Frozen Car Won't Start!

[xsohaib]

Left the car standing for about a month in Boston MA, during my visit to my parents in Alaska. I came back and the car does not start, I thought it may be a dead battery but I hooked up the booster cables for about an hour and tried to start from time to time but that did not help either. The car cranks and turns over but just does not start. It is a 92 ES300 with 124K miles and all servicinf up to date (Timing belt, cam seals, plugs etc, transmission service etc). Ambient temps here in Boston are around -6 degrees (Alaska was much warmer +10 degrees)

Thanks

Sohaib

[JPI]

It's the battery.

www.jpimportz.org

[amf1932]

JPI,

Why do you say it's the battery? xsohaib said that the car cranks, and he even tried using a booster battery, and it still didn't start. What's your reasoning?

[SW03ES]

If the battery is REALLY dead then it won't even take a charge, so using the booster battery or jump starting it off another car won't do any good.

What was the last time the battery was replaced? I agree with JPI, the battery decharged sitting out in the cold.

[SKperformance]

I can understand the battery being dead

but once it turns over it has vdc to run most systems also

meaning it should start

unless the cold start injector is acting up also ,combined with other maintaince problems like plugs wires cap and rotor

Here si a question when the engine is turning over does it do it at nromal speed or really slow?

it may also be bad or tiny booster cables not transmitting enough power

how much gas is in the tank?

[xsohaib]

The battery was changed in august of 2003. Someone also suggested that the fuel lines may be frozen but after I tried starting it a few times I could smell the fuel! I think the battery is fairly new is it not? My brother had changed the battery in his hyundai in november and his car had been sitting longer than mine but when he started it yesterday it fired right up! On the other hand his peugeot which has not had its battery changed for a long time did not start yesterday with exact same symtoms as my lexus although it was driven regularly! I am personally leaning towards frozen fuel lines.

Thanks

Sohaib

[xsohaib]

Gas in the tank is less than half,

As mentioned the battery was replaced in Aug 2003

The caps rotors, wires, plugs, belts, timing belt, cam seals, water pumps etc have already been changed at 105K miles

When I attempted to start the car yesterday, with the booster cables attached, it would turn over really slowly and then would almost start (turn over normal) for about 0.5-1second and then back to slow turn over unitil the battery would give up. So then I would wait another five-ten minutes and then start again and the same thing. I hope this is making sense.

Oh and the booster cables are brand new also.

What do you guys think?

Thanks

Sohaib

[SW03ES]

Its possible, but gas doesn't freeze readily...

[xsohaib]

I was told that the condensation in fuel lines actually freezes, but then again when I attempted to start the car several times, I could smell the fuel so ...........

Thanks

Sohaib

[JPI]

Let's start with the simple thing first. Check your batt? What is the voltage? It wouldn't matter if you put jump box on it for an hour. Please check your connections to battery. There might be a draw in the electrical system.

www.jimportz.org

[xsohaib]

Thanks, I shall change the battery, I also called the Lexus dealership and they told me that the battery was the most likely culprit. Actually they asked me if I wanted to have it towed to them (over 15miles) so that they could change the battery<_< . The battery has a 2 year replacement on it so to walmart tonight.

Thanks

Sohaib

[SW03ES]

I really think that will be the culprit...

[amf1932]

Like SK said....if the battery, whether it's the booster battery or the car battery has enough juice to turn over an engine it should have enough juice to power up the other components, like the ignition, computer, etc. If it doesn't start at this point then it must be something else.

[SW03ES]

But when batteries have sat that long in the cold their behavior can't always be predicted, then theres the possibility that he's misinterpreting the extent to which the engine is actually turning over. With the free replacement it seems to be the best place to start.

[amf1932]

That's the reason you use a booster battery. That should supply the necessary voltage to power all the components to start the engine. ;)

[xsohaib]

Well, I took out the battery shall instal the new one tommorrow, if that still does not help, I am just going to have it towed to the nearby toyota dealership and request them to let the car sit in their garage overnight. Hopefully that should solve the problem. Nearly got a frost bite right now trying to lock all the doors on the car, current temp. -11 degrees, (OUCH).

