[Davescort97]

Whenever the battery is disconnected it erases the engine settings in the computer. Having the battery replaced wouldn't cause any noticable problems. It will "relearn" it's settings within a few miles and you shouldn't expect any drivability problems. The symptoms you describe indicate low voltage in the system. The panel lilghts and the taillights are on the same fuse so if your tail ights don't work you will know something is wrong by the panel lights being out. Check the tail light fuse. Most likely, you have a bad or loose connection on the battery terminals. Especially, if someone else put it in for you. Sometimes they smear the connections with grease to inhibit corrosion, but sometimes the grease works it's way between the connections and you don't have a good positive or ground.