Won't Crank
 

I've jumped thru a dozen or more threads but thought I should start my own just in case.

2011 HHR
88,000 miles
had been running great

Monday night went out to start it after work and it cranked but the Security Lock icon stayed on. Thought that was odd so I shut it off and tried to start it again. Nothing but clicks. Like a bad starter.
Popped the hood and found my oil filler cap missing. (friend located it on the ground - I am assuming this is a coincidence and no one was messing with my car)
Disconnected the batter (in the back) for nearly an hour. Still clicked when I tried to crank it.

Tried the 30 min restart and the security icon never went away. By the time I did it the third time it had run down the battery to where it would only click once.
Friend drove by and hooked jumper cables to the front and it started right up. Security icon went away but the TPS monitor light stayed on this time.

Drove it home just fine. Shut if off in the driveway. Restarted just fine but the TPS monitor light stayed on.

Next day I cranked it and all lights turned off after it started up.
Drove it all day long.

Third day I go to crank it and nothing.. No clicks/pops or anything.
Lights came on. Would not shift out of park.
Stuck a trickle charger on it all day and drove another vehicle.
8 hrs later it at least would give me several clicks on an attempted restart.

No security light.

Hooked jumper cables to the front and it cranked immediately.

Shut it off and tried to crank it on its own and got nothing but clicks.

I'll stick a code reader on it tomorrow.

Local auto parts will test your battery & charging system FREE..

Whatever else is going on, it's almost certain the battery is shot. Could be a bad alternator, but charging with the trickle charger didn't seem to work - jump it again and see if alternator is putting out 14 V or so.

Sometimes a battery will test ok by hydrometer, but due to internal resistance can't supply enough current to crank engine. A voltmeter will reveal a severe decrease in voltage across battery when cranking.

Make sure battery connections and main ground connections are clean and tight.

I wonder why people do this???????

I trickle charger WILL NOT charge a dead battery......well maybe, if other "conditions" are present it MAY do it in a week time frame.

A trickle charger is just that......a trickle of amperage......maybe 1 or 2 amps. Something just high enough to keep a battery at correct level of charge.


Oh, and as to your problem.......as sleeper suggested, have the battery checked, I SUSPECT you need one.

WHERE was that charger hooked up.....up front?

I disagree.

2 amps for 10 hours is 20 Ah, which is normally enough to crank.

After jump starting the vehicle was driven around, normally providing enough charge for a good battery to have gone on about its business like nothing happened. The alternator is probably ok because the car was driven around ok after the jump. (It is possible for the alternator to be marginal, putting out, say, 12.3 V, fine for running things, but inadequate to charge up the battery.)

The starter is probably ruled out because of the apparent ease with which the engine was jump started.

It is almost certain that either the battery is shot, or the alternator is not putting out.

Starting batteries are not deep cycle batteries, and being badly discharged can reduce battery lifetime. So a bad alternator can itself lead to a bad battery.

There are jumper cables in the world, but mostly what we call a jump is really a boost - meaning charging the weak battery for a time, and then giving it a boost.

If the engine started right away with a jump, then it also will with a good battery. But don't be fooled, if the alternator is not putting out, the new battery will soon become discharged.

My 2011 just turned 100,000 miles and my power inverter has started to wail when I start the car. This is a sign that my battery is getting old. Resting voltage is usually 11.7 to 12.6, engine running 14.5. Just data points, I have been waiting for it.

Once the voltage gets down to 11.3 don't expect it to turn over. From experience.

A power inverter running off cigarette lighter will draw current even without a load on inverter. That may explain unusually low "resting" voltages. A healthy fully charged battery will be more like 12.8 V without a load.

A healthy battery may momentarily go down under 12 V when starting - depending.

Like I stated in the post, you mean?

And don't try to run an inverter off the "cig" lighter, the adapter WILL overheat and melt something. More personal experience (3 different inverters).

I've used 75 watt inverters with, say, 40 watt loads, with no problems. The plug might get hot if there is too much contact resistance. The inverter itself shouldn't overheat if operated below its rated capacity (e.g., 40 watts v. 75 watts).