# faulty battery?



## 400goatpower (Mar 30, 2008)

greetings fellow goat owners.

I just picked up my 06 torrid red goat on thursday and so far i must say it has been quite a bit of fun. Unfortunately, something is wrong with the battery. Yesterday morning after it sat overnight it hesitated starting up but then it did after a second try. And after about 6 or so hours of not driving it i went to crank it up and got hardly anything, I had to jump it. Then this morning I went to start it and got absolutely nothing, except accessories and music, but not engine start. So right now she's sitting on a 12v high charge for a while before I go out. If it sits off for a few minutes after driving it will start fine which makes sense. But overnight it just seems to have some parasitic loss. Anyone have any recommendations?


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## GTO JUDGE (May 14, 2005)

Go to your PONTIAC dealer and get another one under warranty. If you purchased the GTO from a NON Pontiac Dealer and you are less than 36K you have a factory warranty. Get registered under a Pontiac dealer. DO NOT let the dealer you purchased it from do it for you. You should be covered.


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## exwrx (Apr 5, 2007)

*Get a different battery!!*

GM Batteries are by far one of the worst OEM batteries out there and notorious for leaving you stranded. Switch it to a Optima, or Duralast Gel-cell battery. If you get another Stock battery now, you'll just be replacing it again later.


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## 400goatpower (Mar 30, 2008)

exwrx said:


> GM Batteries are by far one of the worst OEM batteries out there and notorious for leaving you stranded. Switch it to a Optima, or Duralast Gel-cell battery. If you get another Stock battery now, you'll just be replacing it again later.


that's interesting you say that. I went to autozone and they wanted to sell me an optima battery but it is 200 bucks. I told them thanks but no thanks. Im going to the dealer tomorrow to pick up my insurance card so while Im there I guess I'll have them check it out. if they test it though it will register a good charge because i drove it there. should i cash in and buy the optima?


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## 400goatpower (Mar 30, 2008)

GTO JUDGE said:


> Go to your PONTIAC dealer and get another one under warranty. If you purchased the GTO from a NON Pontiac Dealer and you are less than 36K you have a factory warranty. Get registered under a Pontiac dealer. DO NOT let the dealer you purchased it from do it for you. You should be covered.


it was purchased from a pontiac, buick, chevrolet, chrysler dealership but I am good friends with the dealer's son who works there also.


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## exwrx (Apr 5, 2007)

You won't feel a difference between the Duralast brand, or Optima, other than the sting in your wallet. As long as they are* Gel-Cell, Deep-cycle* batteries, the difference is negligable and more dependent on your maintenance and driving than the battery itself.

I did Car Audio/performance for 9 years, and have always had issues with GM's batteries. Sold Optima's and SVR batteries by the boatload to frustrated customers, sick of dealing with a 90 year old Acid/lead core battery design.

Sears, Autozone, Pep-Boys, as well as a slew of other vendors will be able to get you a great battery. Now if it's like $60.... I'd say you're just wasting your money, but a good battery will be $90-130.


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## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

The alternator needs to be tested as well to be sure it`s actually charging the battery or causing the drain on it.


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## exwrx (Apr 5, 2007)

Rukee said:


> The alternator needs to be tested as well to be sure it`s actually charging the battery or causing the drain on it.


I don't believe it's his alternator, as he states that it's fine when he drives for a little. Only when resting, but it's a good idea to test it. All you need is a multimeter.


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## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

exwrx said:


> I don't believe it's his alternator, as he states that it's fine when he drives for a little. Only when resting, but it's a good idea to test it. All you need is a multimeter.


A multimeter will test voltage output, but will not check for the alternator causing a drain on the battery when the car is shut off. You could try to remove the battery cable after running it for a while and then let it sit the couple hours. Reconnect the cable if it starts then it`s something on the car, if it still doesn`t start then for sure it`s the battery.


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## GTO JUDGE (May 14, 2005)

Granted the factory installed Delco's aren't the best but there top of the line is right up there. That will be my future battery.
ACDelco Professional 6YR and 7YR Batteries: Best Free Replacement Limited* Warranty in the Industry | ACDelco News | ACDelco

Personally I paid for a warranty and I'll use it. If you don't mind paying for a warranted part then do what you feel is best. IMO I'd get it replaced and worry about paying 200 for another one some 3 years or so.


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## exwrx (Apr 5, 2007)

GTO JUDGE said:


> Granted the factory installed Delco's aren't the best but there top of the line is right up there. That will be my future battery.
> ACDelco Professional 6YR and 7YR Batteries: Best Free Replacement Limited* Warranty in the Industry | ACDelco News | ACDelco
> 
> Personally I paid for a warranty and I'll use it. If you don't mind paying for a warranted part then do what you feel is best. IMO I'd get it replaced and worry about paying 200 for another one some 3 years or so.


