Yeah, it happens to everybody at one time or another... I guess it's my turn.. I went out to start my car tonight and... click-click-click-click... nothing...

The first attempt:
I turned the key, and when I turned it to the start position all I heard was a very fast clicking like click-click-click-click... i tried a couple times, and the same thing happened... the headlights, radio, interior lights and windows worked fine... so i got a jump and it started right up.. i drove it for a while without any problems.. i got home, turned it off, and tried again about a half hour later...

The second attempt:
This time when I turn the key, I hear almost nothing... the clicking noise has gone away, and there is nothing but a very faint cranking noise this time... and when the key is in the start position, all the interior and dash lights dim while i hear this very faint cranking noise.. i tried again and the clicking noise came back, but no start.. the horn was loud when i pressed it from inside the car, but when i locked it with the remote, the horn was lower than usual

I talked to my buddy and he thinks it's the alternator... What do you guys think? I need some help.... thanx...

 

alternator or battery, the alarm system is draining the rest of the power out of the battery. you would have to take a voltmeter and see if its reading 14 volts while running, after a half hour or so of driving cause ur battery is dead. If the battery is over 6 years old, just replace it, because thats gonna go soon if you replaced it or not, and if the problem goes away its the batt. If it dont its the alternator.

 

i'm pretty sure it was a brand new battery when i got the car back in april of 06.. i don't have a voltmeter.. my plan was to take the alternator out , take it around the corner, and have it tested and go from there.. so i should consider the battery too?

it looks like a PITA to get the alternator out too because of that radiator hose.. i was thinking jack the car up and access it from underneath.. would that be the best route?

 

You can have an auto parts store test the alt and batt for free while still on the car... Try that first, then go from there. The alt is a pain to get to, so I paid someone to do it...

 

well, i would have to get my car to the auto parts store to do that.. lol.. and getting another jump might be an issue

 

so it's not like the starter, or fuel pump or anything like that right?

 

^^doesnt sound like its that severe...it more so points to the alt and/or batt. expecially if your interior lights dimmed and everything. Might be time to upgrade the battery. How long have you had the batt? Didnt you wire up and HID kit recently also (not that it would have anything to do with the issue at hand)

 

yeah i did recently wire up an HID kit.. i dont know if that drained any more power from it or what... but funds are kinda low, and i'd rather not replace both if i don't have to.. i got the car in april of 06, and they said they put a new battery in it

some possible symptoms leading up to it:
sometimes my interior dash lights would go out at night... for example, when i turned my lights on one night, my entire tachometer did not light up for about 20 minutes into the trip... a few other times, you know those lights that tell u where the heat/air conditioning is directed? (head, feet, both, etc.) half of those would not light up sometimes as well... is that a sign of a weak alternator?

 

Check your battery connections, even if they seem tight. My other vehicle ('02 GMC Sonoma) had the same symptons as yours. After fiddling around, I discovered there was a HUGE amount of corrosion buildup between the + battery post and the cable.

I couldn't see it until I removed the cable. The cable had been a little loose all along and after a while the corrosion builtup and prevented a proper connection. I cleaned the terminal and cable end with a wire brush and some elbow grease, made sure the connection was good and haven't had a problem since (almost a year now). If your + terminal has a plastic cover over it, make sure you peel back far enough to see any corrosion (that one tripped me up initially)

Obviously, check BOTH cables and the connections!!

