Hey guys,

I just drove a total of around 1600 miles during my vacation, plus I've been driving around town for the past day or so with no problems at all. Today after work, I drove a short distance to a restaurant, and when I came back to the car, it would not start.

There were no clicks from the starter at all -- the battery was just dead. While the key was in the accessory position, the radio and lights came on intermittently, but when I turned the key, everything went dead again. I got a jump and the engine started fine... but when I got home, I shut the engine down and immediately all the accessories went off as well. The battery was completely dead again.

I have a Red Top battery that is only around 6 months old, so I'm not sure why it's dying suddenly. I've had no CELs, and the coils are 5-month-old BHR coils. Could this be an alternator issue without warning? Any ideas guys?

Thanks in advance...

 

Okay, it appears that the battery wasn't actually dead. I had the key in the accessory position again, and when I would lift up on the negative battery cable, everything would come to life. However, everything would still shut off when I attempted to start the engine.

I disconnected the negative cable, and used a wire brush to clean the terminal a bit... even though there was hardly any corrosion. I reconnected the cable, and the engine started right up.

Even though I got it started, I need to know what happened. I find it hard to believe that the cleaning had any effect. The terminal connection was tight before I removed it, so why did the accessories turn on when I moved the cable? And why wouldn't the engine start before I removed it? Furthermore, why did this happen all of a sudden, after driving on a 1600 mile trip with no issues?

Thanks for any thoughts.

 

I had this problem on one of my previous cars. The battery connector wasn't gripping evenly across the terminal, and with corrosion, it easily separated the two, to the point that vibration from the car driving could easily break/make the connection. Kept having my car shut off on the road randomly. Finally found that, cleaned it, seated it properly, and didn't have an issue again.

 

Thanks RIWWP. I guess it was just not making a good connection. I just had no random shut-off problems like you did, so it seemed strange to just not start all of a sudden. In any case, it seems to be okay now!

 

No problem.

All the symptoms point to an intermittent break in the circuit, and it would pretty much have to be in one of the cables, or the terminals. If it was the battery itself, it would show in different ways, and if the break was other wiring, then it would have more localized cut-outs rather then total-car. With vibration, terminals + corrosion is the logical choice. Wiring is possible, but more secure and more protected, and reseating the connections wouldn't fix it this way. The slight differences of when it would occur is probably more a difference in the shape of the connectors and terminals, and probably a difference in the location and rate of corrosion. Your could have been slighter, needing the final rocking motion of a stop to push it forward where the final vibration of shutting off broke it. Mine was on a 91 Corolla, and was happening for months before it got bad enough that it was happening while driving, and I found it fairly quick then. Getting push-started by 4 police officers after getting a hefty ticket (+32mph) was embarassing and motivated me to find it

 

This would suggest oxidation or loose/poor connection between the clamp and the cable itself. Or possibly oxidation between the clamp and terminal which slight movement could improve.Because there was still a poor connection, which was able to supply the low amps needed for accessories but not 100 amps or so to power the starter.Possibly vibration or heat exacerbated a condition that already existed.You may still have a latent problem. Double-check the connection between the cable and the clamp. Clean and re-crimp as necessary or maybe just replace the clamp completely. If you do, make sure the cable is shiny copper before crimping to the clamp.