problems starting

[xanthinic12]

91 gl, b6 swap..

today when i tried to start my car it seemed to crank as if the battery was dead but the buzzer, lights and every thing else seemed fine, after two tries it fired and ran fine. why did it not start right away? thanks, paul

[scitzz]

Nothing else needs the power the starter does, get the battery checked, it may be borderline. More likely, clean the terminals, and check the ground. Also, check that it is getting proper charge from the alternator. Even a slightly loose ALT belt can be a culprit....

[xanthinic12]

yep battery running 10 volts, time to replace. it had a good 7 year run. how long are they supposed to last?

[scottxd45]

In my experience 3-5 years usually so that's pretty good! You definitely got your moneys worth out of that one.

[Axlander9289]

Auto Zone's best batteries have a 7 year pro-rated warranty, so I'd say 7 years is a pretty good run.

[scitzz]

7 years sounds like a good long run to me

[SIBladerunner]

your battery was probably drained. use a meter and find out. the lights and buzzers will work even if there is a little voltage. a dead battery is anythin less than 12.2volts before crankin and w/o lights or nethin on. if there is less than 12volts it will still start, but youll be lucky if it starts.

[jglutz]

??????? I would respectfully beg to differ with the battery being the primary cause of the problem....not that 10VDC and 7 plus years are good.
My concern....if the car did not start on the first attempt because of a failing battery...what happened...betweent the first attempt and the later that was sucessfull...the battery did not charge itself during the interim. There is most likely an additional problem between the battery and the starter solenoid that will appear again sooner or later....most likely sooner than later.

[Axlander9289]

Could be the charging system as well, or a key off parasitic draw.

[Glease]

In my experience I have had alternators go bad causing a parasitic draw from the battery, yet still charged it a small amount. Make sure to test the alt.

Good luck!

[Axlander9289]

Auto Zone will test your alternator for free.

[xanthinic12]

yeah, im an idiot i didn't read this, therefor i didn't test my alternator. it died. i limped it to school with barely any head lights on and no interior lights on. yeah not good in nighttime miami. well how hard is it to change the alt. is it best to take it to a shop? yeah prides a little low right now.

[scottxd45]

It's easy. Do it yourself. It's only two mounting bolts and three electrical connections.

[xanthinic12]

huh i only have 10 12 14 17 socket, normal and deep socket and wrenchs, do i need to get another socket,

[scitzz]

I think a 13 would be needed, and it will fit alot more things on your festy