 

Check the battery cell level on the front of the battery and also wut brand is the battery....if its known brand...research wut store sells it.....if it was replaced last year....battery still mite be qualified for free exchange.....

but.....I am taking my hit towards the alternator.....good luck

 

Steps to check if alternator is dead:
1. Start your engine (get a jump from a good running vehicle if necessary).
2. With the engine running, disconnect the battery. If the engine dies-your alternator is dead, if it continues to run, your battery is dead. The reason for this is that the battery is used only to start a vehicle and occassionally to assist in accessories (headlights, stereo, AC, etc...) during idle or traffic stop. The alternator keeps the fuel injectors and ignition system (onboard computer, etc...) going once the vehicle has started and begins to recharge the battery from the energy used to start the vehicle.
3. So if your engine still runs after disconnecting the battery, the alternator is doing its job correctly. If it dies, then the battery was the only thing supplying the ignition system and everything else.
4. Please know that 90% of alternators die due to a failing battery.
5. So if it proves to be the alternator, you may want to replace the battery as well, unless you're sure it wasn't the battery due to age, etc...

 

This happen to me once when it was really cold back in February of this year! I have not changed my battery or alternator, have not had the problem since. Could it have just been the change in temp?

 

...and what if you cant even get the car started with a jump? Does this now suggest the starter?

 

I think it is either a bad alternator, battery or the starter. The click you are earing is the starter solenoid that push the starter gear out in order to make the flywheel to spin and start the engine, but it can be trigger by the battery not having enough charge to make the starter to crank, or a bad alternator that doesn't charge the battery or simply a bad starter ( it could be just the solenoid in the starter too )

Good luck.

AA

 

This is the best way to find out what kind of problem you have. It's nothing serious like you may think, (i.e. Injectors, starter). After you solve this situation you might want to go over your HID wiring to make sure everything is in the correct wiring location.

 

I would bet that it's the battery. If the car starts and runs with a jump, then the the starter and the alternator are good. I use to work for Interstate Batteries, and your symptoms tell me that it's the battery anyway. Sometimes the batteries can go bad, but still produce 12volts with no load, hence your lights are still working sometimes. Easy fix, just a battery.

Another way to test it is to get the car started, and disconnect your battery all together, if the car still runs, then your alternator is fine. The only thing the battery does is start the car, after that, it's all up to the alternator.

 

I say starter solenoid, that's what went bad with my 93 when I first got it, it wasn't letting the starter gear engage fully with the flywheel, and at first I got a "click click click", then I got a Whirr from the starter at the gear wouldn't even come out of the housing. I replaced the whole starter (I would've waited 1 week for the solenoid, vs having a new starter right then and there)

 

that sounds like a good idea.. i think i'm gonna do that to test it out.. now as far as disconnecting the battery with the car on... that seems like it might be potentially dangerous.. what things should i watch out for to do or not do? and which terminal should i disconnect first?

 

just disconnect the ground. no need to disconnect both. not dangerous though, just try not to spark too much since if the battery is charging it produces hydrogen gas which we all know is explosive

 

i noticed there is a small amount of corossion on the positive terminal.. what i'll probably do is clean that off, see if it starts, then disconnect the battery... so i only disconnect the negative end?

 

thats all you need to. i always disconnect negative first cause thats what i was taught to do. in reality i doubt it matter

 

alright guys... problem solved... it turned out to be the battery... i took it out, and lugged it around the corner to the local auto store and they said they couldnt test it accurately cause it hadn't been charged... so i got to carry it all the way back home... yay...

so after that my dad jumped me, and i took it to auto zone to have them test it.. and it came up as a bad battery.. he said my alternator was pretty strong cause it was pumping out a good amount of power.. it didnt even cost me anything cause the battery in there was a duralast from auto zone, the guy hooked me up, cause we agreed that i "lost my receipt" so i got a free battery!! Thank God... and thanx to yall too for all your help

 

Exact same thing happened to me @ the track, about 2 months ago.

Glad you got it fixed.

 

coolio good u didn't have cut too deep into pocket...lol...dude i went to pepboys to buy my car battery [02 max] and i bought it for $20.00 the girl their gave me crazy discount for some apparent reason....

 

Like others have said...gotta be the battery.

That dreaded click-click-click happened to me when I was 300 miles away from home. LoL I freaked until I could get a start, then brought it in to AutoZone and bam new battery and it's all good.

Best of luck to ya