[protovack]

A few months back I replaced the steering wheel on my 1LE and to do the work I had to disconnect the negative battery terminal. Stupidly, when I reconnected it I forgot to tighten it down.
Yesterday at the end of my drive home I got a "service stabilitrak" and then "service rear axle" when I parked right before I shut down. Next morning I had no accessory power, no nothing, it was totally dead. I remembered to check the battery terminal and sure enough it was loose. My battery was not properly charging during engine operation and gradually it lost all charge.

I tightened the terminal and jumped the car. Fired right up and idled for a bit, then went for a drive. No codes. The car felt like a brand new vehicle. Power was dramatically up, steering was firmed up, mag ride seemed much better.

Question for people with more mechanical knowledge than me--why did my car feel instantly better in all areas?

Question #2--did deeply discharging my battery damage it in any way? Should I still take it in to the dealer?

Question #3--should I get a battery charger and fully charge it up?

Thanks

[waterman]

Question #1; Perhaps because you felt better? Actually the ECM(s) in your car are not unlike your laptop or smart phone. Sometimes a reboot is just what the doctor ordered.

Q#2; It's unlikely given the circumstance (loose terminal) that warranty coverage comes into play. FWIW, unless I absolutely have to for a warranty issue or recall, I personally avoid the dealership like the plague.

Q#3; The new generation smart chargers are awesome, I use a CTEK MXS 5.0. Smart chargers use a unique charge algorithm. Most well engineered smart chargers (be careful here, you get what you pay for) go through multiple steps to constantly read and communicate with your battery, charging only to its direct needs and therefore avoiding the possibility of incorrectly charging your battery. The well engineered smart charger algorithms ensure that your battery is conditioned and charged, so your expensive AGM battery is very likely to last significantly longer. Conditioning and de-sulphation from a quality charger will probably save/correct your battery.