My Car Wont Start Every Once And A While, It Will Start With A Jump Or A Few Minutes On A Charger.
Posted in Car Batteries | Asked on Jun 30, 2010
Could an alternator work some of the time? The battery is only one year old.
Could an alternator work some of the time? The battery is only one year old.
There are 6 Answers for "My Car Wont Start Every Once And A While, It Will Start With A Jump Or A Few Minutes On A Charger."
definitely sounds like the alternator. my old car used to do that alot to. they dont have to replace the alternator, they can change the components inside it…forgot what they are called.
go to the service, get it repaired
It could also be the starter. If the alternater was bad, the battery would not get recharged while the car is running and the car would eventually stop.
Your not giving enough info . When you start it with a jump , does it keep runing ? Your battery is not that old unless you just got a bad one . Maybe your alternator has gone bad . You can check your alternattor by starting the car and disconnect one of the battery cables . If the car dies , your altenator is no good . If it keeps running , I would look at the battery.
Good Luck.
While it could be the alternator, it’s actually more likely to be a battery problem. Especially since charging it will allow your car to start.
It sounds like the battery is not holding enough amps to start your car, or the terminal connections between the car and the battery are poor.
First thing to do is clean the terminals and make sure the connection between the battery and your car are tight and you don’t have oxydation occurring to prevent a good connection.
Make sure your battery electrolyte levels are proper. If not fill with distilled water. Do not use tap water as the ions in tap water will damage the battery plating.
Most parts stores will test your battery for free for you, but it sounds like a bad/cheap battery to me and not supplying the amount of amps it needs for your car to start.
If the majority of time you’re experiencing the problem is when the weather is cold, then the CCA (cold cranking amps) rating is too low. CCA is how many amps the battery will have when it’s too cold and you want this number to be as high as possible. If the number is too low and you live in a cold area, then the battery is just not powerful enough to turn over the starter motor to start your engine in cold weather.
If your alternator charge light isn’t staying on and is charging ok, good your chance your battery has had it. These days it seems your uphill getting 3 years or even less out of most batteries. If you have a spanner might be worth your while buying one for your type of car and fitting it in. Or you could take it to a repairer.