I have a C6 coupe on order. It will most likely be parked in the garage for 2-4 weeks or longer at a time during thre year.

Will the factory battery be sufficient or should I replace it with something like an Optima? I do not want the problem of a dead battery.

Also I am reading about others just jumping their dead batteries. I did the same in the past when ever I had a dead battery and never had a problem with any of my cars.

I have recently read that "if possible" it is best to fully charge a dead battery rather than jump and use the alternator to charge it as the alternator is not designed for this purpose.

It will work of course if a charger is not available but puts added stress and heat on the alternator.

Also I have always heard to fully charge a new battery before installation if possible.

John

 

Optima Yellow Top battery, NOT Red Top, there is a difference between the two. The Yellow Top is a deep cycle battery so even if it does die, you can simply recharge it over and over again without worry of damaging it like you would a regular cell battery. It would also be a good idea to pick up a good trickle charger.

Rule of thumb...never trust a Delco battery.

 

I went with a DieHard Gold, because I don't have a lot of choices down here. But someone recommended a Deka to me. They claimed it was one of the best.

 

get a battery tender / trickle charger.

simple as that.

 

You do NOT want a deep cycle battery for a car. Period.

Also, a trickle charger is practically worthless for an Optima as these batteries requires significant amperage to charge. Most trickle chargers are low amerpage by design and can't overcome the internal resistance inherent in the spiral cell/gel Optima design.

 

Two posts up- The 'Battery Tender', is an actual brand with the electronic innerds. Controls itself.

 

 

I think that most of the battery problems reported here were from either a bad original battery or operator error. They inadvertently left something on or with the 6 spd, did not fully putting it in “reverse gear”. A new fully charged battery should go 4-6 weeks and be able to start your car. My motorcycle goes 2 months with a 2 yr old battery just fine. Two factors that influence are air temp & % of charge on the battery when last shut down. If you live in a cold climate you need help, if warm say 40-50 you’re OK. Next is the % of charge. If you fire her up and do only 10 to 15 minute drives, you battery doesn’t get a full charge. Estimates are 30-45 min for a full charge – so for your last drive before parking, ensure you’re out for a 30 minute continuous run without a restart.
The battery tender others referred to is fine and certainly doesn’t hurt. If you live in North Dakota it would be a wise thing. Florida, I don’t think you need it. I recommend you try it without the trickle charge and see what happens.

 

Saw you live in AZ. Don't think you need to do anything. 6 weeks is a long time to let any car sit. Have a friend fire 'er up every other week for 10 minutes.

 

No deep cycle for a car? I ran red top optimas in my trucks in Baja, 110+ F and never had a worry. But, we beat the s**t out of the trucks getting there and then they would sit overnight with the thick ocean breeze blowing in. If it didn't start, you'd be walking. Why no deep cycle, please educate me.

 

Your information is outdated and incorrect. I assume you are referring to a deep cycle as a "cranking battery" and yes, the new deep cycle battery designs are useable as cranking batteries. A deep cycle battery is actually a desired battery for cars with a lot of electronics or one's that sit for long periods of time. They are just fine for cranking batteries too, in fact, I have tested one of mine under load and it is putting out 1597 CCA, more than enough to crank any V8 engine. If you live in Alaska or the North Pole however, I wouldn't recommend one, however, blonzz lives in Arizona.


Most trickle chargers made now-a-days have the capacity to charge deep cycle batteries since they are becoming so popular. Even the Battery Tender has a charger for deep cycle batteries. I have 3 of them. If you aren't sure what you are buying and you have a deep cycle battery, just read the box, it will say it on there. I can't think of any place that sells battery chargers that doesn't have one capable of trickle charging a deep cycle battery.

 

You keep saying you want an Odyssey battery for your car because you hear such good things about it. You do realize they are deep cycle don't you?

 

Red top Optimas are not deep-cycle. The yellow ones are.

I, too, recommend the red tops for your cars.

 

1) I'm not sure how you came to the "1597 CCA" number you are quoting. CCA is the number of amps output at zero degrees F for 30 seconds without the voltage falling below the recommended minimum (usually ~10.5v). Perhaps you meant CA (cranking amps), but your number is still way too high.

2) Deep cycle batteries (such as the Optima yellow top) have thicker plates and as such are able to withstand "deep" discharge/recharge cycles without excessive sulfination. These thicker plates translates to a heavier battery, and in some cases the weight increase is significant (~35-40%). These thicker plates don't come free, and one can expect to pay the same % increase for a deep cell at retail. Also, deep cycle batteries have LESS CCA than a comparably sized starting battery.

3) It is true that deep cycle batteries provide more AH, and as such will remain usable for a longer period of time in the presence of a constant drain, but the difference is only 15%. In the same drain scenario, the yellow top will remain viable for 138 hours versus the red top at 120 hours.

