Dead battery on my 2009 Vibe GT

[tpollauf]

OK, here's the situation. Most of you know I drive my Vibe GT very little due to my work requiring me to drive their vehicle.. Well the past couple of months it sat in the garage and was not even started at all. I finally went to move it and ....."click" "click" you know that dreaded dead battery sound Anyways I had to charge it and it then started up. While running all looked good and was producing a healthy 13.8 - 14.0 volts. We'll check it out tomorrow & beyond to see if it maintains a solid charge. No doors were left open and no lights were left on. Somehow it simply went dead Is this normal if a vehicle is left undriven for a long time? Just curious what you guys might think about this situation. It is possible that the battery is on it's way out and if it doesn't hold a charge overnight or into the next few days, I'll have it checked out and replaced if possible. Thanks fellow GenVibers

[jake75]

There have been times when my T&C has sat unused for over a month. The battery was a little "sluggish" when starting after all that time but it did the job. Maybe the Vibe's 310 CCA (or thereabouts) just doesn't hold up as well. On my '03 Vibe I replaced the OEM battery at about 5 years with a highly rated Costco Kirkland battery that had about 50% more CCA's.

[ponta2147]

Well, I know that the OnStar modules are always on, which cause slight power drain. There is also the "passive security system" (aka the You Just Tried To Unlock This Door By Hand Warning System lol) which is always on. Also if you leave anything plugged into the 12v, even if it's off, can slowly drain power.Chris's G6 battery died after a week of not being started in the winter (and I mean dead as a doornail, replace the battery died). He had some stuff plugged in that was off, plus the OnStar, plus the passive security, plus the battery being two years old, plus the cold. Mine has been killed by leaving lights on at the airport over vacation, but was jumped and works fine.

[beemerphile1]

Normal? Yes.There are parasitic loads that are on constantly maintaining memory like the clock, the radio, and probably others.If any battery is going to sit for a long time it should be fully charged and then disconnected. Or use a battery maintainer like the Deltran Battery Tender or the Battery Minder.More batteries die of abuse and neglect than old age.

[Sublimewind]

You deep cycled the battery by letting it sit, that or you didn't allow long enough to recharge it... I'd put it on a charger for a day and see what happens... And get a battery tender, it's the best 30$ you'll ever spend for this situation..

[vibenvy]

Quote, originally posted by tpollauf »OK, here's the situation. Most of you know I drive my Vibe GT very little due to my work requiring me to drive their vehicle.. Well the past couple of months it sat in the garage and was not even started at all. I finally went to move it and ....."click" "click" you know that dreaded dead battery sound Anyways I had to charge it and it then started up. While running all looked good and was producing a healthy 13.8 - 14.0 volts. We'll check it out tomorrow & beyond to see if it maintains a solid charge. No doors were left open and no lights were left on. Somehow it simply went dead Is this normal if a vehicle is left undriven for a long time? Just curious what you guys might think about this situation. It is possible that the battery is on it's way out and if it doesn't hold a charge overnight or into the next few days, I'll have it checked out and replaced if possible. Thanks fellow GenVibers Time to get some red under that hood Tim !