car won't start

[noob with an RS 10+ year member]

hey i went to work today then went home. showered, then went to a buddy's house. all day i had not listened to my alpine which is powering a hifonics NX600 (150 wattsx2) which is powering a set of infinity perfect component speakers with the car off all day. i listened to it only when driving to work and on the way to a buddy's house. when i left my buddys house my car wouldn't start. the headlights would appear very dim and when i try to start my car it wouldnt make any sound whatsoever.. maybe a little clicc but thats about it. i jumpstarted my car using my friends car and it got me home. what im wondreing is is this just my battery? is it just worn? is it possible it could have something to do with my alternator? also, could my alpine head unit, and amplifier be a cause of this. i have a stock alternator but only one amp. and no subwoofer. i listened to music with the car off the other day for maybe ten minutes.. could the battery have been drained from that and past times??

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[SPL140.2 5,000+ posts]

if you turn your key and just hear a click, it may be a bad starter! //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif

 

[johnecon2001 5,000+ posts]

I think its because your a n00b and you drive a so called "RS".

OR it could be a bad battery/starter.

 

[VOA_NIGHTMARE 10+ year member]

have your belts checked as well. that could be it, thats one of the first things I would look into. Take it to a garage and have them test the bat alt and the check the belts. Odds are they wont charge you anything but see if you can watch them while they check the stuff so they dont try to bs you.They got a thing they hook up to the bat that will put a load on it and show if the bat is good you will see it in the green and the alt as well. And the belts you can see if there loose or have cracks in them, it could just be a belt slipping.

 

[n2audio 5,000+ posts]

Clearly this is not an automotive forum.

First issue - there is no way a 300w amp for full-range spkrs is taxing your battery/alternator unless you listened for an hour+ at full volume, or close to it, w/o the engine running.

2 - If you just hear a click from the starter, but have no problem jumpstarting then obviously the starter is fine. The problem is there's barely enough voltage/current coming from the battery to engage the starter gear onto the ring gear/flex plate - which is the click you're hearing.

3 - Your alt belt...have you heard it squealing so loud it makes you cover your ears? Open your hood -- is it gone?? Is it unusually loose (almost hanging limp?). If not - that's not the problem either.

Solution - At this point, if I were betting I'd say you lost your alternator. Maybe, if you're lucky you just have worn/corroded battery cables - how do they look? Is there a lot of white, powdery crap on them? If so find some sort of brush (old toothbrush will work) mix a cup of water with a couple tablespoons of baking soda and brush the terminals clean. If they don't look dirty they're probably not the cause.

- The chain parts stores can test your alternator but you will have to remove it. Easy job in some cars - fairly difficult in others. I'm not sure about a competent shop - maybe they can do it without removing it.

You can have your battery tested, but if your alternator's not functioning your battery will probably test weak even though it may still hold a good charge.

 

[noob with an RS 10+ year member]

ok thanks a lot n2audio. and to the fagg0ts who disrespected, **** a f@t cocc, choke on it, and then roll over and die whiile doing so. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/tongue.gif.6130eb82179565f6db8d26d6001dcd24.gif

 

[JAZN 5,000+ posts]

his name is n2audio. the man just helped u, at least get his name rite.

 

[SPL140.2 5,000+ posts]

Clearly this is not an automotive forum.First issue - there is no way a 300w amp for full-range spkrs is taxing your battery/alternator unless you listened for an hour+ at full volume, or close to it, w/o the engine running.

2 - If you just hear a click from the starter, but have no problem jumpstarting then obviously the starter is fine. The problem is there's barely enough voltage/current coming from the battery to engage the starter gear onto the ring gear/flex plate - which is the click you're hearing.

3 - Your alt belt...have you heard it squealing so loud it makes you cover your ears? Open your hood -- is it gone?? Is it unusually loose (almost hanging limp?). If not - that's not the problem either.

Solution - At this point, if I were betting I'd say you lost your alternator. Maybe, if you're lucky you just have worn/corroded battery cables - how do they look? Is there a lot of white, powdery crap on them? If so find some sort of brush (old toothbrush will work) mix a cup of water with a couple tablespoons of baking soda and brush the terminals clean. If they don't look dirty they're probably not the cause.

- The chain parts stores can test your alternator but you will have to remove it. Easy job in some cars - fairly difficult in others. I'm not sure about a competent shop - maybe they can do it without removing it.

You can have your battery tested, but if your alternator's not functioning your battery will probably test weak even though it may still hold a good charge.

"2 - If you just hear a click from the starter, but have no problem jumpstarting then obviously the starter is fine. The problem is there's barely enough voltage/current coming from the battery to engage the starter gear onto the ring gear/flex plate - which is the click you're hearing."

If a starter is going, sometimes it will click and others times it will start right up, had that problem in my 2000 jeep cherokee sport. Did the same thing, someone jumped the batt, would start. An hour later, it would click, hit the starter lightly with a wrench, it would start. Have your starter tested.

 

[saywhat? 5,000+ posts]

"2 - If you just hear a click from the starter, but have no problem jumpstarting then obviously the starter is fine. The problem is there's barely enough voltage/current coming from the battery to engage the starter gear onto the ring gear/flex plate - which is the click you're hearing."
If a starter is going, sometimes it will click and others times it will start right up, had that problem in my 2000 jeep cherokee sport. Did the same thing, someone jumped the batt, would start. An hour later, it would click, hit the starter lightly with a wrench, it would start. Have your starter tested.

this is true. my mazda's starter went bad. it would turn over sometimes, and not the others. it was a guessing game to when it would start.

 

[silverdj 10+ year member]

First of all, Do you have an O'reilly Auto Parts or an Autozone where you live? If you do, take your car up there and have them check the battery while it is still in the car, cause they can do that. The "competent shops" aren't the only ones with a portable battery tester. Second, it sounds like your battery is either very low on power due to a bad alternator or you could have a bad cell in the battery. Third it could be both the battery and the alternator. Just some advice for you, if you only have a bad alt. I would get the battery charged before hooking everything back up, cause a well drained battery that needs a full charge could kill that new alt you just put in.