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I have tried to put a Battery Tender on my 2008 Convertible. This has caused problems that I thought killed my battery. I have tried a couple times, and the system seems to reject the idea. Has anyone else had the same problem or what has anyone used to keep their battery fresh?
Couple questions; Is the battery you are charging over 11 volts? Can the Battery tender charge other batteries besides the one in the C-6? (You are able to use it on other vehicles?)
Either the battery is at fault or the charger is at fault. I hate to ask but are you connecting the cables properly? Pos. to Pos. and Neg. to Neg.? Red is Pos. and black is Neg. Lastly are you connecting directly to the battery or somewhere else like the fuse panel (located directly in front of the battery? Most battery tenders will not provide an output voltage unless it sees a battery voltage of at least 11 Volts. I ask these stupid Q's because I have no idea of your capabilities so I have to start at the bottom.
I had a C5 that I used the same tender on. It worked fine. I direct wire to the battery and leave the tail so I can plug it in and unplug when I go. Never an issue. The C6 is so much of a different car than the C5. The 99 was an automatic and the 08 is a 6 spd. I drive it so much more. But life getting in the way like it does and cool weather the car sat for a few weeks and the battery went dead. I charged the battery up with a traditional charger. Then said I will install the tender. Same process red to red blk to blk. Plugged it in and the lights came on and the battery was dead. I did not install immediately after charging the battery It was later in the week. Thanks Dan
And to follow up I feel I am qualified for this install. I usually do all my own repairs and Maintenance. Since that happened I have not had an issue. But I have not installed anything. I am in the process of moving and the car may be setting for some time and I really don't want to unhook the battery. I think the reason the battery went dead before was I left the key in the car. And I think there is a draw when the car stays unlocked. So I now remove the key and the car locks itself. Which I am good with.
I had a C5 that I used the same tender on. It worked fine. I direct wire to the battery and leave the tail so I can plug it in and unplug when I go. Never an issue. The C6 is so much of a different car than the C5. The 99 was an automatic and the 08 is a 6 spd. I drive it so much more. But life getting in the way like it does and cool weather the car sat for a few weeks and the battery went dead. I charged the battery up with a traditional charger. Then said I will install the tender. Same process red to red blk to blk. Plugged it in and the lights came on and the battery was dead. I did not install immediately after charging the battery It was later in the week. Thanks Dan
Ok so we know the battery tender works. How old is the battery? And do you park the car with the transmission in reverse? If not, I don't think the car will shutdown or go to sleep. This could be the drain on your battery.
Also not installing the tender right away after a charge may have caused the battery to drop below 11 Volts. And parking the car in reverse is critical.
And to follow up I feel I am qualified for this install. I usually do all my own repairs and Maintenance. Since that happened I have not had an issue. But I have not installed anything. I am in the process of moving and the car may be setting for some time and I really don't want to unhook the battery. I think the reason the battery went dead before was I left the key in the car. And I think there is a draw when the car stays unlocked. So I now remove the key and the car locks itself. Which I am good with.
Well that's a relief.
And yes leaving the key in the car or even leaving the key near the car will cause the car and key to communicate, eating up battery power.
I have never parked the car in reverse. The guy I bought the car from was not an enthusiast. He just thought the car was pretty. It had 18K miles when I bought it about 20 months ago. He told me that he had just put a new battery in the car. I bet he did not know about parking the car in reverse. I have had manual cars but older with less electronics. My more current cars have been an automatic. I was excited and still am to have this car. It is fabulous.
I'll bet your battery is no good despite what the charger is telling you.
The previous owner said "He told me that he had just put a new battery in the car"
Just cause he said that doesn't make it so.
Just cause it's new or not old doesn't mean it's no good.
I have never parked the car in reverse. The guy I bought the car from was not an enthusiast. He just thought the car was pretty. It had 18K miles when I bought it about 20 months ago. He told me that he had just put a new battery in the car. I bet he did not know about parking the car in reverse. I have had manual cars but older with less electronics. My more current cars have been an automatic. I was excited and still am to have this car. It is fabulous.
The vehicle should be placed in the reverse position and the engine turned off , this allows the car to "go to sleep"
And yes, they are fabulous vehicles!
I would check the date code of the battery. A typical date will read like this: A letter designating the month and a number designating the last digit of the year. Ex. B-4, February 2024. Any battery over three years old is suspect. They just don't build them like they use to. Although, I can attest to having a 9 Y.O. battery in a Dodge Charger and still going strong but with the winter coming, I didn't trust it. So I bought a new battery.
After you have determined the date code and assuming it's within three years, have the battery load tested at your local auto parts store. Corvettes are very sensitive to electrical system voltage. Not sure why, maybe because of all the electronics. Let us know what you find.
I would disconnect the battery, charge it up then take it to a parts store where they can load test it for you. THat will or will not tell you the battery is OK. Move on from there.
Just a guess but sometimes when a battery goes completely dead even with a charge it will not charge back up to full capacity so the Tender won't do anything. And who knows if and how many times the previous owner killed the battery by not parking it in reverse? Good luck...
Well that's a relief. And yes leaving the key in the car or even leaving the key near the car will cause the car and key to communicate, eating up battery power.
That is simply not true at all. The only time there is communication between the car and fob is when a button is pushed - on the fob, door pad, trunk/hatch button, start button. There's no proximity feature on these cars that make them continuously aware when they get close to the fob.
And, only the 2005 M6 cars need to be placed in reverse because of a design flaw that prevents the ECU from going to sleep and drains the battery. The problem was corrected in 2006, although the user's manual may recommend leaving it in reverse for safety and security.
Battery Tender Issues
