jasonw75

Hello:

I have an 07 LTZ with just about everything. If I listen to the radio without the vehicle running the battery dies. I thought it was because of the large display on the navigation system. The other day while I was refueling I left the key in the accessory position and by the time I was done refueling my battery was dead. I have asked the dealer to install a second battery, but they are not sure how to do it. The dealer told me that Chevy offers a camper package, (with second battery) but they don't have a vehicle on the lot that has one so they can't look to see how to wire a second battery. They have tested my battery and charging system and told me they are both fine. Any Ideas???

ZX1100F1

If you use just the radio then make certain the ACC ignition mode is not selected, it is best to just enable the retained accessory power by rolling the driver window down and recycling the key after the door is closed or have the passenger recycle (on then off) the key for you.
The battery should not die in the ACC mode in as little time as it takes to refuel the tuck even though there is a very large drain on these newer Tahoe’s electrical systems when the key is on, there can be as many as 24 modules along with any other electrical item that may be on.
Have the dealer perform a full load test on the battery, in many cases a new vehicle is not sold right away and may sit for several months with the battery being run down and recharged many times or left dead for extended periods this can be very common in vehicles that have been placed on the dealer’s showroom floor. After the sale the battery may seam fine for a while and then start to exhibit the problems that you describe, when the dealer does a simple voltage check the battery looks good but if a load is placed on it for several minutes it may die rather quickly.
You should strongly request a new battery, a 2nd battery (TP2) is not necessary to correct this problem although the installation of the extra battery is very straight forward and should pose no problem for any skilled ASE certified auto electronics tech.

benndez9

I have noticed that after long road trips I can't use the power lift gate function, in the manual it says that it is due to the battery power being low. You would think that after a road trip with the engine running the whole time there would be enough juice in the battery. The first time I thought it was just a fluke thing but it happend twice this past weekend. I think I am going to check the battery out too.

NCHEVYHEVN

Yea they should definatly do a load test on the battery and probly do a parasitic drain test to see if something is staying on that shouldn't.

But I agree with ZX1100F1 about vehicles sitting a long time. At one of the dealerships I worked at they never sold any corvettes so the batteries would always go dead and soon we just had to replaced them from them constantly being drained and recharged over and over.

jasonw75

What does your voltage indicator say when you are driving. Most other cars I owned were around 14 volts and my tahoe is only at 12 is this normal?

freyguy

I've noticed this too. When I tinted the windows in mine I left the key on so I could roll the windows up and down. I turned off the radio and AC. After about an hour when I was finished, I went to start it and got nothing. I hooked up my charger/jumper and it wouldn't turn it over. I then jumped it with my truck. Well, it was throwing ABS, Traction Control, and charging system codes. The engine was running in limp mode also. It sucked!! I drove it a while, went back to the house, shut it down and restarted it. Same thing. Drove it some more then parked it and went to dinner. After I got back, it started and ran fine. The engine light was still on, so I disco'd the negative terminal to reset it. It's been fine since.

Kinda screwy it ran down fast, and a real pita that it's such a PITA to jump. And I've jumped plenty of cars so I'm sure I did it right.

jasonw75

That's exactly what happened to me... same indicator lights and everything... my engine didn't go into limp mode tho thank god!! When I took it into the dealership they said they didn't see any codes even though I saw a charging system error.

Dnalguoh

has anyone solved your 10 minute accessory on battery death?

kevinkpk

I hope so since this thread is over 5 years old.

in2pro

Dnalguoh, Welcome to the forum... if you are in the habit of running the radio with the vehicle off for extended amounts of time, you might consider upgrading your battery or adding a second one to the front tray