seattleslew

Hi,

I have a 2008 Honda Accord. Today when I tried to start the car for the second time (15 minutes after driving it) it clicked really rapidly and wouldn't start. I fiddled with the contacts and tried again but still the same thing. Eventually the clicking stopped, and the car seemed to lose power entirely. At first the lights and stuff would come on but the last time I tried I did not seem to have any power.

I put in a new battery 1 1/2 years ago so I would think the battery would be OK. Prior to this maybe once or twice a month the car would not start, but without any clicking. I found if I fiddled with one of the contacts it would start again. I would then need to reenter the radio code in order to use the radio.

It had been raining for the past two days so I do not know if that was the cause. But it did start on the first try of the day and there was no rain after that.

The car was also low on gas but I thought I had enough to make it to the gas station. I've run out of gas before and been unable to start the car but there was no rapid-fire clicking sound.

Any ideas? Is it as simple as a new battery or a jump-start?

Thanks in advance!

dandaman15

It needs a new battery. Make sure the contacts are not corroded. Also make sure your commute it longer than 10 minutes back and forth a day. Lots of short trips without charging the battery can drain it very fast. Get a battery with a warranty if you are going through them that fast.

seattleslew

That makes a lot of sense. Most of the times I use the car is for less than 10 minutes each way. I'll pop a new battery in and hope it does the trick. Thanks!

94vtecmn

Do this FIRST before doing anything. Pull both terminals and clean them. This would also cause the battery to not get a very good charge on a short trip. 10 minutes is more than enough time to recharge a battery from a start.

Edit/add: Be sure to clean the inside of the wire/post clamp as well, build up under there may not be obvious.

0AFH-Parts

iTrader: (3)

If you have a really short commute and allow your battery minimal charge time, a dry cell battery like an Optima might be for you.

seattleslew

What does the wire/post clamp look like? And for cleaning the terminals baking soda + water is good right?

0Steve@Spreen

Pull the negative cable first, then the positive. Clean (wire brush) both the battery post and the battery cable clamp, go easy on the clamp, as the metal strap is easily worn down. Re-install in reverse order ( + then -). It is possible the battery is not good, it happens. If you can get it jumped, drive the car to the dealership (or your favorite mechanic) and have your system tested (most will do this for free). If you drive short trips, allow the car to completely warm up (at idle) before driving, this helps your battery and your engine remain in good working order. HTH

seattleslew

Well it turned out to be the metal piece on the terminal connection that somehow eroded away. I went to remove the connector in order to clean it as suggested and the metal piece snapped off, apparently it was already partway snapped, which no doubt cause the starting problems.

I picked up a "universal top post terminal" to replace it. However I am having several problems:

1. The copper-colored metal from the broken terminal is really pinched tight on the wires. I do not know how I can get the old metal piece off so I can fit the wires in the new connector. Here are a couple of images of the old metal terminal:




I got the slimmest side cutters I could find but there was no way to get at the metal only in order to remove it from the wires.

2. The new universal terminal does not easily go over the post on the battery. I may be able to hammer it fully over the post but that didn't seem like a good idea. This image shows how far I can get the terminal onto the battery with some slight hammering:



Do I need a different style of terminal?

I tried putting the wires with the old metal terminal into the new universal terminal. When I put the key in the ignition the lights/fan/etc. came on, but everything pretty silently turned off when I tried to turn the ignition. I waited a few seconds and put the key in again and the lights/fan/etc. came back on again so I think the battery is OK at least. Here is a picture of what this looks like:



And here is a picture of the other terminal (the one I used to fiddle with occasionally to get the car to start):



I was at least able to give the terminal connection area a good wire brush scrubbing.

Any help on the above issues is much appreciated. Thanks!