Car won't start? Wha?

[Deuce]

Hey guys,

Yes, on what is likely the hottest day of the year thus far... I find this morning that the R won't start. Once the key is in the ignition and turned to on, everything boots up normally however after about 2-3 cranks of the motor, the battery ceases to have any juice left to crank and just does the clickety-click-click thing.

Anyhow, since the car was running absolutely fine yesterday, I'm guessing it's an alternator issue. I did notice a slight "squeeling or whistling" noise at idle coming from the engine compartment over the last month or so. It went away at throttle so didn't worry about it since my next scheduled maintenance was coming up soon (ie. tomorrow)! Great timing at least. Now that I think of it, perhaps that was the sound of a belt gone bad? I also notice over the last few days that the car would take a couple seconds to fire up instead of just firing up instantly. Again, the amateur mechanic in me thinks that was obviously because the "die'ing" battery within was on its final legs then. Of course, me and my 27 5km trips per day with the radio on and very little highway miles isn't exactly a party for an engine battery.

Well, just wondered if anyone could either confirm my suspicions or think it is something completely different. The car is 5 years old now and the battery would still be the factory battery as well.... not that it should die on the warmest day of the year however!!!

Cheers...

[vee_dubbin]

Re: Car won't start? Wha?

Well that sounds 5hitty! To confirm that it is your alternator or not, get the car started whether you have to boost it or what ever. Once the car is started and running, put a voltmeter across the terminals of the battery. It should rear between 13.6-14.6 volts. If its not then the altenator isn't doing its job and will require replacing. If you are within those measurements, then just replace the battery.

[Deuce]

Re: Car won't start? Wha?

Good to know. Will do that in the morning to hopefully further diagnose the problem. What do you figure the damage will be if it ends up being a bad alternator?

[ricosuave]

Re: Car won't start? Wha?

I bet when that happened, you said "What the deuce?"

Anyway, batteries can be affected by extreme cold AND heat. Most people only think cold.

[Deuce]

Re: Car won't start? Wha?

"What the deuce?"

Haha... Nice!

Anyway, batteries can be affected by extreme cold AND heat. Most people only think cold.

A buddy of mine gave me a boost tonight and I took it out on a rip to Okotoks and back. Driving it to SCFC tomorrow so we'll see if she cranks in the morning. About the heat, I was also reading something about a switch or relay that runs the coolant fan or something like that all the time when the car is parked. Not sure if thats been happening to the R lately or what but whatever, I'll let you guys know what the dealio is tomorrow after my good friends at SCFC take a look at it.

Cheers...

[cdnalpina]

Re: Car won't start? Wha?

Another way to diagnose your alternator is to get the car running with all the accessories off and have a volt meter across the battery. Then, have someone turn on everything electric - radio, lights, fan, wipers etc. Watch to see if the voltage dips and stays dipped or if it creeps back up very slowly. That can give you a good indication that the alternator is weak because when the car is running, it should be constant at the values vee dubbin stated. Good luck!

[Deuce]

Re: Car won't start? Wha?

Status Update:

Dead battery. To be expected I suppose since the old one has been "in service" for about 5 years and 4 months which seems just about right for it to finally go. Anyhow, glad it wasn't something more major as I'm sure the $$$ bill would've been significantly higher!

Cheers...

[cdnalpina]

Re: Car won't start? Wha?

Also better to find out now than in the dead of winter. Glad to hear that you got it sorted out!