A leak retardant automotive battery includes a housing containing a plurality of cells that each have a filling plug and a battery cover closing the housing above the cells. The battery cover includes a central blockage that divides the housing into two compartments that each contain a set of cells. The cells in each compartment are connected by vent holes in the battery cover that are respectively connected to associated vent cap assemblies so as to separately vent each compartment through its associated vent cap assembly.