okay, my car has been acting up. about 2 weeks ago i tried to start the car. i cranked it and it made no noise. so i kept cranking it and still no noise.. so i let it sit and wait like 5 mins then cranked it again and bam! it starts. it worked fine until today, i cranked it and it made a clllliiiiiiickkkkkk noise then all the lights dims out. so i jumped the car thinking its the battery, it took 2 jumper cables for it to start(why is this?). okay so i drove the car around for about 10 mins for it to charge and came back home, turned off the car and tried to restart it, same thing happened (clliiiiiccccckkkkk) then the lights dims out. so i had another battery laying around so i swapped that out and jumped that battery too because it was sitting there for awhile. again it took 2 jumper cables to start. what i dont get is that when i direct connected the jumper cables to my - and + cables on my car, it wouldnt start. then when it finally started, i let it sit for 10 mins and drove it around for another 10-15 mins. when i got home again i tried to start it up again and it worked. so my question is, is the starter going bad or is it just my battery? OR MAYBE ITS THE ALTERNATOR?!!

 

Try cleaning your battery terminals first and see if that helps.

 

battery. most shops will test the system before replacing it.

 

Battery voltage after sitting a while w/out engine running? Had the battery load tested? Battery cables clean & tight on BOTH ends?

 

Most likely your battery. Have it load tested.

 

tried cleaning it and everything. it is an everyday car so it never sat for over 24 hrs. it seems to work fine now but im afraid its gonna act up again.

 

Go to any auto parts store or sears and have it load tested. It will tell you if its the battery.

 

u coulld have a volt leakage but deff have it load tested like fsttyms1 said

 

Its either the battery or the starter, both are easy to replace. Have them both checked out at your local auto parts store. The starter will have to be taken out for them to test it. PepBoys has a lifetime warrantied starter for around 114$, I just bought one this weekend and installed it.

 

Also when you bring in the battery to have it tested/charged and you still notice the car not starting the next day. Then you know two things: the battery is not holding its charge (if you take it in the next day and they say it needs to recharged..then this confirms that its not holding the charge), second, your starter is bad. I bought my battery at Walmart which had a 3 year replacement and 9 year pro-rate, compared to the auto part stores that only give 1st year replacement and 3 year pro-rate....eventhough they define this as a 3 year replacement.

 

It is your starter motor. I just got back from Acura and they gave me a quote for $600 installed. The last time I bought a starter it was $40. I am still in shock.
Ray

 

starters (new) are around $150-200. installation is easy. 30 min. and its done. easy to get too and some basic hand tools is all u need.

 

Hi. I own a 1999 tl. I have never had a problem starting my car until today. I went to start it and nothing. No noise. Nothing. My battery seems fine but my starter isn't making a sound. I don't think jumping it will work but it's worth a shot. Here is my email. If you figure it out I would appreciate any input. J.ballard90@yahoo.com. Thanks

 

my problem was the battery. i had autozone load test it and it failed. i purchased the Optima red-top battery from them. i gotta say, its one strong battery.