Check 6

I thought I was not going to be a member but not so lucky. I always shut the car down according to procedure. Transmission in reverse, parking brake on and make sure i get no error messages. I also manually (with the remote) lock the car by pressing the lock button twice and hearing the horn on the second press. I then look in the car to make sure there are no lights on the start switch and that the red pulsing light on the radio panel is flashing. I have left the vehicle for up to two weeks and it always started right up. I drove in Sunday to church and walked by it yesterday to make sure all is right .... I was not going to get caught in the dead battery thing. WELL this morning ( two days after i last drove it) I go out at 5 in the AM to take it to work COMPLETELY DEAD !!
Using the emergency key I get in and hook up a battery charger I at once get to error messages " FOB not recognized" followed by "service control column lock" or such. I take the pick-up to teach and on the way home stop at the dealer. He tells me that they have had several in with those error messages and they will have a truck come pick it up. I'm not a happy camper. I will keep the board informed.

capevettes

Those messages are the result of the dead battery. If you put the car on a charger for about an hour or 2 the car should start. Then take it for a good drive. Did you manually lock the steering column after shutdown? One engineer at Carlisle felt this could be related. This is among many theories such as Relay 46 and external influences. The dealer is a waste of time. They'll most likely tell you everything checks out fine. Good luck.

Check 6

I can't honestly say that i locked the steering column per say but my shut down procedure is the same every time as I was focused on not being a member of the "dead battery club" I agree that it may be a mission in frustration with the dealer. I have a charger on it right now and will report back

Check 6

I did put a charger on for at least an hour and the car started. I drove at hiway speeds for about 10 miles and put it back in the garage. I will check it tomorrow and the dealer has asked me to bring it in to check the electrical system. Interesting when the battery goes dead the window index memory is lost but not the radio station memories. My car is stored in a dry building, our South Texas climate has been very dry and it has never been in the rain so contact corrision is almost ruled out, but something is putting a drain on a small shallow cell battery. Also interesting that the system is being changed on the '06 so the engineers appear to recognize a problem even if small. Still very happy with the vette.

mikeyc6

Welcome new DBS club member. Thanks for reporting the details. I'm confident that one day someone will stumble onto something that leads to the answer. So far I'm only a one time member of the DBS club, but until we/someone figures out how to fix the problem, my advice is to invest 60 bucks on a PriorityStart module. Your car may turn up "dead" but at least the battery won't be, and a simple push of the cigarette lighter will start her right up again without any charging needed. One other benefit to the PriorityStart is that it shuts off power at 11.9 volts, avoiding all the random/freakish problems that can occur when the battery voltage drops off slowly and does strange things to the electical system when it gets down under 10 volts. At least the quick shutoff prevents that.

P.S. Have you pulled relay 46?

Mike

FlyinLow

One beneficial thing everyone could do that has the DBS is to list how they have the car programmed. Do you have passive locking on, etc. Maybe someone will be able to recognize a pattern that one of the program options could be a culprit. I'm not saying that all cars programmed a certain way would have the problem, but some could.

Hoonose

Don't bother taking it in to have them check it, as they probably won't find anything wrong. Maybe if it happens again....
And do remember to make the sure that the steering wheel locks in place before exiting the vehicle.

VET4LES

Did you manually lock the steering column after shutdown? One engineer at Carlisle felt this could be related.

I have read this before and have wondered how you Manually lock the steering column. When I shut mine down I put it in reverse, set the emergency brake, and push the off button. What am I missing. In 4200 miles and 5 months I have not had the DBS. Thanks for the information.

VET4LES

[QUOTE=capevettes] Did you manually lock the steering column after shutdown? One engineer at Carlisle felt this could be related.

I have read this before and wondering how you lock the steering column manually. When I shut down my C6 I put it in reverse, set the hand brake and push the button to shut off the engine. What am I missing? I know the steering wheel lock's but not manually.

Joezone914

I have not had the prolem yet. I do have passive locking on. My car has sat twice for long periods of time. Once for 3 weeks and then just recently for 4 week no probs. I do not ever try to lock steering column once car is off. I simply shut off a/c (if I remember) then put it into rev then shut down then pull e-brake. I hope this helps someone although i doubt it. It seems till they find the provlem it is hit or miss on who has it.

Joe

Hoonose

[QUOTE=VET4LES]You need to rotate the steering wheel a tad after turning the car off, and you'll feel it lock in!

NextOne

After having my battery replaced last October, I have not had this problem since.

c2c4c6

What is a "PriorityStart module" and where do you get it? What is involved in installing it?

mikeyc6

It's a simple low voltage detector that disconnects the battery when voltage drops below 11.9 volts. The battery can be reconnected by pushing in the cigarette lighter. The auto-disconnect saves the battery and allows you to start up in the event of parasitic drain on the battery. Here is where I got mine. It is a simple install: just install it on your battery as it plugs right into your battery terminals.

Mike

tom4416

Although I've an automatic and they don't seem prone to DBS, I'm still suspect of that small battery in a car with so much electrical drainage even when functioning normally. Is there a recommended replacement battery that is maybe gell cell technology or more of a deep cycle type batter? I've seen a couple of people use Optima - is that the recommended high amp/high capacity replacement. Thanks.

Wass

I am a member of the DBS club too (MN6). Had it happen once a few months ago. Jump started and never another problem. I don't lock the steering column. No one has the answer to this problem yet!!

ScrivC6

Did you happen to notice if the lights on the bottom of the mirror were on after shut off? We accidently pushed the dimmer on the left side of the dash,causing them to remain on. If it hadn't been dark outside we wouldn't have noticed and probably been a member of this DB club. Just a thought

C5 then C6

I've been lucky with my car....but having a dead battery would beat the pulley coming off....Good luck with the fix!

Check 6

The lights were not on. Refer to my first post, the car has sat in the past for up to 2 weeks and started fine. It failed after sitting for only two days and my shutdown procedure was followed to the letter. The vette is normally housed in my hanger (metal insulated building) and I go by it numerous times during the day. I never fail to look in (without FOB nearby) to see if all lights including the ignition switch lights are off and that the blinking red light on the radio panel is blinking. Even have my wife trained. There has to be a low current draw in the electrical system which combined with a small non deep cell battery causes the problem. Several have posted about relay 46. I want to check this out. The manual shows that relay is for the headlight washers and my question would be why is it even installed on US cars? The start protection module some mentioned may be a short term "band aide " fix.

jgraditor

Here's sonething odd to add, I have had a dead battery 2 times, and both times were when I left the top off the car???? I was in reverse with all of the lights off both times. My car is a weekend driver, so I leave it in the garage all week, but the only time I had a problem was with the top off. Is this just luck of the draw, or have I entered the twilight zone!!!