Last night I changed my girlfriend's battery that was completely dead. Got it in just fine and everything. Engine started as intended. Flash forward to today. After driving about 50 miles today with the new battery the car stopped accelerating, check engine light came on, then a "Engine Power Reduced" prompt came up. After looking on here I saw that turning the car off and on a few times can work. Turned car off and when attempted to turn back on it doesn't turn at all and the key gets stuck as if the battery was dead. Lights still turn on and lock button works.

The security light on the far left comes on and flashes when trying to start the car. Anybody got an idea for a fix? Any help is much appreciated. Don't have much money to get it towed to the shop.

 

Hi Drew, to the forums!!

You don't say why the battery was dead. It's possible that the charging system is not functioning properly. I would suggest charging the battery. If it then starts, drive it to your local auto parts store for a free charging system test.

 

Thanks! Y'alls community looks great especially after over 10 years of operation.

Well, I thought the brand new battery might be faulty so I took it back where I got it so they could test it. They said all was good. So the battery shouldn't be dead. I tried jumping it just in case and it still didn't turn. I'm confused. Not a car guy, just trying to save some money. New battery hurt enough haha.

 

Well, you need to get that CEL code read, without the code it's a guessing game. Of course, since the battery has been out since then, the code is probably erased.

 

Since you figure the battery is still charged, it looks like you will need it towed.

You say you tried jump starting it - was that before replacing the battery with a new one, or after putting the new one back in after it was tested?

 

Welcome to the site, check the under hood fuse block, the ground wires under the hood and in the back by the battery. This does seem to be an under charged new battery.

 

That was after putting the new one back in and it was tested. I unhooked the battery for a few hours and left it there. I read something on here about how that will reset it if it won't start because of the theft prevention thing. On hooking the new battery back up I get interior lights and the radio clock, but when I try to start I get no noise at all and no dashboard lights anymore.

When trying to jump it yesterday I just used my battery pack. I'll try and actually jump it with my other car. If that doesn't work I guess I'll get it towed.

@Oldblue Thanks for the response! What exactly am I looking for in the fuse block, ground wires, and in the back by the battery?

 

Loose terminals, loose or burnt fuses, loose relays. This connection is the battery to fuse block then to starter connection

 

Make sure these bolts in the fuse block are Tight

 

Awesome, I'll take a look at those when I head back to the car later.

Yesterday when I popped the hood I noticed the fuze box top was hardly on and it's been raining nonstop. Could that cause a fuse to blow?

Thanks a lot for the help. Really appreciate it!