I have an issue that I've been dealing with since last summer. Here goes;

The car started acting strange (intermittent power, guages going funky, lights popping up and down, trunk releasing etc...) while it was shut off already!!! The damn thing would wink at me sometimes after walking away from the car by popping up one of it's headlights.

I could hear a clicking sound coming from the engine bay while trying to start it and assumed it was the battery not making a good connection. So I tried to tighten it a LITTLE, nothing. So maybe the battery was dead I figured, so I replaced it (shop told me it wouldn't hold a charge also) and tried again. Worked ok but needed EXTREME tightening.

Well the car started doing it again a few days later. Brought it to the dealership this time, and they replaced the ignition cylinder, two keys (passkeys) and to make a long story short 500 dollar job. They said it was probably due to the computer getting intermittent signal from the fact my keys/cylinder were worn out. Must be fixed now?

Not! Just a couple weeks ago when taking it out of storage , I had to tighten the battery again since it wouldn't get a good connection. Seemed to work ok after that and started right up. Did I ever have to go tight with it though. Strange.

Well tonight after work I went out to the car in the rain (probably not important that it was raining but who knows) and it powered up at first and then ...."nothing". Click!!! Damn, it was a long hard day a work too.

So I tightened the son of a bitch up again, and got it to work and start up. The car didn't want to idle very well at first (probably due to the computer relearning ???) but then pulled through and got me home. I went back out with one of my wrenches to tighten it once more (since all I had at work was a crescent wrench ) and ended up stripping the head of the battery connector bolt (damn!).

I was using a 5/16th on it but now in hindsight I am wondering if it is a metric size of some sort? Anyone know what size this sucker is-to tighten up the positive post?

So what's going on here folks? Any ideas? Why would this not be connecting? The cable end in question (positive) seems clean and I know it's not the battery (brand new). So could the cable be broken inside of the end piece/connector. Would I just replace the red "end connection" of the cable or the entire cable?

I'm lost and this problem is pissing me off even though it's a rare occurrence. I can't tighten it any more now that the head is stripped and I don't even know If I will be able to loosen the bugger off now either lol

What is my problem here and what size of wrench should I be using. (I'm assuming I would have been fine with the 5/16th if I wasn't trying to tighten it so damn much) ???

Thanks for ANY help or ideas guys.

 

Its an 8mm.

Im not sure about your problem. Bad ground? Thats where I would start, the ground. Though it sounds like you will need a new positive terminal. You should be able to replace just the end.

 

I would check and make sure the bolts for the side posts are not stripped out. I had to replace mine when I bought my car because of this. Then the rubber part around the bolt would not allow the battery to get a good connection, check and make sure that rubber is not between that metal washer and the battery. Other than that I dont know what else to check. I hope you find the problem, I sure hope its not a short somewhere otherwise you would be chasing wires until the next century. Good luck, I hope its something simple.

 

Well it seems to work if I tighten the positive. Could that still be the ground? Thanks.

 

Do you mean the threads of the bolts themselves could be stripped? I'll check that. Thanks.

 

this might solve your question
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PoAD3...eature=related

 

 

if the threads were stripped you wouldnt be able to round over the head of the connection bolt. take a wire brush and scrape all if any rust or build up is on the connection part of the cables, brush the battery too just for fun.

if that doesnt help at all i would replace the cable connection where the cable meets the battery. to do this, get a new metal connector for both positive and negative, cut just below the connector to remove the old metal, put the new connector on and either crimp the hell out of it or crimp it and heat the connector/cable area up with a torch and apply solder to the hot metal and cable.

if neither of those amazing ideas work, check all your ground for corrosion and tightness along with ANY other electrical connection in the car.

good luck

 

Check your red connection to the starter too.

 

Well it hasn't gone that far .....yet! Lmao.

 

A new "metal connector" ? You mean without the rubberized coating (ie: red and black pos and neg)? I'm thinking it must be the red connector that is faulty.

 

If there's a clicking sound, it's your starter solenoid not getting enough current to engage itself. It tries to engage, then quickly disengages due to lack of current, repeatedly when you turn the key.

Not enough current is a result of a bad connection, bad battery, bad solenoid, or bad ignition relay. 95% of the time, it's a bad connection or bad battery.

If your battery is new, I'd take off both battery terminals, clean them up with a coarse wire brush, put some dielectric grease on there, and don't overtighten them on the battery studs - 20lb-ft is more than good enough. I would then do the same process to the red connection on the starter.

 

Ok will do thanks a lot.

 

Okay guys, so I have everything ready for when/if (fingers crossed) the "wraith" in my car decides to rear it's ugly head again! s: It has not acted up since the last time I tightened the pos battery connector. I don't want to loosen it off right yet since I'm sure I have rounded the head of the bolt a fair bit from over-tightening. I just want to see if it holds up for now, although if it doesn't then I can remove it (or "try" to-it may be to rounded and to tight) and have a look to see if the rubber on the connection cable is coming between the washer and the terminal.

*** Side note: this may be useful information here: I noticed also that SOMETIMES when I start the vehicle at night, the headlights seem to rapidly pulse brighter to dimmer for a few seconds (almost in accordance with the engine idle). Could this indicate another problem, or possibly something caused by my poor battery connection (whether it be the pos/neg terminal, ground wire, starter connection etc)?


This car has only done this "not starting" thing to me a few times since last summer (when I purchased it) and each and every time it happens I tighten the battery more and more and it always works immediately. For awhile lol. I think that next time I have to tighten I will just remove the cable and clean it up and try to ensure that it is in fact making contact on the right surfaces. I hope that I can then put it back on with the bolt being so rounded. If not I will need a new cable connector.

Thanks again for all the ideas guys. If none of this works I have to bring the vehicle to an exorcist and I hear they're not cheap!!!

 

That could be your alternator. Since you've got it all back together now, bring it to AutoZone & get the free battery/alternator test done.

 

+1 Sounds like alternator or battery. Autozone can check it out for free, good luck.

 

My Firehawk exhibits some of the same problems. A fun trick that it likes to pull is sometimes just dying completely.. Like, in the road at the end of my driveway last year. That was fun! Thank god it wasnt at an intersection or on the freeway. I found that tightening the pos and neg bolts did fix the problem...for a while, then it happened again randomly and I had to go back and re-tighten.

It has had various electrical problems but I've only fixed them by tightening on two occasions.. Not enough for me to be 100% sure that loose terminals is the cause of all my hell.

Today, I went to put the battery back on, so I could take the car out of storage. Only to find that the thread on my negative bolt is stripped enough to keep it from staying in the battery. So maybe it's always been slightly stripped and these terminals are just poorly constructed and prone to this crap..

I'll be right back after I roll this f*****g hawk into traffic.