1999 Chevy Blazer will not start
#1
11-17-2011 | 11:28 AM
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1999 Chevy Blazer will not start
Wife came home yesterday from work. Within 5 mins of her getting home I jumped into the truck, went to start. Made alot of clicks but it just would not start. I hear the clicks coming from under the fuse box under the hood, as well as these same clicks coming from behind the glove compartment box. Even though there is no fuse box there.
So I saved it for me to start on today. I am stumped. Checked all the fuses none of them are bad. I hear the fuel pump engaging, all the dash lights come on. The battery seems to be ok. But the weird things that I have noticed, other than it not starting, is one the battery will sometimes show it is completely dead, then others it will show about 10 Volts. This goes up and down with each time I put the key in. Also have noticed all the lights come on for the radio, but yet no sound will come out of the speaker. Not sure if this is related or not, so I decided to mention it.
Before this the blazer has just been fine.
So I saved it for me to start on today. I am stumped. Checked all the fuses none of them are bad. I hear the fuel pump engaging, all the dash lights come on. The battery seems to be ok. But the weird things that I have noticed, other than it not starting, is one the battery will sometimes show it is completely dead, then others it will show about 10 Volts. This goes up and down with each time I put the key in. Also have noticed all the lights come on for the radio, but yet no sound will come out of the speaker. Not sure if this is related or not, so I decided to mention it.
Before this the blazer has just been fine.
#2
11-17-2011 | 11:32 AM
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Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 658
From: Reading, PA
1. 10 volts is too low to start your car
2. Even if 10 volts was NOT too low to start your car by the time the battery gets to 10 volts the amperage (which is the measure of available current) isn't enough to start your car.
3. Check all connections to battery and starter, ohm out the big cables if all connections are good. But I'm betting they probably are since it's a sudden onset.
I think you'll find that you need to recharge/replace the battery, however we need to find out why the battery went dead. I'm guessing (since it was just driven) that your alternator has either taken a crap on you. or the wiring to the alternator (the connector not the big wire) has come loose or become corroded and isn't signaling the alternator to turn on. If you find that not to be the case check the big cable from the battery to alternator (but you should have already checked that in step 3.)
2. Even if 10 volts was NOT too low to start your car by the time the battery gets to 10 volts the amperage (which is the measure of available current) isn't enough to start your car.
3. Check all connections to battery and starter, ohm out the big cables if all connections are good. But I'm betting they probably are since it's a sudden onset.
I think you'll find that you need to recharge/replace the battery, however we need to find out why the battery went dead. I'm guessing (since it was just driven) that your alternator has either taken a crap on you. or the wiring to the alternator (the connector not the big wire) has come loose or become corroded and isn't signaling the alternator to turn on. If you find that not to be the case check the big cable from the battery to alternator (but you should have already checked that in step 3.)
#3
11-17-2011 | 11:46 AM
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I have also just noticed that while the key is in the ON position for the dash and all the electronics to come on that the fuel gauge fluxiates all over the place.
I might have been mistaken about it reading 10 on the battery. It was the bigger bar that is in between 9 and 14. So I am guessing that would be 11 or 12 maybe, not sure.
I just checked all the connections to the battery as well as all the grounds. Everything looks good and tight, no corrosion. Bout to pull the cables off the battery to verify that the contacts are good and not corroded. Really hoping its not the alternator. Is there a way to check to see if that is the problem with out taking it off and taking it to auto zone?
I am goign to take a guess that the only way I can get to the starter is from the bottom, so I am going to go check those right now as well.
I might have been mistaken about it reading 10 on the battery. It was the bigger bar that is in between 9 and 14. So I am guessing that would be 11 or 12 maybe, not sure.
I just checked all the connections to the battery as well as all the grounds. Everything looks good and tight, no corrosion. Bout to pull the cables off the battery to verify that the contacts are good and not corroded. Really hoping its not the alternator. Is there a way to check to see if that is the problem with out taking it off and taking it to auto zone?
I am goign to take a guess that the only way I can get to the starter is from the bottom, so I am going to go check those right now as well.
#4
11-17-2011 | 11:57 AM
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I think I just found my problem, However I am very puzzled by it, never seen this before. First off let me say this is a side post battery, where the the cables bassically get screwed into the terminal. Taking the positive off liquid started draining out. Which at first I was ok, that is odd, but that would be my problem. But it kept just flowing out. So I took the battery out flipped it on its side, and noticed that this was not water, its battery acid, somehow it got punctured or corroded through the internal terminal somehow. Which by the way, positive had a little corrosion, not much, in fact very little.
SO my question is, could this be the reason that I am having all the troubles described above. And how the hell did it get punctured through?
SO my question is, could this be the reason that I am having all the troubles described above. And how the hell did it get punctured through?
