# Car trouble.. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 26, 2003, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-trouble/191046 "2003-07-26T06:39:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-trouble/191046/21 "2003-07-27T22:06:24Z")
Uh, charge slowly for least **stress** to the battery. ---
**Author:** ![Susma\_Rio\_Sep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/35a633/32.png) [@Susma\_Rio\_Sep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susma_Rio_Sep)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-trouble/191046/22 "2003-07-27T23:40:34Z")
_ **Car not starting: here are the possible troubles and tips for fixing from Dr. Susma Rio Sep, your DIY car mechanic and general handyman.** _ 1. Is the battery strong enough to work the starter motor to move the innards of the engine and its attached accessorial devices like the alternator? Try the horn to test battery strength. Remedy: push or jumpstart with a borrowed good battery. Maybe and it happens very often, the terminals of the battery are dirty or the connections loose. Clean dirty terminals with a little water and an unsoiled rag, tighten loose connections. 2. Is the starter motor all right? The motor shaft could be stuck because the ‘opening’ through which it comes out could be out of round, meaning no longer a good tight circle. You know that when the horn test shows battery to be strong. Remedy: push the car. 3. Is electricity getting to the spark plugs? Could be a blown fuse, the one in charge of ignition. Check all wiring connections for tightness of the ignition system from battery to distributor to ignition coil to spark plugs. Get an auto electrician and look at how he works, next time you know what to do. 4. No fuel getting to engine? Find out by removing air filter from carburetor top, pump the gas pedal several times, then look into the carburetor horns with a flashlight, if it looks and smells gas, then fuel is not the problem; otherwise, gas is not getting to the carburetor because there is no gas or gas is blocked along the fuel line by a filter full of contaminants. Remedy: go get a pail and buy gas or borrow from neighbors (extra extra caution in handling gas, get an experienced guy instead). For a filter obstructed with dirt, water, and other contaminants, if you can reach it: hold it lightly with one hand and tap it gently or harshly with the handle of a screwdriver or something similarly hard. Get the idea? 5. Fuel mixed with water getting to the carburetor? Not likely, because the fuel filtering system must have and should have prevented water from getting to the carburetor – unless your filtering system is defective. 6. Engine flooded with fuel – you can smell the gas all about the engine? Step on the gas pedal and keep it on the floor, then start the engine, don’t pump; and don’t release the key for ten seconds or more; that should get the excess fuel out and the engine will start with the normal supply of gas. 7. Carburetor could be the trouble, owing to an obstructed idling jet. Go to a carburetor expert; unless you want to be the stubborn son of his mother, Dr. Susma Rio Sep, who would take it apart and put it back together, meaning: rebuild it. Engine falling asleep or dying on the road: all the above troubles and remedies except starter motor’s. The rule is that if an engine signs off on its own while operating, the trouble can be only either or both of two operating systems: fuel to engine input system and electricity to spark plugs system. Every time you have you car fixed by others, look at how they work successfully; then you can go and do likewise. Say a prayer for me, Dr. Susma Rio Sep; even though I am a postgraduate Catholic. Susma Rio Sep > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Beastal \* > \*\*Again. > > Last night I drove to the petrol station, filled my petrol tank about 1/3 full, and then drove off without reattaching the petrol cap and leaving the panel that covers the petrol cap ajar. > > Today I went outside to try and start up my car, and it wouldn’t start, just gave out very slow “ra-ra-ra-ra” sounds, but did not kick over. > > When I checked the car, I noticed the protective panel for the petrol cap was ajar, and my petrol cap was missing. Initially I thought “Damn, someone’s cyphoned out my fuel, that’s why my car won’t start”. But after ringing the petrol station I visited last night, the guy there told me a petrol cap had been handed in to them. Seems I drove off last night from the station without it. > > Anyways… > > Last night it rained quite heavily, and my car was parked out in the open, with no petrol cap, and the protective panel was ajar. Could water have gotten in to my fuel tank, and hence my car won’t start? If so, what should I do? \*\* ---
**Author:** ![Beastal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Beastal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beastal)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-trouble/191046/23 "2003-07-29T12:58:59Z")
Ok, I got a friend of mine to help me push start the car, and it worked and got going. I then drive it around for a bit, and turned off the ignition. I let the car sit for about 10 minutes, then turned the key and it started perfectly. So I drove it home, parked it in my garage. Woke up the next morning, went down there, tried starting the car… Very slow ra-ra-ra-ra, but now, just a very fast ‘tic-tic-tic-tic-tic’. Is something sucking power out of my battery when my car is switched off? ---
