Just checked my battery and it looks brand new, but is NOT an oem battery (which at least previous owner in five years replaced it!) it is a AAA battery. Is this bad???

 

I have not heard of an AAA battery.. maybe a google search on it? Look up best batteries for SC430.
Katy

 

+1 on the Battery Tender! It is the only way to go if you store your car for longer periods!

 

Not sure what's meant by "long periods" of storage. The previous die hard battery was dead when I didn't use the car for a week while it was stored and locked in the garage.

After researching it, I decided to go with the Interstate Battery and the Battery Tender. It's trickle charge and automatic cutoff circuitry convinced me it was the way to go. The bonus was the long cable that made it convenient to hook up. It sort of the peace of mind solution...I know the car's gonna start every time even if it's stored for months.

 

I have read and I practice this also. Always turn your headlight switch to the off position from the auto position that most of us use when putting the car up for longer than a week. The battery seems to hold up better/ less drain.

 

Good to know, about the switch. I'll have to remember to switch it before we go. Last year we left the SC from mid Jan to the end of March. Used a battery tender. No problem what so ever when we came back. Bought a second tender for this winter, cause we aren't taking either car on our warm weather tour.

 

Another little tip along the lines of the auto lights are if you only drive your SC for short trips around the block a few times a week, you should flick your auto lights to off after you cut off your engine because basically your engine hasn't ran long enough to really allow the alternator to charge up the battery and the short trip with all our accessories draining the engine can wear out your battery life quicker too.

I try to remember to turn off the climate control as well and keep the radio off as well for the above reasons. Not sure if any of this is scientifically proven, but it makes sense to me.

I had several RX7 convertibles that had an active security system that drained the battery almost all the time, so I stopped locking my car in the garage and never had a problem with it. A lot of people lock their car in the garage.

 

Just my two cents. I recently purchased a BOSCH battery (36-mo. warranty) for my SC at Pep Boys and am quite satisfied. The fitment was perfect, terminal placement was exact, and performance is good. The cost was $97 and a $20 mail in rebate makes it $77!! Just thought I'd throw it out there.

 

The radio and climate control shouldn't have any affect on the power drain (emphasis on the "shouldn't"). The lights do stay on after the key is shut off and so the control circuitry has to stay alive to determine when to shut off the lights. Just the extra draw of the lights staying on for a bit can add up. However, the radio and climate control lose power when the key is off.

One way to tell for sure is to use an ammeter and monitor the battery power drain in both configurations. It is possible that they will contribute, but I doubt it.

However, having said that, I always shut off my lights and radio also and have never had a problem with a dead battery, even when the car hasn't been run for over a week or sitting locked at the airport for a week.