[phazetitan]

Ok I just bought a new battery and after installing the titan will not start. The lights and dash come on but when I turn the key it makes one click and does not turn over. It will start when I have a friend jump me but after I drive for a bit and shut it down, it won't start back up. What could be the problem with my truck? The battery was checked and it was charged

 

[Shane06fl]

Double check your connections at the battery are tight, if they are replace the battery. It may show charged with hosed cell but it's not pushing enough CCA to turn over the starter. Bad battery.

 

[Carbeaux]

It still sounds like a battery issue, maybe. What's it charge at when you're driving? Is it in the range it should be? Good connections at the posts? Good connections on the cables all the way around? It might be that there's a bad spot on one of those connections. Not enough to keep the lights and stuff from coming on (a relatively low load) but not enough of a good connection to carry the higher amperage requirements of a start.

 

[phazetitan]

The connections seem good and secure....what are the chances of me buying 2 dead batteries!

 

[Carbeaux]

Chances aren't high, I'll agree with that. But nothing else makes sense.

 

[phazetitan]

It still sounds like a battery issue, maybe. What's it charge at when you're driving? Is it in the range it should be? Good connections at the posts? Good connections on the cables all the way around? It might be that there's a bad spot on one of those connections. Not enough to keep the lights and stuff from coming on (a relatively low load) but not enough of a good connection to carry the higher amperage requirements of a start.

The unusual thing is that when roadside assistance came by, it would not start from the jump they gave me on the portable unit. My buddy comes over in his car with cables and we get it going and I can drive around town for a bit. After getting home I would shut it off and it will not crank back on....lights come on and everything but it will not turn over.

 

[mjw357]

How did they test the battery? Hydrometer? Volt meter? Only sure way to test is with a battery load tester (reads the voltage under a variable load, can be changed from 0-1000 amps load for example).

Have you had the charging system checked?

 

[Carbeaux]

Somehow you're getting enough voltage to light the dash and headlights, but you can't get enough current to turn the starter. I'm still suspect of the battery.

When you've driven it, have you noticed what the voltage gauge is reading?

 

[BayStateSuks]

Make sure you clean the terminals really well with a metal brush. Corrosion from the old battery could be preventing a good connection. It might be your buddy bypassed the battery by hooking the jumper cables upstream of the corrosion.

I had this same thing happen to me twice on my old Mitsu truck. It would not start and couldn't be jumped. I would have it towed to garage, they would clean the terminals and no problems. Eventually I just replaced the terminals entirely and it never happened again.

 

[phazetitan]

when the truck is running, i believe the voltage reading is about at 14?

when i turn my lights on the meter drops towards the middle of the gauge....

it hasn't done that before unless i am running my stereo really loud.

NTB used a voltmeter to check the battery before they gave it to me. it read 12.8....

i poured coke on the terminals to clean out all the excess junk that was left from the old battery.

i am having it towed to a friends shop today as he thinks it is the battery as well and will have it charged up and we will see what happens

 

[phazetitan]

Somehow you're getting enough voltage to light the dash and headlights, but you can't get enough current to turn the starter. I'm still suspect of the battery.

When you've driven it, have you noticed what the voltage gauge is reading?

do you think it could be a faulty starter?

 

[BayStateSuks]

If faulty starter, I would think it would not have started when you had it jumped. Usually when starter goes bad, you are SOL unless you can roll it and pop the clutch. You, of course, need a clutch. I suppose starter could be shorting out intermittently because of loose connection. Poke around under the hood (with a stick or something) and see if anything looks loose.

 

[mjw357]

It might be your buddy bypassed the battery by hooking the jumper cables upstream of the corrosion.

Very likely. Think about the cable connectors fit over the battery posts. You are placing the jumper cable clamps on the connectors, not the battery posts. It could start right up off of the other car's battery, but very little current is available from the truck's battery.

Also, when you jump a vehicle it is safer to attach the ground (-) lead to something other than the battery (alternator bracket, whatever) to avoid a spark igniting the hydrogen given off by the battery. If the negative battery cable connection is crappy, it will still start for the same reasons as above.

 

[phazetitan]

i'm thinking about taking out my gf's battery and hooking it up to my truck to see if it will crank up.....


will give you guys and update after lunch

 

[Steamguy]

when the truck is running, i believe the voltage reading is about at 14?

when i turn my lights on the meter drops towards the middle of the gauge

The truck is running solely off the charging system. You don't have the battery connected. There is crud somewhere underneath the terminals, preventing a good connection. I bet if you turned enough stuff on like your stereo, 4-ways, and blower on HIGH, the truck would start acting up from low voltage.

i poured coke on the terminals
I don't see where you cleaned them with the right tool, which is a five-dollar battery terminal brush tool. Those connections HAVE to be shiny before you put them back together. These trucks' electronics are very sensitive to battery voltage.

towed to a friends shop today
Clean the terminals first. Just dumping Coca-cola on them isn't enough. You have to use mechanical means to clean the terminals. Kind of like squirting water from a hose at the truck and expecting that to take off the road oil.

Not to be sarcastic, but this is what it's gonna take. Hope this helps you. :cheers:

 

[Yahooligan]

NTB used a voltmeter to check the battery before they gave it to me. it read 12.8....

Unfortunately that tells you nothing about the condition of your battery or the cells. I can hook a voltmeter up to a 14.4v cordless drill battery and read 14v, do you think that battery could start your truck? Of course not.

You need to have the battery load tested with a proper tool. It's not uncommon for a battery to have a bad or shorted cell that shows 12+v under no load but as soon as demand it put on it the cell shorts and voltage drops to 6-8v, resulting in not enough juice to start the engine.

 

[phazetitan]

ok so the verdict is in....

there was a loose connection between the truck wire and the battery terminal. i basically replaced the battery terminal with a newer one and used a washer to secure a closer connection between the truck wires....

the truck is running now and everything is good to go......