Well, I was leaving work yesterday, and went to go start the car, and it wouldn't even crank over. Dome light wasn't on either.

I thought I maybe left something on, which drained the battery. I contacted my building's security and luckily they had one of those portable battery chargers, fully-charged and ready to go.

Well, I was able to start the car after a few minutes with the charger hooked up, ensuring I turned off all accessory lights, the fans, and the auto headlights (it was already dark out) to ensure less strain on the battery/electricals while it was charging.

After the car was already running, when I went to turn the headlights on, there was a flicker, like it was having a hard time coming on, although it did stay on when I set it fully.

I managed to make it home, although there was one worrisome downsurge in the motor when I was stopped at a red light, and luckily, I never had to be stopped fully after that, until I pulled in to my garage, where, after I took my foot off the gas pedal, the car finally died less than a minute later.

I took the battery to Autozone to get checked out, and the battery itself was perfectly fine, and was not only charged, but holding it well.

So, I take it back home, where when I hooked it back up, I noticed that the light underneath my driver door was holding steady, whereas it was flickering earlier.

I tried to start the car after this, and...nothing. There was a quick click, and everything flickered out. Then - get this - with the aforementioned door light flickering, I noticed that there was a clicking noise coming from under the steering column!

I get under there, and that's when I notice that the clicking is coming from some module underneath. It is white, with three connectors plugged into it along one of its narrow edges, the edge that was facing down towards the floor.

One time, I was able to reach underneath and jiggle this part up a bit, and the light flicker was gone. But then, I try to start the car again, there goes the door light, with the clicking noise again.

So, anyone here have experience with this? What module was this that was doing the clicking and why? what do I need to look up/purchase in order to fix or replace this damned thing?

Any insight will help, or at least point me where to look in a repair manual, which I do happen to have one, though what to look for, I wasn't sure of.

Thanks in advance.

 

ive seen that white plastic piece before, my guess its the alarm, after dealing with a lot of toyota alarms, i have to say it looks the same. if so, i dont understand why it would be clicking.

 

could be altenator, or maybe a belt issue

 

Why don't you ask the dealer what it is and once they tell you, take the part number and buy it from somewhere else cheaper. The dealership does and can serve a useful purpose every now and then.
btw: when I was reading thru your post I thought easily that it was your alternator or maybe a bad battery, when you said clicking that brought visions of the starter, do yourself a favor and let the dealership diagnose it for you.

 

If you can start it and take it to autozone... Have them run the diagnostic on everything... Its free.

They'll check the starter, alt and batt. Just a thought...

 

agree

 

Thanks for the advice guys. I talked to the service department at the nearest Nissan dealership, and apparently, the clicking is normal, when the voltage going through the relays is low.

I also talked to my buddy who owns a shop, and he says that even if the battery tested good, it doesn't mean that it *stays* good, after a load is put on it. I don't think Autozone ran a load test. Either way, as a precaution, I am going to buy a new battery anyways, as my friend with a shop is giving me a hook-up on a Tri-State battery, on top of the 40-dollar credit I have with his shop. If it works, it'll be a cheap fix, or at the very least, eliminates the battery as a factor.

After that, if I think I will run on down to Autozone and get everything else diagnosed, even if I have to tow the car. My 2005 Durango should be up to the trick of doing that, if necessary.

 

Good luck...

 

I am going to say it is the Altinator...

If it is... It is only going to get worse. Mine died REALLY fast, it went from bogging down at redlights to barely keeping the car running with every light on the dash lit up in less than two hours...

Also check all the Batt wires and Alt wires, they might come loose or break off and cause problems.

 

I doubt it is just the battery. If it was, when you were driving all should have been normal. Sounds like the alternator is going to me.

 

Nah. Got the new battery and she's running and starting up like champ, even after the auto headlights stay on.

I got her jumped before I got the battery, and unhooked the old battery, and she stayed running, indicating that the alternator was up to powering up all the electricals, especially the ignition.

At the point of the downsurge I mentioned in my original post, I had already driven about 35 miles at that point, and my buddy said that the alternator just had a low surge, normally supplemented by the steadily charging battery.

He mentioned, for example, on a Honda Civic, if you start it and unhook the battery, the motor starts running, but running say, the AC or headlights or radio can be enough to kill the motor, as the alternator can't support sending ignition energy and the accessories at the same time.

 

You unhooked the battery on a running vehicle? Please do not repeat that experiment. The battery's "load" is needed to control the alternator's output with the voltage and current capable of reaching damaging levels without the large capacitor (the battery) in the circuit.

 

1. The alternator has a voltage regulator.
2. Current that reaches "damaging levels" blow fuses and other safety devices.
3. The battery is not a capacitor.

 

WTF??? battery certainly is not a capacitor, and the alternator has a built in regulator. even if you were thinking about a car that doesnt have one built in to the alternator, those have an EXTERIOR regulator, you wouldnt produce enough amperage to blow fuses because the alternator is designed to charge at a lower amperage than a battery puts out anyway. 180 amps is really high for an alternator, and its only that high if the battery needs a huge charge. car systems wouldnt pull/ask for that much

 

its more then likely the alternator i just replaced my factory battery last weekend and had the same syspmtoms.

 

As someone above told you, DO NOT EVER run the engine with the battery disconnected, essentially for the stated reasons. It's even mentioned in your owner's manual.

 

Uh no. Explained already in previous responses. Also, ALL my positive connections coming out of the battery have inline fuses in between them.

Besides, if the issue WAS the battery (which it was), then I had driven the car over 35 miles already with essentially just the alternator. If it was the alternator, I am simply confirming that it is broken, so no issue there.