FED UP haha
So, as I've mentioned before, cars been having a hard time start up; she sits in the garage at home while i'm at my apartment on campus. Every time I start her up after shes been sitting, she struggles. A handful of you guys told me maybe the batter, so I went ahead and replaced it with a yellow-top optima, but the problem still persists. It was MINIMIZED but still struggles to start up. What else is there to check/replace? Spark plugs? Maybe the alternator? I know I had that BAD acura battery in there for a couple of months WITH a system. Could it be the blunt of the stress went to the alternator? She starts up FINE (somewhat) after shes been driven? ANY input will be greatly appreciated please.

Thanks all,
Eric

2005 5AT w/ 57k (a little under)

 

check with the dealer on cost, sometimes they do it on good faith

 

hm...acura of lynnwood? doubtful, but i'll give it a shot.

 

Its common with hondas, it might be the starter motor from what I heard..

 

there may be some sort of a drain on the system too. Not enough to kill the battery, but enough to make it start slow?

You said it starts fine after that initial start up. Say you come home after its been sitting, it starts hard. If you drive it for a bit then it sits untill the following day does it start fine, or hard again?

 

Sounds like you have a slow drain

 

You alternator seems to be doing its job since you mentioned it starts fine after its been driven. The reason it starts fine after being driven is because the alternator charged the battery. I'd just say your battery is drained... this happens all the time. If you leave any car sitting for too long it'll die =P

 

yea a slow drain somewhere. do u have aftermarket electronics in the car??? or it could be a bad starter.....i had mine replaced a while ago its starting to have the same prob as i had before. im going to get it replaced again next week

 

Alternators do not charge batteries...but maintain it's levels (if the battery is in good condition). The main function of the alternator is to convert power from the gasoline engine that drives you along the road, to electrical energy to keep the battery in tip-top condition.

Yellow Optimas are awesome, so I highly doubt it's the battery....

All the best


Simple test to see if the alternator is bad:
"So, how can you tell if the alternator is failing without taking it apart and doing some measuring inside the alternator? It's really pretty simple. You will need a simple voltmeter. You can get one at Radio Shack for under ten dollars. Here's what you do - start the car, make sure all the accessories are off and rev up the motor to a fast idle. Set the Voltmeter to the DC scale (not AC or Ohms). Measure the voltage across the battery terminals - red lead of the voltmeter on the positive terminal, black on the negative (ground in most cars). The voltage should, and probably will, read around 14 volts. If it reads less than 12 volts you may indeed have a failed alternator and you can skip the next step. Next, turn on the heater, the rear window de-fogger, the radio, the headlights and anything else that draws power. Now rev up the motor and watch the voltmeter. It should still be reading around 14 volts. If it reads lower than 13 volts the chances are that your alternator is not up to snuff."

 

Just to throw this out there.. you do know sometimes the car will take longer to start right? Depending on what the car thinks needs to be done it will change starting procedure to minimize emissions / pollution..

 

Parasitic drain trace it down.

D

 

hm...that varies; typically, she starts hard on initial start-up after I come home within a week. it starts up fine the next day, usually.

 

well, thats what we all thought initially too, so I went out and bought a Optima Yellowtop...and the problem still persists! bbooo...

 

when you mentioned "longer to start" what exactly do you mean? in my case, she whines really slowly (ya know like if you doing a cold start, but of course it's not)...

 

may i ask how much it cost you? i'm thinking it's probably the starter...difficulty? thanks for your input man!

...and everyone else! i'll keep you guys posted once i get her checked out!

 

cost... nothing. acura tested it and said it wasn't good anymore....replaced it no questions. warranty. but the cost of the part is about 150. I noticed in ur signature it says u have 57k miles. they did mine at 55. who knows id have em look at it.

 

I think in this case it would be longer cranking before the car fires up

 

^yup i believe so

 

What? It sends electrical energy to keep the battery in tip top shape?

No, it is restoring the charge to the batteries. AKA charging it..........

http://www.nationsautoelectric.com/function.html

 

hm...i've been driving lately and my car will randomely turn off! Ill be slowing down to turn or park and my car will just turn off...does that sound like an alternator issue? and when i try to restart my car it has trouble restarting...it does this more often when i am running the AC

 

without hearing other symptoms I would say it's fuel related... possibly the fuel pump.