When I went to start my car earlier today it died, and as long as I held my foot on the brake there was no power for anything else. When I took my foot off the brake and turned it to accessory it was a little iffy but it had enough power for windows, etc. I was able to push start it to get it home but the drive home is like 13 miles and when I got home and tried to start it same thing happened, which leads me to think the battery is fine. The battery light isn't coming on either so I don't think it's the alternator.

I checked it with a volt meter and the battery is at 12v but when the brake is depressed I get 7v, and when I try to start it, I get like 2 or 3v. There is a rapid clicking down by the fuse box and behind the cluster. I'm pretty much a layman when it comes to automotive electrical but I think they're relays.

Any ideas? Anything else I should check on the multimeter?

 

bump

 

anyone?

 

No one has a clue?

 

Check the ground cable on the battery. If it is loose, it could cause your problem.

 

Both battery terminals are correctly mounted.

 

Wow man.. Thats crazy.

I'd lean towards a relay as well.
Do you have a Helms?

 

I don't have a helms for my car actually. I've only had the car for a year and never had any problems.

I'm actually starting to think its just the battery. I tried jumping the car last night and it started up fine. I drove on the car for a while yesterday which didn't make a difference so I'm assuming the battery isn't charging, but if the alternator was bad I'd assume that the battery light would come on

I went out this morning and it seemed to have less power when I turned to accessory, and def wouldn't start, but I still get 12v off the battery. I'm going to take the battery to autozone and get it tested when one of my roommates gets up.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by three stars, two bars &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I don't have a helms for my car actually. I've only had the car for a year and never had any problems.

I'm actually starting to think its just the battery. I tried jumping the car last night and it started up fine. I drove on the car for a while yesterday which didn't make a difference so I'm assuming the battery isn't charging, but if the alternator was bad I'd assume that the battery light would come on

I went out this morning and it seemed to have less power when I turned to accessory, and def wouldn't start, but I still get 12v off the battery. I'm going to take the battery to autozone and get it tested when one of my roommates gets up.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yep, battery would be a good place to start. Plus it is free to get tested. Let us know how it goes.

 

Do you get 12V at the battery when the brake pedal is depressed? TYhe terminals can fail inside of the batter case.

 

Sounds like a dead battery to me.

 

also make sure there are no wires grounding out each other.....for ex. have you installed any electronics lately...gauges.....radio......

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by diversegsr &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">also make sure there are no wires grounding out each other.....for ex. have you installed any electronics lately...gauges.....radio......</TD></TR></TABLE>

There's a stereo that the previous owner had installed, the audio wires from the amp to the sub box were grounding out I think. I've taped them over with electrical tape, and I disconnected that amp's power cable from the terminal.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Dogginator &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Do you get 12V at the battery when the brake pedal is depressed? TYhe terminals can fail inside of the batter case.</TD></TR></TABLE>

No, when the brake pedal is depressed I get like 2v-3v.

 

the reason your battery gets worse when you hit the brake pedal is because its making your taillights light up, it sounds like a dead battery to me and when its started the alternator is making enough power to run everything

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by coptzer &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">the reason your battery gets worse when you hit the brake pedal is because its making your taillights light up, it sounds like a dead battery to me and when its started the alternator is making enough power to run everything</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yep. Bottom line, did you test the battery or not? Weak cells cant certainly cause the symptoms you are describing, especially the relay/solenoid one. Potential difference and current draw are quite different beasts, which is why a voltmeter alone will not get to your problem. You need to have the battery load tested, which can be done by any cheapo auto place, heck even my school has like 5 battery testers...

 

It was the battery, I tested it, it was dead, threw a new one in and it works like a charm. Thanks for the help everyone.