OEM AC Delco battery

[Lyndon S.]

Was the case on the AC delco battery white?

[Edward J.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

Lyndon, I seem to remember the Delco battery of that vintage had a black top and white sides and the labels were silver and black.

[Lyndon S.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

Thanks
I found good photos of the battery through the years all in the car and I couldnt see the case just the tops.

[Lyndon S.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

Does anyone have photos of the battery case outside of the car?

[Walter G.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

I've owned my '84 since new (May 11th, '83) and my original battery was replaced under warranty in August of that year. My recollection is that the original battery had a black case with the silver/black labels but the replacement one was white. I recall this since with the white case you could now see the battery through the side 'gills' whereas with the black case it was more or less lost in the background. It seems that GM applied some effort to make the engine compartment color coordinated since so much of it was visible with the new clamshell hood opening. That would make sense then to have a black battery case as the OEM spec.

[Lyndon S.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

I think you my be right that the OEM was black an the over the counter was white. Also I think that the early freedom battery was white with a blue top and red decals then they went to a black and silver top, just not sure if the case was white or was it a black case.

[Perry M.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

I to bought my '84 new and the battery died many years ago. However, I was smart enough to put it on the shelf for a possible rebuild some day. It has been awhile since I've looked at it but my memory tells me that it is all black. When I get home on Monday, I will take some pics for you.

[Lyndon S.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

Thanks that will be great.

[Walter G.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

I wish I had kept my original as well, but since it died early on and was a warranty claim the dealer required it be held and returned to the mfr. or whatever they do with parts following a claim and repair. It appears doubtful there will be a reproduction one available anytime soon-if ever. Even if the stickers could be reproduced the configuration of the current replacement battery case tops would not be a match so they couldn't be applied correctly.

[Paul J.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

Most battery cases are black, OEM or otherwise, since they're made from recycled plastic (including old cases).

[John M.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

Attached is a photo of the factory installed battery from my 1992 LTI. The car was a June, 1992 build. One photo shows the white case with the black top. The second photo is the top of the battery showing the label, note the "green eye." I removed this battery when it failed and have kept it for reference.Batery Label 004.jpg1992 Corvette Battery 003.jpg

[Lyndon S.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

Thanks, great photos. That is the first label I seen with the pos an neg on the label itself. Some time in the 90s the word duro power was added to the batterys .

[Perry M.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

original '84 Corvette battery 003.jpgoriginal '84 Corvette battery 001.jpgoriginal '84 Corvette battery 002.jpgHere are the pictures of the original battery from my '84 Corvette that I promised to post. I kept it because I believe it can/will be rebuilt some time in the future. I know they can rebuild tar top batteries as I have had my '57 battery rebuilt several times.

[Joe E.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

I still have the battery from my 85 that I bought new and also have the corvette. Here are some pictures of the original battery.

[Joe L.]

Re: OEM AC Delco battery

Attached is a photo of the factory installed battery from my 1992 LTI. The car was a June, 1992 build. One photo shows the white case with the black top. The second photo is the top of the battery showing the label, note the "green eye." I removed this battery when it failed and have kept it for reference.[ATTACH=CONFIG]49617[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]49618[/ATTACH]

John------


Usually, assembly line batteries will differ in labeling from SERVICE batteries. So, it's unlikely that if one purchased a new Delco SERVICE battery at the same time they took delivery of a new car that the batteries would appear exactly the same. That may have changed, though, since Delco/GM have been out of the battery manufacturing business for a long while now.

Note on the label that it says the replacement battery is a 75B-72, while no place on this battery does it say that this battery is a 75B-72 (although it is). While a 75B-72 battery was once-upon-a-time available in SERVICE, you'd have had a difficult time finding one. The 75B-72 was quite rare while the 75A-72 was quite common. Do you know what the difference is? Well, the 75A has the "Delco Eye" on the right side of the battery whereas the 75B has it on the left side. That's because on a later C4 Corvette you couldn't see the "Delco Eye" if it were on the right side. So, the 75B was, essentially, a Corvette battery (although there may have been some other applications that used it, too).