Point taken. I didn't because my nearest Pontiac dealer is 45 minutes of L.A. traffic away. Autozone is 3 min's. lol. Time is $$$:lol::lol:


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## GTO JUDGE (May 14, 2005)

That's a haul... Traffic is bad here too... What is normally a 10 min commute with no traffic can easily hit 45 mins or longer.


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## 400goatpower (Mar 30, 2008)

I've decided it's going into the dealer tomorrow and I am going to have them work on it since I need to pick up my insurance card from them anyway. I'm hoping they will just replace the battery under warranty. I'll keep you guys posted


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## exwrx (Apr 5, 2007)

Any pic's of video of that exhaust BTW??? Did you ever get that resolved??


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## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

exwrx said:


> Point taken. I didn't because my nearest Pontiac dealer is 45 minutes of L.A. traffic away. Autozone is 3 min's. lol. Time is $$$:lol::lol:


autozone is a scam for diagnosis. They scan computers for free, but you have to remember, they're into selling parts. So they try to upsell all the parts for any codes that may come up. Some codes can cascade into multiple other codes and it takes a real tech to find the exact cause of all the codes, and not just throw parts at the car till the light goes off.


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## GTO JUDGE (May 14, 2005)

Taking a car of this nature to an Autozone or a Pepboys is unwise. BAD move.
IMO only a well seasoned trained mechanic or someone you know well enough to work on it should be in that engine bay even if it's only an electrical systems check.


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## Partsguru1 (May 21, 2007)

GTO JUDGE said:


> Taking a car of this nature to an Autozone or a Pepboys is unwise. BAD move.
> IMO only a well seasoned trained mechanic or someone you know well enough to work on it should be in that engine bay even if it's only an electrical systems check.


AMEN Brotha!

'Guru


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## 400goatpower (Mar 30, 2008)

*problem solved!*

all better! i took it into the dealer and they it was a dead battery so for the sake of time they took another battery out of another gto on the lot and stuck it in mine now it runs great! no probs! they did order me another one though so thats good too!


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## silversport (Mar 23, 2007)

At the risk of putting the jinx on myself...I have not had a problem with any A/C Delco battery on any car I have owned since buying my first in 1985...as for the deep cycle batteries...I have read that if you don't daily drive them and/or leave them on the battery tender, they may give up the ghost early...good luck,
Bill


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## exwrx (Apr 5, 2007)

No one claimed that deep cycle batteries last longer. The difference is that with a acid base battery, the acid no longer carries a charge in an effective manner once the battery is completely discharged. A chemical reaction takes place as the battery discharges, rendering it almost useless. More specifically, it's the acid interacting with the led core. Once the reaction is completed, the battery no longer holds a charge. It's irreversible. High school chemistry.

A gel-cell, deep cycle battery, can be depleted and recharged numerous times without losing it's ability to hold a charge. It can be cycled (charged/discharged) to a much greater degree (hence the "deep") without any ill effect on the batteries performance. 

In regards to lifespan... I have yet to see a major difference in duration/lifespan if both are cared for properly, and not strained (i.e. underdrive acc. pulley, huge sound-system, leaving the lights on..etc...). If someone tells you otherwise... let me know as I'd like to see the proof.


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## silversport (Mar 23, 2007)

I didn't think anyone thought the deep cycle batteries lasted longer...just had heard (from the Corvette guys) that if you have a glass mat type battery (like I got in my 2001 C5) that the batteries last less if they aren't properly cared for i.e: driven or using something like a battery tender...since sometimes cars like our GTOs and those Corvettes are not daily drivers, the batteries not being used might fail from not being used...some have argued this was the reason that GM went away from the AGM batteries in their cars, specifically the Corvette...
Bill


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## exwrx (Apr 5, 2007)

You got me on that one. I can't vouch for or against GM having swapped batteries, except for the GTO and Vette, which as you correctly pointed out, don't have the traditional AC delco found in the rest of the fleet. The post pattern is different. Anyone know specifically why, and what other cars have the non-gm post pattern? It'd be interesting to get some insight on this issue.

This problem, of batteries draining is more common that might be imagined. VW was having this problem with the "new" Bug. Again, the end result is the intended use of the battery. If it's used/maintained properly, "most" batteries will perform just fine for a number of years. If left on their own, well... some just do better than others. Anyone seen a MBZ battery lately? I kindly refer to those things as the "yard stick". Those sit for quite some time, fire right up... pretty amazing for OEM equipment.


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