by "Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
Published 08/11/2017 at 12:49
by "Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
Published 08/11/2017 at 12:49
No Tags
STARS: 0
My coworker has a 2003 Jeep Liberty. She is having a weird issue with it. It cranks weak when she has a short trip but is fine when there is a longer time between starts.
For example she drives to work and it’s fine when she starts it at her house. Then she works for 8-9 hours and when she starts it after work it is fine. However, if she goes to the gas station after work it will crank slowly and have a harder time starting.
She got a new battery about a year ago. I was thinking maybe it’s an alternator problem or something with the starter. I was planning on bringing my multi-meter to work next week to see how many volts it’s putting out.
Any ideas Oppo?
"sony1492" (sony1492)
08/11/2017 at 12:58, STARS: 1
Battery terminals? I’ve had weird intermittent issues related to those before.
Weak spark because it floods after short trips, but that dosent explain the poor cranking.
"Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
08/11/2017 at 12:59, STARS: 0
Thanks! So I’d be checking for corrosion and if they are tight right? Or can they fail internally or something?
"punkgoose17" (punkgoose17)
08/11/2017 at 13:00, STARS: 1
Is the new battery the right amount of amps for the car? My first thought was low amps. Also it could be too much resistance betweem the alterator and battery ground or more likely too much resistance between the starter and battery ground. (There is more likely corrosion around the starter than the alternator.)
"Wagonlife740" (wagonlife740)
08/11/2017 at 13:01, STARS: 2
Listen to us here.... but do not throw a part at it until you look at it. The problem can be ANYTHING. Anything from bad starter to corrosion in the right spot or chaffing, or seriously anything.
"Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
08/11/2017 at 13:02, STARS: 0
I’m not sure but that would be something I can check. I can also check the other suggestions and connections. Thanks!
"BLCKSTRM" (BLCKSTRM)
08/11/2017 at 13:02, STARS: 1
Yeah, just the connection at the terminal is the problem surprisingly often.
"Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
08/11/2017 at 13:03, STARS: 0
Right, I’m not planning on working on it, her dad can fix it. She just doesn’t want to bother him with it yet.
"sony1492" (sony1492)
08/11/2017 at 13:05, STARS: 1
If it’s not a hassle I’d remove them and clean them up. I’ve seen them stop working properly(there was corrosion but they were tight) and it took removing them and cleaning it up REALLY well to solve it. That issue was a flat no start, just a clicking noise. If it ends up not fixing the issue then you’ve at least crossed something off the list of possibilitys
"wafflesnfalafel" (wafflesnfalafel1)
08/11/2017 at 13:07, STARS: 0
yeah - and it would get worse when the temp in the engine compartment goes up increasing the resistance, but would be better after it cools back down again. Hopefully its just grungy battery terminals, or maybe a bad battery cable.
"Urambo Tauro" (urambotauro)
08/11/2017 at 13:14, STARS: 1
Some good ideas already. I just want to add that if you’re trying to avoid making a trip to the parts store to test the battery, there is a multimeter test that you can try.
If your multimeter has a min/max feature, have it read voltage while cranking the engine over. (You can remove the fuel pump fuse to keep it from actually starting). Crank the starter for a few seconds and see how low the voltage drops. If it drops below about 9.5 volts, it’s too weak. This test is best done after charging the battery overnight, so you’ll know that it’s a capacity issue, and not just in need of charging.
"I Will Always Be The Honey Badger" (iwillalwaysbethehoneybadger)
08/11/2017 at 13:23, STARS: 0
If it does this reliably, it’s heat soaking. Most likely you have a poor connection at a battery terminal, but it could be the battery or starter. It gets just enough amperage when it’s cold but once the engine has heated everything up it drops the amperage. The heat is exacerbating an existing problem. I’d order the diagnostic flowchart as such : Clean and tight terminals, battery properly tested ( under load - not just a multimeter) and starter. Definitely not alternator related if you haven’t needed to boost it.
"Rico" (ricorich)
08/11/2017 at 13:50, STARS: 3
My coworker has a 2003 Jeep Liberty
"E92M3" (E46M3)
08/11/2017 at 14:19, STARS: 1
Sounds like a cable/corrosion issue, or a problem with the starter. The connections get resistance with heatsoak, but are fine once the engine bay has cooled off. Check the cables at the battery, and the starter. I bet one is dirty and/or loose.
"Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
08/11/2017 at 15:07, STARS: 0
She has needed to boost it in the past but she thinks it was before the current battery.
"merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc" (merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc)
08/11/2017 at 15:08, STARS: 0
Sounds like a bad ground connection, I’ve had very similar issues in the past and threw parts at it only to find out the ground wire was barely hanging on, replaced that and all was well. So yeah check the terminals and check the ground wire and cables to make sure they are making good contact and that the wires aren’t brittle. Start with the simple stuff first. When it’s running check the voltage to the battery from the alternator, you can pull the battery to have it tested as well, but my money is on the ground wires.
"Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
08/11/2017 at 15:08, STARS: 0
Thank you for your response. I appreciate it and will give your suggestions a shot.
"Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
08/11/2017 at 15:09, STARS: 1
I know right! + 1 for the mythbusters reference. Who would have thought an old Chrysler would have a weird problem.
"Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
08/11/2017 at 15:12, STARS: 0
Thanks for the solid advice. I’ll definitely check both.
"Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
08/11/2017 at 15:12, STARS: 0
Thanks for the advice. I’ll give it a shot and see what happens.
"AMGtech - now with more recalls!" (amgtech)
08/11/2017 at 15:42, STARS: 1
Considering the battery is newer I’m not thinking terminal or connection issue like everyone else. I’m thinking the starter is drawing excessive amperage when it’s hot. I would do hot and cold amperage draw tests on the starter. But that takes equipment the average home mechanic won’t have. You’ll probably see 150-250 amps when it’s hot, and 75-125 when it’s cold.
"gogmorgo - rowing gears in a Grand Cherokee" (gogmorgo)
08/11/2017 at 18:23, STARS: 1
Bad battery cable connections. They get hot and don’t work well until they cool down some.
"Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
08/11/2017 at 19:08, STARS: 0
Thanks, at this point I’ll probably just be telling her possibilities but let her deal with it if it isn’t extremely simple like the battery terminals or something.
"Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
08/11/2017 at 19:08, STARS: 0
Thanks for the suggestion!