Last week the MINI died, but a jump stat got me going again, replaced the 3yr old OEM battery and everything was fine, or so I thought.

What happened then and now, is turn the key and everything happens as normal except I get one or no clicks from the starter. Jump start no longer helps and the battery is holding a charge (clock and similar info is retained I can turn on the stereo etc etc).

I'm guessing the starter, any thoughts for or against it?

 

Check all your grounds for corrosion.

Mainly the jumper from the frame to the engine cradle on the right side of the engine.

 

Yep last time this happened to me, it turned that the ground on my battery was loose. I didn't realize that just because the negative ground was touching but not solidly locked around the battery post that I'd get enough power to light the interior and instruments but not enough to start the car.

 

before you go off and start replacing parts try the simple stuff, clean the battery terminals, clean the cable terminals and tighten these down. Check and clean the terminals at the starter end, tighten these down. See if this helps, you've not spent a dime yet, right?

 

Clean Terminals, new battery, tight battery connections, cleaned and tightened ground strap. If I want to go anywhere I need to jumpt the car, but the battery does hold a charge I can run all the radio and other acccecories and retain my time and trip milage and radio stations,etc etc,etc.

At least I know the starter is still good, and I doubt it's the alternator because once she starts she keeps on running just fine.

What's next on my list of things to check?

 

Do you know how to do an amperage draw test? It would be good to know wat kinda amps the starter is pulling before replacing it.

 

sorry, not to hijack the thread, but seeing that it's been inactive for ~2 weeks...

similar thing happened to me this morning. the past 2~3 weeks (i'm in michigan winter), starting in the morning sounds like a little bit of a struggle, but it would start up. a few times it wouldn't start and something would cut out and my tripmeter would reset, but then i crank again and it would start. this morning, the something-cut-out happens again and my tripmeter reset, but then when i turn the ignition again it wouldn't crank. the headlights would keep flashing when i'm turning the key but nothing happens. no crank. nothing. i'm guess it's the starter, or alternator? oh and i still have battery power. rear hatch unlocks and the remote still works

 

Is most likely the battery.


The car wont start because it doesn't have the amperage, but all the other electronics will still work because they are relatively low current devices.


If you knew what the battery voltage was during cranking at static, we could tell you whether or not its the battery.

 

after a search and reading several threads last night, i'm relatively certain it's the battery also. my car is pretty high mileage (>100K) and pretty sure it's on the original. will jump it later today to see if it starts. don't have a voltmeter or anything to measure the voltage =( but it does have the click when i try to start it so it should be the battery

btw, searcing for the optima red top, i found 2 part #'s for 34r's: 8003-151 and 9003-151. the first is *unboxed* and the second *boxed*. what does this mean? 8003-151 can be had from amazon for $30 off free shipping, so i'm tempted to get that...

 

OK, well I'm still not fixed.....

Took the starter selinoid electrical connection apart, made that properly fit and connect reassembled and installed.

Determined something in charging system is failing, all the alternator connections appear tight, power steering is on the same circuit, replaced that 5amp fuse in the cabin (not blown but looked corroded inside the fuse plastic) and the charging system totally failed on the highway leaving me stranded in the cold and dark on the freeway with no power for light or heat. Have determined I had a slight PS fluid leak, refilled that, for improved charging and a long jump start managed to limp back home. yet to pinpoint my PS leak, but I can charge at 13.1-12.8 volts with that fluid refilled, if I disconnect the power steering fan, that may or may not be fouled I'm charging at roughly 13.8v @ idle. All voltage #s are with zero accessories running.

All grounds and battery connections are tight and clean. There are 1-2 voltage surges or drops as a result of travelling over potholes or RR tracks or speedbumps

And I'm aided in all this by short days foul weather and no garage.

Also worth note, but I suspect to be unrelated, the fuel vapor regulator has developed a tendency to click.

 

You will need a voltmeter to perform the next steps; one can be had at radio shack on the cheap, maybe around $20 or so.

1 Set the meter to measure DC volts on the 20 volt scale.
2 Place one probe on the + battery terminal and the other on the + battery clamp; thats correct it will appear that you are measuring in the same place but one lead must be on the post of the battery and the other on the clamp that is fastened to the post.
3 Have an assistant crank the car; there should be no voltage reading while cranking, a reading of even .1 volts is too much and means you do not have a solid connection (keep in mind this has to be done while cranking; repeat if necessary) if the connection is really poor the voltage will be higher! if the circuit is open the voltage will be battery voltage.
4 Repeat on the negative terminal. This is the best way to tell if the connection is good!
5 The engine must be properly grounded for the starter to crank the engine. Measure at the - battery post with one lead and a good ground on the engine block; don't forget you must be cranking to see if voltage is present! even .1 volts is too high.
The procedure I just described is called a voltage drop test and is the best way to determine if two points are at the same potential; however current must be flowing through the circuit when the measurement is taken.
Measure the voltage across the battery itself. If you can let me know what is the result of these three measurements i can advise you further.
Hope this helps.

 

If you've run out of options, change the spark plug wires.

 

Ok Guys it's a CHARGING SYSTEM issue. I've lost all electronics while on the highway the start doesn't work when the battery only gets half a charge.

Warm engine tends to help as does the occasional bump in the road (this also gos the other way too) The passenger sie ground strap and all the battery stuff is tight, we're supposed to hit 50 tomorrow so I'm thinking of pulling the alternator and taking it to get tested.

Aside from squeal any way to determine if it's a slipping serpentine belt?

 

I couldn’t tell if from an earlier post whether you had pulled the alternator connections or just checked to see if they were tight. Because you said a bump in the road affects charging, perhaps the ground wire on the alternator is broken/frayed, or the central connector has oxidation. Last week I pulled my alternator, the central connector pins and connector were badly oxidized. Disconnect the battery before messing with the alternator wiring especially the ground wire because if it touches the alternator body sparks will fly. Of course the alternator could have an internal fault and be failing.

Look to see if the stop limiter strap on the belt tensioner has at least a partial hole showing, if not, replace the belt. However, because the alternator has good belt wrap, and it doesn’t take much to turn the pulley, I doubt belt slip could be at fault. If you were experiencing a poor charge, overheating, and low boost, all would point to a failed crankshaft vibration damper, and limp mode would have probably been experienced by now.

 

Ok took the alternator into Advance auto today and it checked out as working great, had tight connections with no corrosion. So now I'm guessing I'm on the hunt for any loose wire I can find. any other ideas to fix the charging system?

 

Took closer look at "clean" terminals on the ground strap and found this


SO I cleaned it to fins that it's not dirt, but corrosion sitting over rust



This doesn't explain the inconsistent voltage over bumps, as it was on exteremely tight, bt I know it wasn't helping either. Still have some more engine bay hunting and wire checking. And I would really like to check the power steering system before it all gets re assembled.

Also going to change the SC oil and tstat while it's accessable.

 

Disassembled and re assembled, and it works as long as I do lots of driving,short trip and I'm jump starting. Better but not fixed.

 

Where did you get the battery from?

 

Advance Auto, it worked great for the first two weeks (all troubles went away)

It's an Optima red top.

 

All this trouble just seems to me like its stemming from the battery. I would take it back to advance and tell them to load test it. It just sounds like a weak or dead cell to me...