And to add to the misery, there is this 93/94 Acura Legend coupe that keeps coming by the house and they stop by my car and shine their lights on it wait a couple minutes and leave. They may be after the IS300 rims that I have on there or may think that since the car is lowered and has 17" rims, I must have some audio equipment in the car as well. Brother tells me that the same car also made a round a couple of weeks ago. Wonder what they are up to, I may just be Paranoid, must be this cold. Oh well!

Thanks

Sohaib

[SKperformance]

well the only good part is they can;t steal your car

atleast not by driving it away

when i mentioned the cables i meant them being in regards to gauge thickness not age

as smaller cables are made more for a longer charge to start the car

while thicker 0-4 gauge wires are made for a rapid boost using the donors battery not alternator to start the dead one

it may also sound stupid to beat a dead horse

but since the battery is removed from the car why not try to directly hook it up to the cables and use a donor battery in a good car

or just warm up you old battery indoors for a couple of hours and put it back in the car tommorow morning and it may just have enough charge again

just random thoughts

[xsohaib]

Excellent idea, I can try to jump start it now and see what happens, the wires are pretty thick gauge (I guess 15-17 mm) if not more. I shall try tommorrow to start it directly with a V6 Accord, I guess that should be enough juice! I am actually considering using a mercedes battery and relocating it to the trunk :D those suckers are huge, they are like truck batteries! I am actually more worried about the rims since they are not insured! The car on the other hand is fully insured!

Thanks

Sohaib

[SKperformance]

put it this way

if they steal the rims the insurance would have to pay for stock rims and tires

which would be way more than any aftermarket ones

just don;t have the accord running while you are trying to start the car or you might be in for a new alternator down the road

[xsohaib]

True about the rims, never thought about it now I am feeling better. Now, when I was starting the Lexus with the jumper cables hooked up, the accord was running at that time (I guess that was OK right?) its only when the lexus battery is not there that I should make sure that the accord is not running. Or did I mess something up earlier?

Thanks

Sohaib

[SKperformance]

glad you feel better about the rims

you don;t need or want the accord running either way when boosting a car

if the donor car can start off its own battery why can;t another

sure it give a bit more juice

but you create a tug of way inside the electrical systems once the dead car starts

as its alternator is now going to try and compensate for the lack of voltage quickly there are specific diodes in the alternator that cannot take the abuse easily

[xsohaib]

well, guess what? The battery that was already in there was a 450CCA, and the new one I got from walmart had 600CCA. So I went and hooked up the new battery and tryied to start but the car still did not start. The engine turned over really slow though no matter how much I tried to start it. So I am gonna wait till tommorrow when the temp gets in +23 degrees. But I wonder if that is going to help. Any suggestions?

Thanks

Sohaib

[amf1932]

Did you ever check to see if you're getting a spark? Maybe the spark plug are fouled from all this fooling around you've tried so far.

With this new battery the starter should be cranking at a healthy speed, not at a slow speed that you mentioned.

[SKperformance]

I might check to see if the battery cable is in good condition

it may have broken quite a few strands causing lots of resistance

if it is turning over very slow

also check the amount of oil just in case

the main battery cable is located under the battery tray

and the starter gets its own 12 vdc supply from the battery but it is only a 1 1/2 feet long

[xsohaib]

I checked the oil and there is plenty of it in there. The coolant is also fine (although the windshield washer fluid is frozen solid irrelevant but interesting). Checked the battery cable and that is fine too. I poured some dri gas in the tank and now I am gonna put some more gas in there if THAT does not help then I shall just have it towed to dealership. My brother's car on the other hand started up finally.It is difficult to check the plugs since they are covered with a covering which is screwed in wth a hexagonal shaped screws.

Thanks

Sohaib