I just came back from out of town, and my Z won't start. It had been sitting in a garage for a long time..my brother went to pick it up less than a month ago, and it was dead. He jump started it and brought it back home and then turned it off (which was not smart because the garage was only 3 minutes from my house) so of course the battery died again.

I just came home and hooked up some jumper cables between my car and my brothers and tried to jump it, and the engine wouldn't turn. I'm able to use the electronics in the car...I even let the two batteries stay connected for like 5 minutes. When I try to start the engine, all the lights on the dash turn off.

My car is an 06, so the battery should definitely not need to be replaced. Any troubleshooting suggestions?

Thanks in advance. I'm hoping whatever it is doesn't require my car being towed somewhere.

Anu

 

A. Battery
B. Alternator
C. check back if t's not A or B

 

Yea, I agree..how can I go about checking the alternator from my house? Is there any way I can check my battery without replacing it?

 

1 of 2 things:

1) You need to let your battery charge and jump it with a car or jumper box attached

2) One of the connections on your terminal is loose and your not getting a strong current.

The problem won't lie with your alternator, because that does nothing to help start the car.


I would suggest letting the battery charge for 30 minutes, and when you try jumping it, move the jumper cables around until you get a good connection.

 

cool. thanks for the help. I'll report back tomorrow...hopefully with a success story.

 

Great Success! It was a weak connection..the current wasn't strong enough.

 

More often than not, it's a small problem, but we tend to think the worst of these situations. Glad your back on the road.