I think you should pull the battery and charge it. Let'* make sure it'* fully charged.

Aw, shoot, I was going to post last night how I had checked it, and how it'* fine, but I didn't because I suspected I'd eat my words. Went out tonight to put on new terminal bolts, and found out now the battery IS dead. I forgot to disconnect it after I stripped out the bolt.

This may wait until the weekend, when I can afford beer. Otherwise, my foot may end up thru the windshield.

You and I may both be replacing batteries this weekend. Mine starts and runs fine if it hasn't been sitting, but the battery is not taking a good long-term charge from my perfectly good alternator. I've improved it by topping off the cells, so it holds just enough to start the SLE after sitting overnight.

Enjoy battery swapping. I recently did a dual swap at my place.

Remember..when you have the battery out to look under the plastic cable end covers for any corrosion etc.

I will probably be replacing both positive cables at the same time on the SLE. Mine are ugly, and I've been in there twice fighting corrosion. A sealed battery is going in that car this time.

I found the Optima Red Top to have a price I couldnt' refuse at my Costco club, woudl figure Sam'*/BJ'* would be priced similar.

Since swapping my battery...I've had some gremlins I've been chasing. New negative cable already ordered and awaiting it'* arrival.

I'll put an Optima in the SLE only if it'* the same price or very close to a cheaper alternative. Zilla gets the good stuff, SLE gets what works.

Would corrosion on the cables cause a low level parasitic drain? I've been fighting corrosion gremlins since my plastic water pump elbow blew out on the highway a year or so ago. And how do you check the water in your battery? This is the first one I've had with the little caps on it.

Be careful when checking water..once in the battery..it'* a very corrosive acid

Remove the caps when the battery and car are cold and look for the water level indicators. Usually the way the plastic is shaped and you fill to the bottom of them.

Hey Bill...you need a battery....Michelle is adding a little water.

On the drain...resistance can cause more draw...but not a drain unless there is a short to a resisting ground.

Add distilled water to each cell to ensure that the plates are covered. Corrosion, if on the positive side of the battery could possibly cause leakage to ground under the right circumstances, which will discharge a battery. It may or may not be a contributing factor in your situation. Anytime you have battery positive voltage (12vdc+) leaking to ground, you have parasitic drain. It sounds as if you need to remove your battery, remove the positive & negative cables completely and do extensive cleaning. Use baking soda to clean cable terminals & battery tray area and around tha case of the battery. Replace cables with new if necessary. Determine the condition (state of charge) of the battery, replace if needed. If you can take it to a service station where they can get the specific gravity, it should be 1.285 (corrected for temperature) or better, if not place it on a slow charge. The electrolyte in the battery cells contains sulfuric acid, and is highly corrosive like Boosty said. Be careful while handling the battery.