battery problems

hello!
i hope some of you are able to help me bcos my car is giving me so much hassle!!

ok, i have a hond civic lsi about 10yrs old.. pretty good condition compared to other 10 yr old cars.. last yr about august i got my battery changed and den last month i got my alternator fixed (cost me so much!!).

now d other day my engine wouldnt start, so i called d Mot guy to check, he towed my car away - i fink, i wasnt dere to see, i gave him my keys- and later he said to me dat dere was nothing wrong with the car and maybe i left the lights on or sumfin, im pretty sure i didnt.. and den i went to check d car today, ok, it did start up but it didnt sound as good as it used to.. and to me it felt like it tokk a slight longer to get the engine roaring.. like maybe only a little while.. but detectable...

i only drive my car once a week to do the shopping and thats not far from home, im scared that it either wont start next time i try or i get to the supermarket and it wont start... its costing me load money to get d mot guys to collect my car (about 40 uk pounds - it adds up if it happens a lot..) and i want to kno if i should get one of those jumpstarters cables - but the ones that come with the battery cos den i dont hav to get someone to help me(as they wont always do) or is it another problem?

any advice? ive got my car about 2 yrs now.. maybe its the way i drive?? how about the jumpstart stuff from argos catalogue? .. i dont really kno where to get stuff and dont wana be conned... deres some for only 10 up to 30 pounds... whats an engine starter and how is it different to the battery charger stuff?

Please use TH's instead of D's and De's, it help everyone read your posts easier.

Have you checked your spark plugs lately? Or plug wires? Sometimes it's small things that can cause the most problems. It's always a good idea to have some jumper cables, just in case you ever have a problem (or if you ever need to help someone else). A lot of battery chargers have the jump start feature in them as a separate setting. Basically they just give you enough power to start the car, and let the alternator charge the battery as it goes. Where the battery charger will charge the battery completely for you, obviously, but will take longer to give you enought power to get it started.

ok, i will do the the thing!! so sorry!! hehe...

im not good with cars.. i have no idea what a spark plug or plug wire is.... would the MOT guy have checked that for me when i gave it to him..?
so will the cheap challenge battery charger (about 15 pounds) have the jump starter function? if i cant get it started away from my home will it be able to help?



Please use TH's instead of D's and De's, it help everyone read your posts easier.

Have you checked your spark plugs lately? Or plug wires? Sometimes it's small things that can cause the most problems. It's always a good idea to have some jumper cables, just in case you ever have a problem (or if you ever need to help someone else). A lot of battery chargers have the jump start feature in them as a separate setting. Basically they just give you enough power to start the car, and let the alternator charge the battery as it goes. Where the battery charger will charge the battery completely for you, obviously, but will take longer to give you enought power to get it started.

A battery charger won't help if you're not at home. You said that the car took longer to start, and I don't know about the forgien civics, but in the US it is characteristic of them to take longer to start if the gas tank is below 1/2. One or two cranks more normally.

It's cool don't worry about the letter thing. But I doubt a cheap charger will have that feature. Although I did just find this with a google search: http://www.machinemart.co.uk/product.asp?p=010310400&r=2058&g=107 But like i_a_n said, it won't do you any good when you're not at home.
You said that the car took longer to start, and I don't know about the forgien civics, but in the US it is characteristic of them to take longer to start if the gas tank is below 1/2. One or two cranks more normally.That's weird, my car starts right up with less that a ¼ tank of gas. Well, on a normal day when it's not freezing out.

If you're worried about the battery not being charrged, get a tricle charger. Itt'll take awhile to charge the battery but it is the best way. Letting the alternator charger a dead battery, especially one that wont hjold a charge, is a good way to put stress on an alternator, and a bad battery that woun't hold a charge can kill or shorten the life of an atlernator pretty darn quick. It wouldn't hurt to get the battery load tested to see if it can hold a charge of not. Over here, most any battery/starter/electrical shop can do this. They should also be able to test your starter while your at it (and your alternator if you so desire). If the battery won't hold a good charge all the battery chargers in the world won't solve the issue, only a new battery would.

If you want to charge the battery, I suggest a trickle charger. Less harsh on the battery. Letting an alternator charge a dead battery isn't good. An alternator, in regards to the battery, is ment to be a battery maintainer, not a battery charger. Also, carrying jumper cables in your trunk is always a good idea.

Thanks for cleaning up the grammer in you last post. It was very very hard to read your first post.