4) It is BAD for a deep cycle battery to be discharged to <10% SoC (State of Charge). The rule for deep cycle is "more than 10%, less than 20%". Starting you car will not meet this rule and will greatly shorten the life of a deep cycle battery. This rule (and the need for greater CCAs in some locales) is the very reason why "starting" batteries were developed. They can take the <10% SoC, but >10% will kill it just as fast as a deep cycle @ <10%.

Sorry for being long winded...either battery will work in the Vette just fine, I just wanted everyone to realize exactly what that extra $50 and 5-7lbs is REALLY getting you.

Here is a handy Optima chart:

 

 

I had trouble with my C5 battery going dead. I talked to a Delco dist. and he said Delco is building a "Absorbed Glass Mats", battery that is a much better battery. I don't know much about them. He indicated he thought they were going to put them in the C6. I can't find any information on the content on the new battery on the C6. Anybody know?

 

I can say without a doubt that shut down was correct... and it was fully in reverse gear. First thing I checked when I got in to the car. Still can't figure out what the issue is. Also, doesn't appear to be a battery issue as it has been working fine since (two weeks). Also, the service department could not detect a drain. I'd like to get to the bottom of it. Thanks for the info.

 

The Odyssey is different design it is not a standard deep cycle, first of all it is a dry cell, second it can take 400 complete deep cycle discharges 100% dead, 500 at 80%, thirdly they don't require special equipment to recharge, also a battery tender works just fine (although it doesn't have enough juice to make any deep cycle battery come back from a complete discharge) . Fourthly it is possible to bring an Odyssey up to a 95% charge in as little as 20 minutes with a powerful enough charger(try that with an Optima, there would be little bitty bits of Optima all over), which means you can leave the charger on start, there is no limit on the inrush current, Lastly it can sit for 2 years and not need to be recharged, unlike normal battery's that need to be recharged every 6 -12 weeks. The Optima isn't in the same league as the Odyssey, not even close.

 

You are correct, I did mean CA (cranking amps) however, the 1597 CA number I quoted is real. Optima under rates their CA because each battery may vary in output. Optima may publish a CA of 1100 but I can assure you many of their batteries will exceed that under real world testing.

All of which is moot. Yes a deep cycle battery is heavier, yes a deep cycle battery is more expensive, no one said they weren't. Yes a deep cycle battery will have less CCA than a cranking battery of its size but with 750 CCA and up to 1600 CA it is well more than any V8 needs to crank...over and over again. And with the benefits it gives for electronics laden vehicles that are prone to current draw it is an excellent battery choice, especially in warmer climates.

18 hours is a significant difference, and the non-deep cycle battery will probably incur damage upon recharge whereas the deep cycle probably won't.

Then why did you say that one should NOT want a deep cycle battery for a car. Period?
However, I do agree with you, either battery will be fine in a Vette, but given a choice, I will take the Yellow Top (or any good deep-cycle battery) over the Red Top for the purpose I have for it. The CCA and CA of the Yellow Top are sufficient to ensure my V8 will crank every time I "push the button" or turn the key, it will take longer to drain in the presence of current draw and will sustain multiple deep charges in the case it needs them. To me that's worth the extra money. I also live in the south so ungodly cold weather is not a problem for me.

Thanks for making it all so clear.

 

You are correct, I did mean CA (cranking amps) however, the 1597 CA number I quoted is real. Optima under rates their CA because each battery may vary in output. Optima may publish a CA of 1100 but I can assure you many of their batteries will exceed that under real world testing.

All of which is moot. Yes a deep cycle battery is heavier, yes a deep cycle battery is more expensive, no one said they weren't. Yes a deep cycle battery will have less CCA than a cranking battery of its size but with 750 CCA and up to 1600 CA it is well more than any V8 needs to crank...over and over again. And with the benefits it gives for electronics laden vehicles that are prone to current draw it is an excellent battery choice, especially in warmer climates.

18 hours is a significant difference, and the non-deep cycle battery will probably incur damage upon recharge whereas the deep cycle probably won't.

Then why did you say that one should NOT want a deep cycle battery for a car. Period?
However, I do agree with you, either battery will be fine in a Vette, but given a choice, I will take the Yellow Top (or any good deep-cycle battery) over the Red Top for the purpose I have for it. The CCA and CA of the Yellow Top are sufficient to ensure my V8 will crank every time I "push the button" or turn the key, it will take longer to drain in the presence of current draw and will sustain multiple deep charges in the case it needs them. To me that's worth the extra money. I also live in the south so ungodly cold weather is not a problem for me.

Thanks for making it all so clear.