Will it last forever

I have a friend of mine with a 98 corvette with 21,000 miles. It has the original battery in it. He drives it maybe two days a week, but everytime he gets into it it cranks right over. When it stands idle for several days, the volts read around 12 and when it starts up it reads around 14. It appears that the battery is in perfect running condition, but it is 5 years old....Should he just replace it anyway? How long should it last?

[JRMaroon]

I've had AC Delco batteries that have given Zero Warning before they quit. Good performance every single start until it just goes dead and doesn't hold a charge. I replaced the original battery in my '94 in March of last year so they can last beyond their life expectancy.

A replacement after 5 years gives peace of mind. I might replace it in a daily driver that had to get me to work but for the Vette I wouldn't touch it until it dies. That could be tomorrow or 2 years from now. JMO.

I understand that it's a totally different vehicle, but the AC Delco battery in my '92 S-10 lasted over 9 years (and it was my daily driver).

Barb

My '99 C5 is on it's 3rd battery and the car has about 30K miles. My '99 Silverado is still on it's 1st battery....go figure

[EHS]

There have been a number of reports about leaks from AC Delcos in C5s.

It's an expensive proposition because the battery is located over the PCM, and that area with all the electronics gets damaged.

I would suggest that, for peace of mind, your friend replace the AC Delco with a $100 Optima, which is "leak proof."

Thank you for your informatiom. I guess I'll just tell him to put in a new battery. Maybe the same kind that's in my 2001.

[Edmond]

Paying $100 right now will far outweigh the cost of being stranded at work or being stranded at home. Battery lives are quite trickey and they can go at any time or last a very long time. Not to mention the possibility of PCM damage if the battery were to leak for whatever reason like EHS said.

[TLY-BAMA]

Originally posted by EHS
There have been a number of reports about leaks from AC Delcos in C5s.

It's an expensive proposition because the battery is located over the PCM, and that area with all the electronics gets damaged.

I would suggest that, for peace of mind, your friend replace the AC Delco with a $100 Optima, which is "leak proof."

Replace the oem battery. To many have leaked causing the problem stated above.