ko90ls Posted September 22, 2007 Share Posted September 22, 2007 hello, i have a major problem. after changing the timing belt and water pump my car was running fine when it is running. first i forgot to plug the connector in the back of the alternator in and had to have the car jumped multiple times, and ended up pushing it home (short distance) after charging the battery and connecting the alternator the car started fine after a few clicks. drove about 30 miles to work and back late at night and everything was fine. that was friday night. today, i went to my friend's house, turned the car off but left the radio on, came back out and the car would not start and all power died? nothing worked. asked for a jump and started the car after a few clicks. my idle has been rough and today the car died while turning around. would not turn on. not click, no sound, nothing. checked the battery at auto zone(good), put in the car, and everything had power. went to start the car and one click and the car died. this time i had a little power but each time i put the key in the ignition the dash would not light, and the "door ajar" light was very dim. trying to start the car makes no sound, like the battery is dead. I also used some Pep Boys battery terminal lube on the cable. could this have killed the battery cables or is my starter dead and that is draining the battery? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mejojo Posted September 23, 2007 Share Posted September 23, 2007 hello, i have a major problem. after changing the timing belt and water pump my car was running fine when it is running. first i forgot to plug the connector in the back of the alternator in and had to have the car jumped multiple times, and ended up pushing it home (short distance) after charging the battery and connecting the alternator the car started fine after a few clicks. drove about 30 miles to work and back late at night and everything was fine. that was friday night. today, i went to my friend's house, turned the car off but left the radio on, came back out and the car would not start and all power died? nothing worked. asked for a jump and started the car after a few clicks. my idle has been rough and today the car died while turning around. would not turn on. not click, no sound, nothing. checked the battery at auto zone(good), put in the car, and everything had power. went to start the car and one click and the car died. this time i had a little power but each time i put the key in the ignition the dash would not light, and the "door ajar" light was very dim. trying to start the car makes no sound, like the battery is dead. I also used some Pep Boys battery terminal lube on the cable. could this have killed the battery cables or is my starter dead and that is draining the battery? Did you hook up both connectors on the alternator? Did you verify the alternator is charging now? If you put a voltmeter across the battery terminals, it should read around 14.5 Volts if it's charging. If it checks out, make sure you also check when it's warm. Joe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ko90ls Posted September 23, 2007 Author Share Posted September 23, 2007 Thanks for the help! I'm Pretty sure the alt is charging, because when the car was running everything was fine. I'm almost confident that the starter is the issue. while jumper cables were attached the car still wouldn't start. My repair manual says check the starter relay. i'll add the article, but i don't know where the starter relay is? i checked the fuses and CB's but don't see the relay? Is this important, it seems like the cheapest way to go.... starter.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ko90ls Posted September 23, 2007 Author Share Posted September 23, 2007 Quick Update... i've been reading that the battery cables may be corroded and causing the issues. so i went and sat in the car with the key in the ignition. with the key in off the "door ajar" light comes on. when turning the key to acc or on the "door ajar" light goes off and nothing happens. the car doesn't even have enough power to lock the doors? so after i removed the key the car makes a wierd click sound in two or more places (i listened this happens on both sides) the one area is the fuse box under the engine (can physically feel the click), but i cannot tell where the second is? after removing the battery cables the noise stopped but the positive cable was very hot......????? the car has sat since last night... and also the car alarm light flashes even though the car is unlocked and the only thing that will stop it is when the key is turned to acc, but nothing else comes on, no dash lights, interior lights, nothing??? I currently have the cables removed for cleaning (using PB Blaster, similar to WD-40) and i heard that removing the battery for 2 hours or more will reset everything. Has anyone else expirenced this issue?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ko90ls Posted September 23, 2007 Author Share Posted September 23, 2007 And The Plot Thickens....... After waiting two hours and cleaning with the pb, the Positive battery terminal will not fit on the battery securely. The Nut has been tightened to the max but the top "ring" looks loose (about 1mm) and the whole thing just slips off the battery..... the battery has worked fine for the last two years and the only thing I did to the battery cables was apply some Pep Boys Battery Terminal Lube. I'll post a pic soon. Could This cause my strange Electrical problems??????? :chairshot: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisnisbet Posted September 24, 2007 Share Posted September 24, 2007 I had a similar problem with my LS400 once. Started happening shortly after getting the car back from a service job. Anyway, the problem turned out to be one of the ground connections between the battery and the engine/chassis. Someone had forgotten to tighten all the connections. Anyway, the car would run fine once the engine had started, but I couldn't get the thing started in the first place. To get it started, what I did was connect a jumper lead from the negative terminal of the battery to the engine, then use the key to start the car as usual. Once running, I removed the jumper cable. For you though, the hot cables sounds a bit mysterious. That makes you wonder if you have a short circuit somewhere. Check the cables from your alternator and your battery to ensure that they haven't been pinched against some earthed metal, or perhaps have damaged insulation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beowulf Posted September 28, 2007 Share Posted September 28, 2007 Could This cause my strange Electrical problems? Yes. The loose battery terminal connection is increasing the resistance in the cable, causing it to get hot and causing the other problems. Your alternator cannot properly charge the battery; your electrical system is not getting the voltage and amps it needs. Fix this, charge the battery, and you should be good to go. -B- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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