Won't Start - Hopefully Battery But Not Sure
 

hey guys,

i did a search and perused a dozen or so possibly threads but didn't find anything particularly helpful other than replacing the battery and hoping that's the problem.

before i go out and do anything, i just want to see if you guys can help me identify the most probable causes.

i usually only drive the car on weekends. last night i went to the car and noticed my driver door being ajar (you knoe how fd doors are) and instantly knew my battery was probably drained. long ago before i got my fd, i used to park next to one and saw the owner charging his battery when he had left a door ajar once too. anyway, so i'm like "crap." well, i get around to dealing with it today.

the problem is that i can turn the key and there is NOTHING happening in response. no cranking, no clicking, nothing.

attempt number 1: charger
i tried using one of those cigarette lighter socket to socket chargers but even after charging 40 minutes, same deal, nothing happens when i try starting the car. while the charger was in, the interior electronics would work just fine, lights and all that jazz. it won't start with the charger in (and you're not supposed to either according to instructions cuz it'll fry the thing but anyway) and with the charger out, no change from the original condition.

attempt number 2: jump
next i tried to jump the car. hooked it up all correctly and tried to start the car, no dice. same as it was before.

so my hope is that the problem is really just a REALLY DEAD battery. i just don't knoe if it might be anything else. the car ran fine the last time i drove it thoe it did have a little rev hunting (maybe 500 rpm variation) whenever i idled at a stop with some backfiring. i thought it might've just been the heat. the car seemed to run just fine whenever i was on the gas and there was no weird smoke coming out of the exhaust either so i figured it wasn't an engine problem and just something i didn't really notice before or was just a by-product of the operating conditions.

no matter what, the first logical conclusion is the battery of course as the door was ajar for several days. so let's run with that before i freak out and panic about my engine or something. if its just the battery, i'll go replace it, but with these symptoms, could it be anything else or am i getting ahead of myself?

THANKS, GUYS! :)

time for a new battery.

you can always pull it and take it to autozone or something and they'll stick it on the machine and tell you whether it's good or bad.

Do you or do you not have battery power? Meaning, do your interior lights come on? How about your headlights? I have left my door ajar for DAYS and not run the battery down.
Sometimes I have to turn my key several times to get the car to start. It has full battery power, but there is some weird deal (and several others here have reported the same problem) where the starter won't engage on the first (or second or fifth!) turn of the key.

Sounds like a drained battery. If you jump the battery, let it charge up a few minutes before turning your key.
Good luck.

nothing works. no interior lights, no electricity.

get a real battery charger and let it charge over night, my brothers battery did the same thing and it would drain really fast, sounds like its time for a new battery

ifi it doesn't start after a new battery, check the wires to the starter.

alright, bought a costco battery and it seems to work just fine. *happy* thanks for the help, guys!