**Author:** ![hammerbach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/73ab20/32.png) [@hammerbach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hammerbach)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-trouble/191046/24 "2003-07-29T13:34:51Z")
Apparently it is. First thing to look at could be dome light, trunk light, and light under the hood, if any. These are all intended to work without keys in the ignition, and are controlled by switches which could be sticking. After clearing these suspects, things get a bit stickier. I’ve had a car with this problem because a door lock solenoid stuck… So make a list of things that work without the keys in and start checking there, easiest first. Oh… Do you have any of these that don’t work properly? ---
**Author:** ![dauerbach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c2a13f/32.png) [@dauerbach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dauerbach)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-trouble/191046/25 "2003-07-29T13:46:33Z")
Now it sounds like a definate battery problem. Even a new battery can short out. And it is certainly possible that a short elsewhere in the electrical system can drain the battery even with the ignition off. To test for this make sure the car is fully charged, park it for overnight and detatch one of the battery cables so that the circuit is dead. In the morning reattach the cable and try to start the car. If it starts then there is a short elsewhere, if it doesn’t then the problem is with the battery itself. ---
**Author:** ![hammerbach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/73ab20/32.png) [@hammerbach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hammerbach)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-trouble/191046/26 "2003-07-29T13:58:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dauerbach \* > \*\*… To test for this make sure the car is fully charged, park it for overnight and detatch one of the battery cables so that the circuit is dead. In the morning reattach the cable and try to start the car. If it starts then there is a short elsewhere, if it doesn’t then the problem is with the battery itself. \*\* If you try this, disconnect the negative (black, -) cable to avoid a fire or related problem. ---
**Author:** ![hammerbach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/73ab20/32.png) [@hammerbach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hammerbach)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-trouble/191046/27 "2003-07-29T14:00:13Z")
Oh, won’t matter in this case… sorry. Reflex. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2003, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-trouble/191046/28 "2003-07-29T15:00:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Beastal \* > \*\*Ok, > > I got a friend of mine to help me push start the car, and it worked and got going. I then drive it around for a bit, and turned off the ignition. I let the car sit for about 10 minutes, then turned the key and it started perfectly. So I drove it home, parked it in my garage. Woke up the next morning, went down there, tried starting the car… > > Very slow ra-ra-ra-ra, but now, just a very fast ‘tic-tic-tic-tic-tic’. Is something sucking power out of my battery when my car is switched off? \*\* Maybe. Or maybe the battery is failing and won’t hold a charge. Or maybe it didn’t get charged enough from driving. You can replace the battery and see what happens over the next week or so. If all still works well, that would indicate that it was a bad battery. If the symptoms recur, that would indicate that the problem lies elsewhere. If you don’t want to buy a battery that you might not need, the thing to do is fully charge the battery with an external charger, then test the battery, test the charging system, and test for excessive voltage drain on the battery. This approach will show where the fault lies. Be aware that a car’s alternator is designed to top up a battery’s charge, not to restore the charge when it has been significantly depleted. There are two problems with trying to recharge the battery just from running the engine. First, that usually will not fully charge the battery. Second, it can overstress the alternator in the attempt. You need to get a fully charged battery in there, either by buying a new one or properly charging the old one. Otherwise, you will almost certainly have more problems. ---
**Author:** ![Beastal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Beastal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beastal)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-trouble/191046/29 "2003-08-26T07:28:00Z")
Car’s fixed. “Faulty” battery, according to the mechanic. It was, of course, covered by warranty. No charge 🙂 Thanks for your input, guys. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/car-trouble/191046.md?page=1)