Scrivs

Hey all, I am new to this forum and have fairly limited mechanical knowledge. I need some input re: car starting issues. I have an 01 Z06with 15,000 miles that I have owned since 04. I live in Canada and store my car in the winter in my garage. I have recently had issues with it not starting and am on my 3rd battery in that past year (all Red Top Optima). I bought a new battery in Feb 08 and it fired up right away and I then hooked er up to my trickle charger. I had shoulder surgery so I didn't start er up again until last week and the car was completely dead (no power at all- not even a crank). I replaced the battery and brought home a new Red Top and she fired up immediately. I am concerned I may have a draw somewhere on my battery, cause it shouldn't die in 2 months ( I am in southern Ontario- basically next to Detroit, so it doesn't get THAT COLD). Any help or similar experiences would be appreciated.

Thanks

heavymetals

If it just sits for a couple of months with no charger I would expect it to go dead.

Get yourself a Battery Tender.

Z06ster

You indeed may have something that is draining the battery. I am responding though to offer another possibility in the mix because it was a dead battery issue that mysteriously plagued me for a while...

About 2 months after I first got my C5Z (with only 25K on the clock), I would start it and it was fine. Then, a few days later it was completely dead. Mysteriously it would start up again later. This went on for a few months. I had "professionals" look at it. They checked the alternator, the battery, and checked for a drain... no problem detected. So what was the problem?

It turned out my battery cables were loose. They were not dangling and there were even firmly held on, but they were simply not tight enough. Ultimately, this problem was resolved by using lock-tite on the terminal screws. On your next battery, if you have not used lock-tite, do so. If you have already done this, well, at least you can rule this out.

XCUZME

Newbie here, picked up my 03 Z06 3 weeks ago.
I was at the shop yesterday, &, a kid with an 06 Coupe was in with the "dead battery" problem.
According to my buddy, (02 Z06, since 05), the "dead battery" problem is due to the ongoing activity between the on-board computers when the car is not in use, &, the answer is a "Battery Tender".
Good Luck.

Scrivs

Thanks for the replies....I read a few other posts and made sure that my glove box light was going out and also checked my battery cables, they tightened up a bit so I will see if that is the case.....excuse my ignorance but is a battery tender the same thing as a trickle charger, or not, please explain (and keep your laughter to a minimum)

TEXHAWK0

If you are worried about having a drain on the battery, why don't you just disconnect the battery cables during times when you are not driving the car? Even if you are not charging the battery, that would be better than having a drain all the time.

TEXHAWK0

Also, even if the battery terminals look clean, it helps to take emery cloth and clean them once in awhile.

jrh009

Absolutely not, I live in Parry Sound, a few miles north of the Windsor area. I use a Battery Tender 100% of the time the Z is not on the road. It is an electronic float charger which basically shuts down when the battery does not need a charge.

A trickle charger can kill your battery if it is left on for too long because it keeps on charging all of the time. My 04 is still on the original battery without any signs of giving up.

The Battery Tender seems to be the most expensive float style charger but in my opinion it is the best.

Also if you search for the best battery type replacement you will find Optima is well down on the list.

Good luck, hope this helps a bit

TAC

Ditto on the assessment of a trickle charger. It will kill your battery if left on. A battery tender is designed to stay on for long periods of time.


Here's an old post you may want to read. You'll see some negative stuff about Optima Red Tops. Yes, I know they used to have a really good reputation but evidence suggests they had some problems a while ago. I'm not the only to have a bad experience with several Red Tops. I finally went to Chevy and got an OEM Delco.

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...hlight=battery

CJR2

Hope your battery was covered by the warranty. I have installed a cut off on another car that I've had battery issues with because I don't drive her enough to keep the battery charged.

I got this one from Harbor Freight for $ 5.00.

ZeeOSix

Guys .... go read this thread about the different types of battery chargers, and the ones to use with batteries like the Optima Red Top.

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=1999447

bobby777

Do yourself a favor=Get a battery Tender--can use 24/7 365 days a year--plug it in and walk away-

TAC

Interesting--but I don't think that explains everything. I got my 2nd replacement Red Top and put it on my wood workbench. My Battery Tender brought it up to 13.2 volts overnight so I removed the tender and let the battery sit on my workbench all by itself. The next morning it was down to 11.73V. The battery simply didn't hold its charge and it was brand new. If it takes some special tender to keep it alive why would I believe a simple alternator would then keep it fully charged? I'll stick to my Delco...

Torqaholic

I just replaced my stock 2003 this Spring. It never gave me any problem but I figured 5 years is long enough. Put a 15 pound Braille into it about 2 months ago and that also has not given me any problem yet.

heavymetals

Maybe you got a dud.

Not unheard of.

Should come up to 13.6V.

heavymetals

You "cooked it" leaving it on the trickle charger.

ZeeOSix

I agree with heavymetals ... it sounds like you got a bad Red Top. Happened to me also, and got a 2nd one under warranty and it's been good for about 3 years now.

One thing I have to ask though. Was the 13.2 volts across the battery after the Battery Tender was removed, or was it still on the battery? If it was without the Tender, and the battery voltage fell to 11.7 over night then it's definitely a bad battery.

When I put the Battery Tender on my car, I leave it on many days after it shows the battery is fully charged. If you read the details on how these chargers work, they taper off and cut back to a low current charge and it's best to leave them on for awhile to ensure the battery gets the full charge.

Also, if anyone is going to buy an Optima bring your voltmeter and make sure you get one that's 12.5 volts or better when it's sitting on the self.

TAC

Perhaps. You'll see, though, that that was my 2nd replacement--meaning the first Red Top I bought wuoldn't hold a charge so I returned it for a new one and that's the one I did the experimenting on. That was bad too. That's too much for me to be a coincidence. After that is when I started reading up on the Red Top and saw all the other threads by people with similar experiences. I dunno...

heavymetals

Two duds?

Could be.

SweetZO6

Scrivs......take the positive terminal off the battery and put an AMP meter in series with the battery post and the terminal. Should read only a few milliamps for computer memory, etc.. If you are drawing more then .5 AMPs with everything off, then you have something that has possibly shorted causing excessive current draw. Just leave the amp meter connected and start pulling fuses one at at time. When the current draw drops, there is you culprit. People will add accessories and put them to the BATTERY side of the ignition switch vice the IGNITION side. Measure the current draw and post what it is. We can tell you if it is excessive. I have my XM radio and police scanner wired to the battery and have left them on for a week. The Optima still kicked the Z over.

Ed