#5
11-17-2011 | 12:06 PM
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Joined: May 2011
Posts: 2,257
From: SW Central OH
First things first... mix up some baking soda and warms water and douse down everything near your battery holder. Then rinse it off with warm water and repeat. Fianlly two rinses. and then take it to the self service car wash and soap wash it soon as possible.
Battery acid just keeps on destroying.
Put that battery in a plastic tub to take it wherever. Go to cheap store and buy kitty litter pan or cheap dishpan.
You're not going to know that was your problem .. it could have been.. till you get your new battery.
Make sure the terminal bolts are not longer than they should be.
Battery acid just keeps on destroying.
Put that battery in a plastic tub to take it wherever. Go to cheap store and buy kitty litter pan or cheap dishpan.
You're not going to know that was your problem .. it could have been.. till you get your new battery.
Make sure the terminal bolts are not longer than they should be.
Last edited by pettyfog; 11-17-2011 at 12:09 PM.
#7
11-17-2011 | 01:58 PM
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Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 658
From: Reading, PA
I'd say that COULD be your problem, but like pettyfog said you won't know untill you get the new one in. As far as testing the alternator with it in the truck there is a way but it's got to wait till the new battery is in there and you get it started.
Do you have a regular multimeter? If so check the battery voltage before starting. should be between 12 and 12.6. Then start the vehicle, while running it should show 14-14.6 at idle with no loads, then you can turn all the accessories (headlights, heater, radio etc.) and check the voltage again, It shouldn't go below 13.6 at idle (slightly lower is ok but not much lower).
Do you have a regular multimeter? If so check the battery voltage before starting. should be between 12 and 12.6. Then start the vehicle, while running it should show 14-14.6 at idle with no loads, then you can turn all the accessories (headlights, heater, radio etc.) and check the voltage again, It shouldn't go below 13.6 at idle (slightly lower is ok but not much lower).
#9
11-17-2011 | 05:59 PM
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Ok, as promised here is the update. Put the battery in, and..............IT STARTS
. So I am thinking this was my only problem. Should not be the alternator since I still had plenty of charge on the Battery. Maybe just a shy short of letting me crank it, but still had plenty of juice.
. So I am thinking this was my only problem. Should not be the alternator since I still had plenty of charge on the Battery. Maybe just a shy short of letting me crank it, but still had plenty of juice.
#10
11-17-2011 | 06:09 PM
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Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 658
From: Reading, PA
Not nessicarily,
Taken from https://blazerforum.com/forum/audio-...pacitor-26541/
While the rest of the discussion in that thread isn't relevant the depletion is. You still need to diagnose your charging system to make sure it's up to snuff. If it's not you'll be back with a discharged battery yet again, and next time you may not be so lucky as to have it happen at home.
Lesson 4
In the actual real world the voltage of the battery would drop a little from its open circuit voltage of 12.8 volts with a 65 amp load. In the case of the yellow top its actual voltage at 65 amps is about 12.2v when fully charged. By the end of the hour it would be down to about 10v. If we use 11 as an average our answer would be........ 2,574,000. Now that's still a lot of joules! Now actually this is not enough to totally kill the battery but at this point there isn't much left in it. This brings us to a very important fact. The energy in a battery will be depleted almost completely by the time it is down to 10 volts.
Lesson 4 (continued)
By the time we have removed those 2.5 million joules from the battery it probably doesn't have more than a hundred thousand joules left. We can almost totally deplete the battery's energy and never drop below 10 volts. This is because the battery doesn't store electricity. It stores chemicals. A chemical reaction produces the electricity. Storing actual electrical charges is very inefficient.
In the actual real world the voltage of the battery would drop a little from its open circuit voltage of 12.8 volts with a 65 amp load. In the case of the yellow top its actual voltage at 65 amps is about 12.2v when fully charged. By the end of the hour it would be down to about 10v. If we use 11 as an average our answer would be........ 2,574,000. Now that's still a lot of joules! Now actually this is not enough to totally kill the battery but at this point there isn't much left in it. This brings us to a very important fact. The energy in a battery will be depleted almost completely by the time it is down to 10 volts.
Lesson 4 (continued)
By the time we have removed those 2.5 million joules from the battery it probably doesn't have more than a hundred thousand joules left. We can almost totally deplete the battery's energy and never drop below 10 volts. This is because the battery doesn't store electricity. It stores chemicals. A chemical reaction produces the electricity. Storing actual electrical charges is very inefficient.
While the rest of the discussion in that thread isn't relevant the depletion is. You still need to diagnose your charging system to make sure it's up to snuff. If it's not you'll be back with a discharged battery yet again, and next time you may not be so lucky as to have it happen at home.