'98 Maxima Won't Start
 

Hi,

After my father passed away, I now have a '98 Maxima with 6500 miles on it. It hasn't been used in over 5 months. There are no mods, nothing special, it's just a regular Maxima that I am now having problems starting.

When I turn the key to "on," practically all the warning lights turn on -- oil pressure, battery, and engine service. Turning the key to "start" just makes it stall. There is plenty of gas in it. Now, this really doesn't make sense to me -- the car ran perfectly fine 5 months ago, and its oil had been changed just before that. Now I can't even get it out of the garage. Please post any suggestions you have before I resign myself to towing this thing. Thanks!

May be your starter or alternator.

Sounds like a battery needs to be replaced.

Is a battery change something I can manage on my own? Or do I need to get this thing towed?

You should be able to handle battery with ease with an open end wrench (not sure of size) or ratchet. If you can't handle, I'll take the car off of your hands- if you pay me <kidding>. I assumed you would be able to test battery or say it was like 1 yr old or something, but if not, its a great candidate for the cause of the problem.

Most batteries won't handle sitting for 5 months without being started. If you live in a cold-weather climate the probability only increases that it's just the battery not having enough juice to crank the starter and turn over the engine. Alternator has nothing to do with it at this point since it only comes into play once the motor is running. You could have a sticky starter solenoid or starter in need of regreasing/replacing. I'd start with the battery first.

Thanks!
 

Got it working. It's a great car. Thanks all!