Did you try to jump start it?.
Then run it for a while, also check and make sure you did not leave anything that would drain it.

 

I had a dead battery in a Cadillac once, and it went all kids of crazy.
Even when I put a brand new one in it, it had to have time to re-learn everything before it calmed down.

 

solstice won't start

Sounds seem identical to when my old car's battery died for the last time. The charge is uping the voltage reading but not the amp's which is of course what it needs to start. The little bit that is is getting is causing the solonoid relay to trip, the alarm chirp and the 12V source line to the radio to trigger feedback. Looks like it's time for a gel cell upgrade. Put it in my last car and was well worth the money.

Jumping it should get it started but I think it will still not keep with running for a while.

 

Batteries on these cars are less than 18 months old, if the battery were defective the warranty will cover part of it, plus he could have left something on that drain the battery.
He should jump it, run it for an hour or so if he can around town, then let it seat for a couple of hours and see if it will start, if it does not he needs to take it to the dealer.

 

Well the car is 5 months old with 4500 miles on it. It's sat now though for 1/2 that time. I kept it on charge overnight and the battery didn't go up at all for power. My biggest concern is how to switch out the battery. Someone on here said you have to take off the whole fender. I want to switch to a red topped optima. I've heard a lot of great things about optima and I know it's not right to go off of just the color of the top but it will match my painted engine compartment. I've been thinking about the upgraded battery for some time now so here's my opportunity. Can someone please help me with this install??

 

Well the "whole fender" is about two foot square, if that. I think it removes with a couple of screws.

Hope that helps.

 

See this thread for battery replacement procedure:

http://www.solsticeforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3567

 

Here is as good a place as any for GM's edited thoughts on battery maintenance while a car sits.

Subject: Info - Vehicle Battery Maintenance While in Dealer Stock

Battery Concerns


Vehicles that are not used for an extended period of time are subject to battery discharge due to parasitic drains. Discharged batteries can freeze at temperatures as high as 32 degrees F (0 degrees C) causing permanent damage. Other permanent damage may result from allowing batteries to stand for extended periods.

To alleviate this condition the negative battery cable should be disconnected on vehicles which are not going to be in service within a 20 day period, beginning from the time the vehicle is received at the dealership. If this is not possible, batteries should be recharged periodically, every 20-45 days. Even disconnected batteries will slowly discharge; therefore disconnected batteries should be checked for proper state of charge every four months and recharged if necessary.

General Motors strongly recommends that the practice of disconnecting the negative cable be implemented on all vehicles in dealer storage that will not be placed in service within a 20 day period. Alternative methods for maintaining battery charge would be to run the vehicle for 45 minutes every 30 days, or charging the battery every 30 days with appropriate charging equipment.


Notice: The ignition switch must be off when connecting the battery cables or chargers. Failure to do so may overload or damage the PCM or other electronic components. While charging, all electrical accessories and options which create an electrical load should be turned off to insure the battery receives a full charge.

Here is some information on parasitic drains.

Subject: Info - Battery Parasitic Drain

In automotive terms, a parasitic drain is an electrical load that draws current from the battery when the ignition is turned off. Some devices, such as the PCM and the radio memory are intended to draw a very small amount continuously. These draws are measured in milliamps (mA).

In normal use, parasitic drains aren't usually cause for concern, because the battery is replenished each time the vehicle is driven. But, in long-term parking situations, parasitic drains may discharge the battery enough to cause a no-start condition. New vehicles in dealer stock and airport long-term parking are two such situations.

An abnormal parasitic drain could be a glovebox or luggage compartment light that remains on but undetected. Or an electronic component may malfunction and cause a parasitic drain that is larger than normal specification.

Parasitic Drains and On-the-Lot Battery Discharge

Important: In most cases of discharged batteries in low-age, low-mileage vehicles, proper charging procedures with approved charging equipment is the only repair necessary.

Here are some rules of thumb that might help relate parasitic drains to how long a battery would last on a parked vehicle.

The Reserve Capacity (RC) rating multiplied by 0.6 gives the approximate available ampere-hours (AH) from full charge to complete rundown. Somewhere between full charge and complete rundown, the battery will reach a point at which it can no longer start the engine, although it may still operate some of the electrical accessories.

Using up about 40% of the total available AH will usually take a fully-charged battery to a no-start condition at moderate temperatures of 77°F (25°C). Put another way, for a typical battery in a storage situation, depleting the available AH by 20 to 30 AH will result in a no-start condition.

Important: If the battery begins storage at 90% of full charge, reduce the available AH accordingly.

The recommendation for maximum parasitic drain is around 30 mA (0.030 amp). A typical drain today actually falls into the 7-12 mA range, even though some vehicles do approach the maximum. Multiply the drain (in amps) by the time (in hours) the battery sits without being recharged. The result is the amount of AH consumed by the parasitic drain. The actual drain may be small, but over time the battery grows steadily weaker.

Here's an example: a vehicle with a 30 mA drain and a fully-charged 70 RC battery will last 23 days. But if that battery is at only 65% of full charge (green dot barely visible), it is going to last only 15 days before causing a no-start.


Effects of Temperature on a Standing Battery

The parasitic drain will be fairly constant over a range of temperatures. The important temperature is that of the vehicle at the time a start is attempted. Colder temperature raises the threshold of a no-start by increasing the residual power needed. When the temperature falls to 32°F (0°C), the battery will be able to put out only about 85% of its normally available starting power, and the engine may need as much as 165% of the usual power to start.

The combined effect of these two factors is to reduce the number of days the battery can stand with a parasitic drain. At 32°F (0°C), the battery can stand only half as long as it could at 77°F (25°C). And at 0°F (-19°C), the standing days are reduced to one-fourth.

Temperatures above the moderate climate of 77°F (25°C) increase the battery's internal self discharge. If the battery is in a locale where the temperature is averaging 90°F (32°C), an additional 5% to 10% of the available ampere-hours will be lost in a month due to self-discharge within the battery. At temperatures below the moderate range, self-discharge will be low enough to be negligible compared to the parasitic loss.

Batteries on these cars are less than 18 months old, if the battery were defective the warranty will cover part of it,...

Batteries are covered under the New Vehicle Bumper-to-Bumper Limited Warranty in full. It is batteries purchases by consumers that have various pro-rated coverage.