CropDuster

Had my battery replaced a little over two weeks ago after it died and now the new one is dead too. Didn't even get a chance to drive it except for bringing it home from the dealer.

cor28vettes

Do a SEARCH for that topic for C6.

Go to tech under C6 for tech discussion.
Does not sound like a battery problem but a sap.
Good Dlr should be able to trace the source of the problem with their resources.

Get a Battery Tender in any event.

0Rage@AutoBuffs

Congrats Been there and done that already! Drove the Z off the lot, stopped at Wendys, came out, dead battery!

mcwire

It's just the "DBS". Welcome to C6 country. -----

CropDuster

It's funny, because the one that they replaced two weeks ago was the original battery is far as I know. But it is like since it has gotten cold it doesn't want to do it's job. I hadn't been able to drive it in those two weeks because I live on a dirt road and it has been too muddy from recent rains. Guess I'll have to buy a charger to keep hooked to it.

gpmarsha

Get a CTEK

JONS 07

CTEK: Cure to those problems.
DO NOT go Black and Decker
type crap, They can destroy
a battery fairly quickly. 29.95
may sound great, until you find
out what it REALLY does and
what it REALLY doesn't do.

Hoonose

Very unlikely if not '05 MN6.

Kreuzen

calemasters

When the battery becomes discharged, the tech should not just simply replace the battery, unless the "battery" was actually defective. The Midtronics battery tester can help determine the condition of the battery.

The discharged battery is just one of the systemic causes of a no crank/start complaint. The tech needs to diagnose the root cause of the discharged battery.

My guess is that about 9 out of 10 batteries replaced, in a car less than 12 months old, are good batteries and can recover from the discharge if properly recharged.

It is just too easy to put in a new battery, screw the diagnosis, collect the 40% warranty parts markup, and send the customer down the road, only to find out 2 weeks later, the new battery is dead. Duh!

carnut08

As a result of various threads on the Forum, I've got a Battery Tender.

When I don't plan on driving the '08 C6 for a few days, I just hook it up. Why not? It was inexpensive and it works well. I've never had a problem.

Maybe I never would've have had a problem, but at least I can feel like I'm being proactive!

adias

As you say that you just drove it back from the dealer... have you considered that perhaps the battery did not have a chance to fully charge and just depleted itself in those 2 weeks?

davekp78

Have you added anything (radar detector, power amp, window valet, etc.) to the car recently?

maxp

I did the same thing for the same reasons

FortMorganAl

How long did it sit on the dealer's shelf before you got it? Interstate dealers rotate their unsold stock quickly for this very reason. Always assume a new battery needs to be charged as soon as possible.

DesertDog

My 2008 is five weeks old with 1,750 miles and I had a dead battery after it sat for four days. Jumped it, and got it to the dealer.
It will have been there for a week this Monday, and the earliest I will get it back is next Wednesday.
Here's the scoop....and what to watch for with your car.

THere is a NEW Service Bullitin out on this problem. My dealer just got it Wednesday.

Essentually, what GM is now saying is that the car should have a normal "drain" of less than 20 mA. If it is over that....they want the tech to determine where it is coming from. Mine was 48 mA to 135 mA. Intermittant. Not good.

Also, my accessory bell would ring sometimes when I opened the car door and sometimes it would not. If yours has done this, it is a clue that something is NOT shutting off.

Soooo, there is something in the "Body Control Module" (BCM), that is NOT turning off one or more of the accessories. In my case, it may have been the map light, not sure. In any case the BCM is not working properly.

THey have ordered me one, and it is due to them Wednesday. THey will put it in, and check the drain. If it is less than 20mA, then it meets their spec, and all is well. I think the Service Manager said that around 7mA is what they want...not sure.

I don;t agree with those that say "get a battery tender" unless you live in a really cold area and the car will sit for months. I know I will get flamed for this....but the damn car cost over $50K, it is NEW, and GM should get it fixed. It should be able to sit for several months without killing the battery.

Talk to your dealer about this. They should be able to easily determine the drain on the system, and if it meets the new GM spec or not! If not, then the most likely problem is the BCM.

I will update the forum with the results of my issue by next Thursday, as it may be relivant to many here. It sounds like GM got a bad batch of BCM's and that this problem is pretty widespread. Why else would they issue a new Service Bullitin? Makes sense to me...

Please stay tuned....

Desert Dog

Check 6

Most likely not DBS as that was confined to the 2005 manual Trans. cars. Also DBS will drain the battery in about 48 hours. It was found that a combination of things revolving around the need to put the 2005 manual cars in reverse were in some cases not shutting down the main computer completely. That system would draw about 1 amp per hour and the standard battery is a 48 amp hour battery (short and basic answer)

Most car batteries today can only sustain a charge for about 2 weeks under normal conditions for several reasons the primary being that even with the car shut down their are some small battery draws on the system. Cold weather can also contribute to the problem. My suggestion would be if you routinely leave your Corvette for 2 weeks or longer you get a battery tender, trickle charger.

Another suggestion is to see your dealer. As I said above the DBs condition was an issue with the 2005 manual configured Corvettes and the factory developed a software update to fix it. The dealer can read the codes and see if perhaps there is an electrical drain that is not normal when the vehicle is shut down

savewave

Had problems about a month after buying my '07. Dealer did diagnostics and said my battery was "unstable." He replaced it and I've had no further problems.

ROC OUT

First, let me say that I am by far an expert and am not trying to simplify the problems some individuals are having with dead batteries. However, upon purchasing my new '07 M6 Coupe, I was instructed by the dealer to make sure that when I shut the engine down that I press the bottom left of the start button where the "O" is located. This would shut off the engine and make certain that all accessories were shut off. Alternatively, depressing the bottom of the start button where the "ACC" is would allow certain accessories to continue running and discharge the battery.

It could be that at least some with battery discharge problems are accidently shutting the engine off and pressing on or near the "ACC" side of the start button instead pressing directly on the "O" side. Inadvertently, some accessories are left running ultimately draining the battery. Repeated shutdowns like this result in dead batteries.

Just a thought and point worth mentioning, IMHO.

DesertDog

I think this is very good advice....and I wondered about the switch myself. I just push the botom of the switch...paying no attention to "right" or "left" when truning the car off. Perhaps this has something to do with it.

It would appear that this is a three-position switch...but unlike any one I have ever encountered.

Any others have any ideas here?

Desert Dog