If you have a bad starter, this could be causing problems with starting your car. I am going through this right now with my 94 Civic LX.

wow.. thanks, ive learnt a lot!! didnt know about the alternator maintaining the battery.. i was told to start the car and let the alternatr charge the batter at least twice a week... so shall i keep doing that? i did that this week, i started the car and turned the engine on and sat for about 10 mins...

mikey79fl: what is a starter?

ive learnt how to take the battery out now.. i got someone to teach me, but i didnt take it out and charge since it still works for now. how about getting a charger/starter with both combined? that way i can charge the battery, and then also put it in the car for when im away from home?

a friend told me that he thinks its to do with the engine.. but i dont think it is..

how about in really cold times?.. i was thinking that when it gets really cold (below 0 degrees), i could go and take the battery out of the car and bring it home.. is that a ok thing to do?

does a battery loose charge when it sits in the car during cold weather?

thank you!!!!

that looks good! its not too expensive as well! i saved the page to fav, need to learn a bit more about cars first..!

It's cool don't worry about the letter thing. But I doubt a cheap charger will have that feature. Although I did just find this with a google search: http://www.machinemart.co.uk/product.asp?p=010310400&r=2058&g=107 But like i_a_n said, it won't do you any good when you're not at home.
That's weird, my car starts right up with less that a ¼ tank of gas. Well, on a normal day when it's not freezing out.

I'd drive the car at least a few times per week. The alternator will maintian the battery and it will keep it's charge that way (assuming the battery is good). As for 0 degree's a battery has less cranking amps in cold weather, thats where thre Cold Cranking amps versus crank amps spec comes in. If you have a week battery, it'll have even less cold cranking amps that listed (which isn't much on a group 51 battery). If your battery is dead, charge it with a trickle charger. It's still a good idea to drive it a few times a week, so the alternator has a chance to maintain the battery (charge it a bit so it keeps it's charge). A battery will natually discharge itself gradually over time if it just sits there unused.

gosh, the car wont start again this morning!!!!
realllly annoying!
i started it on wednesday and it worked fine, kept it on for about 10-15 mins, and now its only sunday and it wont start!

what shall i do?
im pretty sure it the battery! shall i get the charger to charge it or get the battery changed?

gosh, the car wont start again this morning!!!!
realllly annoying!
i started it on wednesday and it worked fine, kept it on for about 10-15 mins, and now its only sunday and it wont start!

what shall i do?
im pretty sure it the battery! shall i get the charger to charge it or get the battery changed?



its maybe your alternator.....u can check it if u have an ohms meter....

its maybe your alternator.....u can check it if u have an ohms meter....

i hope its not the alternator.. i just got it fixed 2/3 months ago!
i will get a charger tomorrow and check, if the car start up after charging will than mean its my battery problem? and all i have to do is change the battery?

if the car still wont start after charging then i get professional help as i dont know wot to do..?

Welcome.
I would recomend that you get a manual, it will help you out with a lot of maintaince work and will give you some understanding on whats going on in there.
The battery should not loose its charge by much as in cold weather the electrons move slower. That is also why you have less cranking amps.
To check you altern. buy a cheap volt meater, touch the big cable on the alternator with the + end and the body with the - end. It should read about 13-14 volts.
Good luck with the fix.

check to make sure there arent any lights at all that stay on with the car off. if u want a quick easy fix unhook the black wire from the battery when u dont use the car. dont do this all the time tough just until u get the car fixed. if you have access to a voltmeter turn the car off unplug the black wire off the battery and stick 1 of the meters cable on the terminal on the battery and the other on the black wire and see if the voltmeter reads anything. if it does it means something is on in your can and u need to find it and make sure it turns off with the car. if it doesnt read anything it might mean ur battery is bad. if its thats try getting a battery desinged to work in cold weather

check to make sure there arent any lights at all that stay on with the car off. if u want a quick easy fix unhook the black wire from the battery when u dont use the car. dont do this all the time tough just until u get the car fixed. if you have access to a voltmeter turn the car off unplug the black wire off the battery and stick 1 of the meters cable on the terminal on the battery and the other on the black wire and see if the voltmeter reads anything. if it does it means something is on in your can and u need to find it and make sure it turns off with the car. if it doesnt read anything it might mean ur battery is bad. if its thats try getting a battery desinged to work in cold weather

i got my battery changed with my gaurentee!
now the car starts up fine!! and with a new guarentee!

but today when driving, i found the exaust area (back end of the car) made a wierd loud noise, mainly when i am driving in the second/first gear, once i changed to third gear the noise went...it never usually did this thou... what do you suggest is wrong? ive asked around other people and they say my exaust.. but im not sure..!