2002 turbo......

This is now the second time this has happened:

Get in the car, depress clutch, turn key and all I get is click, click click. All the interior lights still light, the radio comes on, etc (i.e. all electrical equipment seems to be working...). Still enough juice to pop the hood and access the battery. The voltmeter on the dash reads about 10-11 volts. Turn the key off and try again and same thing...

The first time it happened, I was in a hurry leaving for work--so, I hooked up a battery charger/jumper and the car turned over with no problem . Got to work, put the car on a charger and within 30 minutes it showed a full charge. Sure enough, voltmeter with the key in the on position shows 12 volts, up to 14 with the car running.

Same thing happened today, about three weeks after the first incident. This time, the battery jumper didn't start the car right away--I had to let it charge about 5 minutes. Again, before jumping the voltmeter read 10-11; after it read 12 and up to 14 running.

I have noticed that the car does lose electricity during these episodes, if briefly. I know because I have a Kenwood stereo which loses all its memory presets when this occurs.

So, any ideas? Sorry, I know this is long but I wanted to include as much info as possible. Wouldn't seem to be that it's the battery, or is it just going bad slowly...? Starter switch? Alternator? Help? Thanks!

 

If you are up to 14 volts when running, probably not the alternator - probably a bad battery...

 

battery

 

Battery

 

Battery

 

Well, so far it's overwhelming that the verdict is the battery--which would make me happy since that's an easy, relatively inexpensive fix Oh God, now to delve into the slew of available batteries How difficult is it to get an Optima Red Top to fit into the OEM slot?

 

FYI, if it's reading 13-14volts running, it's usually NOT the alternator. There are many batteries as powerful as the stocker, but much lighter. I think many here run the Optima redtop. Do a search...

 

It's not even an OEM that's in there--it's an Interstate...that's what was in there when I bought the car. Manufacture date on the battery is 2008...that surely didn't last

 

Bummer. I think I still have my original battery (looks like it anyway) but it spends most of it's life now on a charger, as I run my 11lb Deka most of the time...

 

Your local auto parts store can test your battery and alternator for free!

I purchased a new battery (mtp-93 interstate) a year ago. Car sat for 6 weeks w/o a charger or driving it and whoala... battery is dead.

These cars just like to drain the battery if you don't drive them.

A good Alternator should start @ 14V(ish) then drop to 13.2-13.5V (normal). I know this because mine is new and it's what it reads.

 

They drain the battery if you don't set the alarm. If you set the alarm, the battery will last considerably longer.

 

I heard about setting the alarm puts the car in some sort of sleep mode.

The only problem I encountered is the the alarm set off twice once at 2:00am and the second time at 3:30am, maybe the gremlins in the garage.

I quit after the second time. Has anybody else experienced this?

 

The only time I ever heard my alarm go off, is when I tried to unlock it after it "went to sleep". There are times I don't drive my car for a week or 2 at a time. When you go to open it, the remote is disabled and you have to manually unlock it and sometimes the alarm goes off if you "do it wrong". If I don't set my alarm, my battery will be dead in less then a week. When I set my alarm, I can go weeks and weeks with no battery issues.

 

Not trying to take over the OP as I think this information is good.

If your car is on a battery tender is it still a good idea to set the alarm?

 

My car CURRENTLY has a very small lightweight battery and I leave it on a Porsche charger and set the alarm EVERY time I park it.