On the money answer, PawPaw. Even though it looked to be in top shape, I took the + clamp apart on the battery and it may have been a 90 loss of conduction due to the corrosion under the top of the camp. Fired that brand new starter up with that brand new battery and the old pick-up is ready for another 115,000 miles.

 

Ok, good find, feedback & to hear the fix was an easy one & your on the road again!!!!

 

great sticky

 

A friend of mine had a 1999 ford ranger broke down in my driveway. 4 cyl. They were havin trouble with it not starting from time to time. Lights come on, battery checks out ok, but it doesn't even attempt to crank. Cables are pretty corroded, can this b the problem? The relay in the power distribution box clicks every time I try to crank on it. I'm tired of lookin at this pos!

 

I agree that the corroded battery cables belong on your suspect list. Do an under load voltage drop test on both cables & their connections on Both ends with your multimeter, when your helper tries to crank the engine, as that test could narrow down your trouble shoot. The battery tutorial link has voltage drop testing instructions if your not familiar with how to do it.

Let us know how your trouble shoot goes.

 

I appreciate the advice, and will let y'all know how it turns out!

 

How to use your DVM to perform voltage drop tests on suspect electrical connections. Voltage Drop Testing

 

PawPaw - The link under you battery tutorial no longer works?

 

Thanks, we've had problems once in the past with this site loosing track of my link for some reason. Scroll down to post #5 & click on that link, it still works.

 

OK, JeremyT put the fix on the link at 8:50 PM/7/4/14 & it works now. Thanks for the heads up. It happened once before & took a while to run down, just took a while to get Admin to look at it & Jeremy found & fixed the problem right on the spot.

 

From the tutorial, the bottom line on battery replacement.

"1.6. When buying a replacement starting battery, buy the heaviest and freshest battery compatible with the vehicle's charging system, with the largest Reserve Capacity (RC) and longest free replacement warranty that will physically fit in your vehicle, and sized with the Cold Cranking Amp (CCA) performance for the coldest climate the engine is started in. Normally replacing the OEM battery with the same type and size is the best choice. For deep cycle batteries, buy the freshest and heaviest battery with thickest plates and Amp Hour (AH) capacity that best suits the application, matches the charger, and has the lowest total cost of ownership. (Please see Section 7.)"

EDIT: Remember, if your changing battery Type from delivered OEM, like from a flooded cell, to say AGM, or Gel type battery, make sure you also change the alternator Charging Profile to one that Matches the replacement battery Type, as the charging profile is Different for each of the above listed battery Types. Not doing so could cause the battery to not be fully recharged, or to be over charged & Gel, or AGM batteries don't like to be over charged, such that gas bubbles form in their electrolyte, as that'll shorten their life & constantly under charging a flooded cell battery can cause it's plates to sulfate & shorten it's life. So, if changing from a AGM or Gel type battery back to a flooded cell battery, remember to also change the alternator charging profile to Flooded Cell charge profile.

Older vehicles had the charge profile control built into the alternator, newer vehicles have the alternator charge profile programmed into & controlled by a computer not in the alternator, so be aware of that..

 

A state of charge chart with some specific gravity notes that might be helpful in deciding how your battery state of charge measures up with your temperature compensating hydrometer.
http://manins.net.au/motorhome/images/stateofcharge.png

 

updated info

Lead-Acid Battery Manufacturers and Brand Names List 2016

 

Hey Tomm,
I'm having same trouble with my 83 Ranger, If anyone has answer, please yell, Thanks threw parts at it but no luck just thud and no start, have direct current across starter relay main posts Hmmm???? maybe a short or bad ground, will do parasitic draw test tomorrow...... Hello everybody, been a long time.......

 

quick question my sons battery keeps going dead once a year, he only drives 1/2 mile to work 5 days a week so the battery never gets charged much, thus replaced two batteries in less than 2 years, I cant get him to drive during the day and keep the battery charged, my question is, can he charge it by just sitting in it at idle? I always thought the alt would only charge on speed? charge