94 Won't Start
Thread Starter
|
New User
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 5
Likes: 0
From: Amherst
94 Won't Start
This is the problem my van has recently started acting up. It appears to be an electrical problem, but I am really bad with this stuf so I should just tell the problem. I turn the key and the idiot lights all light up but very dim and the van will not turn over. At first I thought maybe it didn't go into park (P) right so I moved the shifter around and after a few tries it went. No problem for 2 weeks after that. Now today I stop the the van hop back in and it doesn't start same as before, so I move the shifter around and nothing still doesn't start. I pop the hood and I notice on eof the battery posts has a bunch of crud around it, so I move the cable around a bit and then it started no problem, nextg stop same thing except it hasn't started yet, and I was late for work so here I am.
Any ideas??
Any ideas??
Elder User
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 624
Likes: 0
From: Georgia
You found the problem. Take the cable off of the battery and clean it. Put it back. You may have to jump it to get it started.
What you have is a bad/dirty electrical connection to the battery. There is a voltage drop across this bad connection. The alt does not charge the battery very well. And the battery has a hard time starting the van because of the voltage drop.
Clean it and maybe charge the battery and all should be well.
What you have is a bad/dirty electrical connection to the battery. There is a voltage drop across this bad connection. The alt does not charge the battery very well. And the battery has a hard time starting the van because of the voltage drop.
Clean it and maybe charge the battery and all should be well.
Freshman User
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 39
Likes: 0
Another thing to watch for is a "dud" or malfunctioning battery. I've had batteries where the some battery cells had died and caused the battery to malfunction. It wouldn't hold charge for more than a couple of days. I would boost it, and it would just go dead after a while. But for sure, get your battery connections cleaned up. Another fix for corroded battery terminals is to pour a mixture of baking soda and water over the terminals. It litteraly cleans out the terminals by eating the corrosion off of the connectors.
Senior User
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 184
Likes: 0
Yes clean off the terminals on the battery and clean the inside and out side of the batter cables connection, a wire battery brush works best but a pocket knife works in a pinch. I also recomendbuying a battery charger because just jumping a battery and driving a short distance will not charge it up to full strength.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
