My car goes off the road in the winter. I hadn't driven the car in a week and a half and went to start it and it wouldn't. Car wouldn't even crank. Lights were barely going on. It was just clicking. I jumped the car today and it fired up and i let it run for 15min to charge up the battery (that's what i thought it was). But my battery has an indicator to let you know if it's charged. It shows fully charged. I turned the car off after the 15 min. and put my radio code back in and radio stations, then went to fire it up again and it wouldn't crank. Just clicking again.

Doesn't seem like it's the battery as it shows its fully charged. Would it be the starter or alternator?? It's bad timing because i was about to put it away, and i start it up every week and move it around to avoid flat spots. My dad runs a shop an hour away, so i may have to get it there. If i jump it, it should be fine to get there right?

 

Sounds to me like it's a bad alternator.

 

I'll put my money on a dead cell in the battery, I have seen them die and still leave the charge thingy green.

You can check the alternator and battery with a simple multi-meter.

 

I would think it is the battery, alternator or both. I would test the battery first.

 

if the alternator is shot, will the car make a 45 min drive okay?

I'll get them to check both battery and alternator.

 

I'm sure its the battery. You hardly ever see the alternators go out on these. You battery can be fully charged and still only be able to put out 200 cold cranking amps; which isn't enough to crank the car over. These cars need at least 450 cold cranking amps to start up. But if you can jump-start and it'll run for 15 minutes without dying, your alternator is fine. invest in a battery.

 

well i'll get it to my dads shop hopefully and they'll do a bettery test. i have the underdrive alternator pulley, so i'm concerned that it somehow killed the alternator early.

 

Go to autozone and have the battery load tested. A bad alt won't keep the car from starting. You can put a mulitmeter on the battery and have someone crank it. Watch how low the it dips when you try to crank it.

 

This, a battery that is depleted multiple times can hold a charge but no have a full output.

If your car sits a lot get a battery tender or some time of charger to keep it fresh.

 

First thing i would check is the conection with battery. Clean it and tight it good. But battery i think is on the way to go. Two weeks ago same thing happened to me. Let us know.

 

^^^That would be the best way to start, and the cheapest!

 

under my hood is spotless....connectors have no corrosion, and they were on there tight. Since i've had the car (2007) i haven't changed the battery. I'm guessing it's original. Can i just take the battery out to have it load tested? Because then i could take it to my dad's shop this friday. (i need to drive a different car there)

 

In order for it to be load tested, you need to have it connected to a vehicle. If your dad's shop has a vehicle you can test your battery with, that will be acceptable, but in order to diagnose the issues you are having, it would be best to do it with your CL. However, based on what you described, I am almost certain it's your battery. The clicking, dim lights, those are classic indicators for a bad battery. Since your car was able to run for a while after jump starting, your alternator is okay.

 

nice, thanks for the input everyone. I can't drive the CL to the shop this weekend because i have to take our Rav...long story. Maybe i'll do what six said and throw the battery in another car to test.

 

Keep in mind that 4 cylinder require less cca to start.

 

My money is on battery as well. Check the connections at the alternator and the starter though just in case they are somewhat loose. Check the ground on the battery as well. The cables could be frayed.

 

i've been looking around for batteries and a lot of sites say they don't carry a battery for a CL. i don't have a manual so i don't know what size/specs i should be looking for. Never had to purchase a battery so i'm a little lost here. help appreciated.

 

I believe its group size 34.

Measure yours and compare to this:

http://www.rtpnet.org/~teaa/bcigroup.html

And IIRC the stock battery is 550CCA.

 

take it to autozone. they'll put the battery on charge over night i think and after that, they'll be able to tell you if the battery can take a full charge. I'll also put my money on the battery.

seen several cars do the exact same thing.

 

got a new battery yesterday (had a hard time finding anything decent). Car fired right up nicely. Taking it for an oil change today, then it's going to sleep for the winter. Also got a trickle charger for xmas to keep an eye on the battery.

 

a month to figure out a dead battery/getting it replaced.
awesome.

 

easy putz. Car has been off the road as i have a winter beater, so i was in no hurry. It's kind of crazy during the holidays to deal with car stuff.

 

red text.
glad you got your car fixed, brother.