

Thanks again.

 

This seems to be a fairly common problem with the C5..? Are there any tell-tale signs one should look for? I'd hate like hell to get stuck somewhere.
:mad

 

I noticed "Charge System Fault" on the DIC (low voltage, etc.) a few times before the battery died. Your battery can also be tested in the car with a battery tester.

 

If you digital information center doesn't stay to your setting (say oil temperature) but goes back to the factory default (odometer) you have a problem.