638HP

My apologies in advance for being a dumb butt, mechanical in nature I am not... how the heck to you remove the battery out of a ZR1? GM sure does not provide a whole heck of a lot of spare room to jostle the battery out! I am finding the positive cable is just too big and inflexible to get around.

I was not maintaining the battery with a C-TEK charger as I should have, I know another dumb move, which I now just purchased, however now the battery is dead as a door ****, won't take a charge anymore. UGH!

I am able to move the negative cable off to the passengers side just fine. The source of the issue is the positive cable as it feeds into the front of the battery compartment, right smack dab in the middle of the compartment. Perhaps GM should have sourced this cable more towards the edge of the compartment as they did with the negative cable, thus allowing you to move it easily aside.

Due to the bulk of the positive cable and the fact that I can not move it either side to side or back toward the front of the car enough to pull up the battery.

Is there an obvious process that I am missing or a special tool required? Fellow Corvette enthusiasts, please don't make me feel any dumber than I already feel. Thanks in advance.

DYNAMIC RON

Do a search. I think someone had a thread about the battery removal.

911/Q45

It appears that you can either tuck the cable between the battery and the front of the compartment or hold it up and out of the way against the flipped up door while you lift the battery out. A strap that attaches to the terminals will make it much easier to lift. This forum isn't generally too abusive if you don't cop an attitude.

GForceSS

If you have a battery strap or clamp to pull it up and out, that would be best. If not, the carpet and side panel to the right all lift up to get the plastic piece over the battery out of the way. Just be careful of the clips to the side and the one under the carpet.

prostreet_632

What he said, that is how I replaced mine pulling the side and carpet back, it also makes it easier going back in since you can move the cables more

isnider

The dealer will replace it under warranty...let them deal with it. It is a total knuckle buster...careful you don't break the vent hose fitting too. A replacement kit is close to 30 bucks and people either break it or leave on the old battery.

Ian

GForceSS

The dealer will put the battery on their machine provided to them by GM. Even if the battery is dead they will keep the battery on the machine as long as it takes to charge it or for the machine to throw a code for GM to log. Sometimes it takes up 24hrs, so I suggest taking the battery to the dealer so you don’t have to leave your car there over night and find a ride home and back again.

With the carpet out of the way and the rubber hose connecting to the hydrogen gas vent tube out of the way, the inlet on the battery will be safe from damage.

narush

Remove the rear cover and net this will allow the plastic surround to move which enables you to get the battery out. I gave this advice to another member as well it works perfectly.

I had to throw some things and scream unitl I broke down and took the rear cover off and walla the damn battery comes right out.

Gary '09 C6

could you please explain this a bit more ? do you mean remove the cover to the battery storage bin ? or something else ...?

thx....G

narush

Cool! Open the hatch and inside you will see the net that is attached to two hooks this cover is what has to be removed if you needed to change tail light bulbs or side maker bulbs. The hooks actually hold this cover in as well.

Hope this helps if not call me at 4106276617.

Anthony

355Spider

Cussing, holering and throwing tools seemed to work for me.

Gary '09 C6

thanks, Anthony

I just wasn't sure if you were referring to the rear cover inside the hatch (against the back of the car), or the cover to the battery storage bin itself.

I do not need to change my battery now, as it the car was just deliverd last month, but this info is obviously helpful to know for the future.

Gary

narush

No doubt but removing that cover makes it so much easier to get that heavy bastard out

narush

Your welcome Gary!

And yes I was referring to the cover against the back of the car. It allows that trap door move enough to get a good lift on the battery to pull it out.

mscollon

I had the best luck pulling the carpet on the back wall out of the way after taking out the two screws(one with the net hook and the other has a screw slot). Then using 4 laps of duck tape roughly 40 inches long and put under and around the battery as a handle. Even with a second set of hands managing the cable and a putty knife to slide the battery out around the top cover - it still was a beast. New battery has an integrated handle.

SweetZO6

A vice grip on each terminal makes removal very easy, gives a lot of leverage and no busted knuckles. Took me 15 minutes to remove the OEM battery and install a new Optima Yellow top.

Ed

Dave Schotz

What he said!

NofakeJake

This is more my style

Although duct tape and a can of WD 40 usually works for me on everything else

Victory07

Yes that worked for me as well...provides some great entertainment for the neighbors too.

oysteinrogne

I have the same problem today.
It's worth noting some shop manuals will have incorrect info for the zr1 battery. As a matter of fact, when I got mine the previous owner had the wrong size, and let me tell you it was a pain in the a to get out.
Anywho, Napa replaced it for free with the correct size.
It is now dead, and I found the trick is to push the positive lead down in front of the battery in a U shape so it fits under the lip of the carpet.
I was a little concerned about bending it, but it seems fine.
The Napa battery has a plastic handle, so with the positive lead out of the way, lifting it out is a piece of cake.