02nismax

iTrader: (1)

I hate to be the guy who only posts because something went wrong.. But sadly that's what happened.

This is what happened. I have a 02 auto maxima. I was reversing and then i started to slow Down to put it in drive. I guess I did it too early because the car stalled. I tried to start it and it did Start but it cranked for about 15 seconds when it usually take less than 5 sec. So it drove home fine with nothing abnormal. I got home and turned it off.

I have the lights on auto so they stay on when I turn the car off. But they shut off immediately this time. I knew something was wrong. I tried to start it again, it made like 20 clicking noises as if the starter wouldnt crank. But the starter was cranking and the engine started. But it really struggled and looke like it had almost no battery power. I turned it off and same thing happened again.

I thought to unplug the battery to reset the system. But when I went to hook it back up and start it, absolutely nothing happened. No lights anywhere on the car and no sounds. Just completely dead.

I checked most fuses and none were blown. I also tried to jump it twice and nothing happened. Does anyone have any ideas of what happened or what i need to do?

Thank you in advance

Max_Gator

Your battery is dead.

If your battery isn't that old, I would have your alternator tested.

02nismax

iTrader: (1)

I guess I should have mentioned that the battery is a week old. I guess it could be the alt. but the battery has a charge so some kind of lights should come on right? Or even the ignition sound?

tdabboud

iTrader: (6)

grab a multimeter set it to 20 VDC and test the voltage on the battery. it should show about 12.6 V. Then you can also place the + lead on the alternator and ground the - lead and you should also see about 12.6 volts.

Report back if you have a chance to do this

02nismax

iTrader: (1)

Okay I'll try those when I get back to the car. This is just the weirdest thing and i don't understand why there isn't any power when all it did was stall..

Max_Gator

Probably a bad alternator. I recently replaced mine myself only to have the car die a few days later. I started testing everything on the car and finally determined that it was a bad alternator. Took it back to advance and the next two they pulled were bad.

A friend just did the exact same thing on a different vehicle.

I have learned to have it bench tested before leaving the shop.

My testing instructions in detail
http://forums.maxima.org/8347479-post194.html

02nismax

iTrader: (1)

Thank you and it seems like everyone thinks its the alternator. One question though, it started multiple times just fine after the stall( with the two weird starts too) so why would the alt just seem to die out of nowhere. Like there wasn't anything prior to the stall to show signs of it. An the stall was completely driver error.

Max_Gator

I can come up with a few reasons. Basically, batteries act funny when they are dying. I've had my car die from a dying battery before and then be able to restart it. I would bet that the alternator never worked and the battery just slowly died.

But have you checked to confirm that your battery cables are tight and well attached?

02nismax

iTrader: (1)

Wow That's crazy. But yes the connections were as tight as could be and the fuse on the positive cable is new and not blown

02nismax

iTrader: (1)

Well the battery has a full charge. I couldn't test the alt. because I just took the battery to NAPA. Does it being fully charged change anything?

Froggmann

iTrader: (6)

Did they do a load test on it or did they just check the voltage? I've also had batteries short at the posts when the clamp is on them but be fine when just sitting there.

02nismax

iTrader: (1)

He said it was at 12.6v. So I would assume it was a voltage test?

02nismax

iTrader: (1)

Ok I just put the battery back in and the door lights came on for a couple seconds. I went to start it and the dash light flashed for like a second and then it just went completely dead again. Ugh what could this be?

dfj240

iTrader: (1)

Alternator. Definitely. The car runs off of the alternator and charges the battery. The battery is only there to supply power to accessories (like lights, horn, door locks, etc.) and the starter. If the alternator fails then the entire electrical burden is on the battery. In an older car with very few electronics, the battery can actually power the car to drive for several miles, but with all the electronics on cars nowadays, you're not going to get very far at all.

Change out the alternator and then have the battery load tested as well. If it's only a week old, then a replacement will be free, so no worries there, but it's very possible to over-burden a battery in those conditions and therefore cause the battery to go bad. It's also quite possible the battery is just fine, but get it load tested anyways, just to be sure.

In short, that alternator sounds like it's toast.

-Nathan

DennisMik

iTrader: (2)

It still sounds like you have a battery problem. With the battery in the car, check the voltage, especially when you say the car is "dead". Also, have you tried to jump the car?

02nismax

iTrader: (1)

Okay well I think i found the problem. I think when it stalled something came loose. If I don't tighten the positive terminal at all I get power. I even started it this morning. But once I turned it off the cable lost its sweet spot and it lost power. So I think my positive terminal has something loose in the cable somewhere. I wouldn't doubt it either because the cable is so tight already, its a strain to get it onto the positive terminal.

Max_Gator

Do you have a friend who could come over and stick his/her good battery in the car to test?

That would go a long way toward eliminating the battery.

Are you tightening both cables to the terminals so that they are snug?

02nismax

iTrader: (1)

They battery isn't bad. I said its been tested, a week old, and gave the car power this morning.

sontakke

I bet that cable clamp is completely corroded. Mine was and had to put a new one.

dfj240

iTrader: (1)

Yea, in that case, get some new terminals. Super cheap, and is always a good idea anyways.

http://www.autozone.com/autozone/acc...mString=search

Buy those. I buy them for every car I own, because they are awesome! Oddly, they're also slightly cheaper than the regular terminals, and they're a breeze to install. 5 minutes at most.

-Nathan

sontakke

Can you explain what tools would I need to replace the terminals? I chickened out and drove my car with a c-clamp on the corroded clamp straight to my mechanic. He fortunately had the OEM positive terminal end and replaced it.

For my other cars, I would definitely like to see if I can put these new clamp-on terminals. They look good and I like quick disconnect design and are amazingly cheap.

Thanks,
- Vikas

dfj240

iTrader: (1)

All you need is a set of pliers, a 10mm wrench, and less than 2 minutes of time.

For the positive:
Just unscrew the current terminal at the 10mm nut next to the fusible link junction, then put the new terminal in it's place. There will be a few extra pieces that you don't need, so don't be alarmed if you have a spare bits lying around after.

For the negative:
I usually cut the negative terminal and use the additional piece that comes in the pack so I have a good solid contact point, and then screw the new terminal into that.

When you start doing it, it's pretty straightforward and will make a good bit of sense.

-Nathan