Battery? Starter? Alternator? Please help poor student.

devoncat

My car did not start after being left alone over christmas. I tried to jump it and it took forever to get it going. You could hear it wanted to start but nothing happened for a long time. Then I drove it around the area to charge up the battery. After 10 minutes, the wipers stopped working, and then the car slowly died. I think I need a new battery, but am not sure. I dont want to pay for a new battery when it is something different. Do batteries just die in the middle of driving? Dont know anything about cars and am trying to read up on internet and sites were suggesting possibly starter motor or alternator. Now I am very confused. Please help clarify if it is the battery.
if it is the battery, can anyone suggest a cheap place to purchase in glasgow?

Wig

What is the age of the battery?
If you have n't got a charger, go and buy one, follow the instructions and charge it up.

Then if you feel confident drive to an auto electricians ask for a free alternator check.

To do this your self, put a volt meter across your battery should be about 11 - 12 volts. Start car volts should now be when running 13 - 14 volts, turn on lights and rear de mister volts should remain 13 - 14.

You describe that the car was trying to start for a long time, all that trying would have drained your battery, so I suggest there is nothing wrong with your battery, except it now needs to be charged up.

It sounds like alternator trouble, and this could be oil dripped into your alternator or it could be a simple as a loose alternator belt. check the tension on your alternator belt it should be really taught if it's loose or damaged that'll be the problem.

But a knackered alternator would not prevent the car from starting. so the reason it did not start could be indicating a problem else where such as spark ignition system. If your battery was ok your car should have started then after driving if the alternator is knackered the car will eventually stop - say after 10 mins but you had difficulty starting in the first place, that's wha I'm getting at, there may be another cause.

avantra

Sounds like your battery is too old, as a student myself I had the same problem last winter (and a new battery was £45). A quick drive to the local junk yard got me a used almost new battery for £10. If it is not the battery try install new spark leads , these usually cost £8-10 from car parts stores.

devoncat

The car is an N Reg, bought it used a year ago so I am not sure of the battery age. One of the belts has also been sqeaking a bit. Is this related? Am a little worried. An alternator problem sounds expensive. Spark leads?!? is that a spark plug? Can one girl with a couple of tools from Ikea do that?

trigger_mike

Is the car a petrol or diesel?, does sound like a naff battery to me, quite common in the cold weather, the cells go down, what kind of car is it?
As your a girl sweet talk a local garage to do a drop test on the battery for free, that will tell you if the batterys taking a charge or not. if not it could be the alternator not charging the battery.
I doubt it's spark leads, they are used for starting a car, if the car dies whist running then its battery/charging problems.

Wig

Even if the battery is dead as a dodo, once started the car should keep going. And from the account, the car was turning over for a long time before it started. This Is why I say it's not likely to be the battery. Edit: OK I just saw that it was started by "jumping". OP, if the battery was flat out then you need to charge the battery, if it happens again it is either the battery needs replaced, or the alternator needs replaced. Once you get it going you can have the alternator checked for free at a lot of auto electricians. Failing that I told you above how to test it yourself.

The car was difficult to start, and after starting died shortly after. This is what points to a problem not linked to battery or alternator, maybe changing the plugs is all that is required. But it could be alternator none the less, because once started it should keep going.

You should definately take the plugs out and look at them, and take the dizzy cap off and look at the terminals.....All assuming it is a petrol car of course.

devoncat

It is petrol. Oh plugs, sounds promising. Is this something I can do? The car is completely dead now. I am not sure I can get it to turn over again, even with a jump lead. I am also scared to drive it a long distance to the mechanic. I would really like to try my hand at it, but only if those in the know say it is not too difficult. By the way, it is in N Reg Kia Pride.

Wig

You will need a 14mm plug spanner (3 - 5 pounds), just to be confusing a 14mm plug spanner is nothing like a 14mm socket - something I have never understood!

You remove the plug lead from the plug and unscrew a plug, if it looks crappy
http://www.spark-plugs.co.uk/pages/technical/diagnosis.htm
then change it, they are about 2.40 each
NGK BPR5ES-11 it should say on your plugs but they might have been changed with champions or some other, in which case you can double check with your car manual in the back where it talks about engine specs.

When you put a new one in tighten by hand, or loosely with your spanner until it requires force, then just a quarter turn and it's done don't overtighten.

You should also check for corrosion on your rotor arm and distributor cap inside the cap. You can do that yourself too but you will need to buy the haynes manual so you can read how to do it.

You will need to charge your battery so a battery charger should be the first thing on your shoping list. When the battery is charged check the alternator as I described above.

battery charger, you should find one for 15 - 20 quid or less from a local car accessories shop.

Multimeter to check voltage, again from the car accessories shop, get a cheap one for under a fiver if you can. Set it DC Volts on a setting of about 15V or 25V whatever you have that is one setting above 14V.

ffym

90% it's the Battery, 10% the Alternator. Spark Plug problems don't cause wipers to slow down, first symptoms of battery problems are failing to hold charge e.g. after a long idle spell). Usually there's a red light on the dashboard that comes on when the alternator isn't working (either because a belt is slipping or the alternator is knackered).
My money is on the Battery, Phone around for prices (they can vary quite a bit, try tyre depots like ATS, Nationwide etc as well) you should save quite a bit by getting one from an auto accessory shop if you can fit it yourself. They are all 12v ( unless you pay a fortune for a 24v HGV one!!) and all have two terminals + and - (must get them the right way around). The only difference (apart from the make) is the capacity quoted in Ampere hours - get the same as you have now, doesn't matter if it's not an exact match.
Most Batteries last 3 -5 years, so if you haven't bought one recently and plan to keep the car it's not an entire waste to get a new one even if something else is at fault.
If you can do it yourself you will need a small adjustable spanner to release the connections, keep the connecting faces as clean as possible (sand them if they are dirty), once the new battery has been fitted and the connections made, smear vaseline or similar over to keep moisture out.
If it does turn out to be the alternator then, although you could do it yourself, I would recommend phoning around the local auto electical suppliers, tyre depots or garages to get the best deal.

avantra

My money is with the last comment, it's got all the symptoms that my battery was showing before it went to battery heaven. You are in a tricky position as the car can't move. The first thing I would do to save money is to call a friend with a car to take you down to the local breaker (free) to get a battery (you will be surprise how new these are - from damaged new cars usually), call them first (0p/m from 1899) to find out if they have batteries and if they do than ask them to charge one for you (this is a free service). To fit the new battery is easy but batteries usually weigh about 8-10 kg so be careful with your back. How to fit? Just google it "fitting a car battery", there are loads of DIY manuals for these things on the net. And yes all you need to fit a new battery is an adjustable spanner which as far as I remember is present in the basic Ikea tool set otherwise borrow a spanner from a friend. There you have it getting it going again for a tenner.

Wig

I have a car right now, the battery has no charge in it what-so-ever, it won't even operate the central locking or the radio, I start the car by jumping it, I can then drive the car around as much as I like, for as far as I like - ***because the alternator is doing its job*** but I can not turn it off unless I am prepared to bump or jump start it again, because the battery is as dead as a dodo.

If she got her car started and it subsequently failed, it is more like 90% alternator 10% battery.

The battery may be old and may not be good anyway, but the alternator is the most likely problem. The battery should first just be fully charged because it may still be good enough to continue using it once the car has a new alternator.

I suggested plugs because in attempting to start the car, she said it was trying to start for a long time, and you could hear that it wanted to start but nothing ever happened..........Plugs, dizzy cap, rotor arm, flooded engine syndrome, any or all of these could account for that.