93 Camry is acting weird

[Shaguar47]

My 93 camry has been having a problem lately. Whenever I go to start it up the car won't crank. I have to play with a little to finally get it start and run. And once it runs, it runs fine. Sometimes though, it will turn once and then stop. Also, all the lights in the car die when I turn it on the start postion till after a few trys, it starts up. What should I look for or test?

[ishop4less]

Check your battery and the connection. Have it check to autoparts, it is a free service anyway.

[Shaguar47]

Could the alt. or spark plugs be doing any of this too? And yeah I was thinking of the battery also. I'll get it checked out and post back.

[Brian R.]

Using a volt/ohmmeter, check the voltage between the postive battery post and the clamp on that post when you are attempting to crank the engine. There should be no voltage difference between them. If there is, it is because you have a bad connection there.

Not likely an alternator problem. No way it's your plugs.

[don24mac]

Clean your battery terminals. Both positive and negative posts and connectors.

[Shaguar47]

Okay, I went out yesterday and cleaned both battery terminals and brushed off all the acid residue that was on there. Still doesn't work. And the connections are good but I happened to read in a consumer guide about the trouble spots and it stated that the car would be hard to start due to a bad ground. Has anyone ever heard of this and how would I find this bad ground?

[nipsirc]

It's the battery...... replace it

[Brian R.]

Originally Posted by Shaguar47

Okay, I went out yesterday and cleaned both battery terminals and brushed off all the acid residue that was on there. Still doesn't work. And the connections are good but I happened to read in a consumer guide about the trouble spots and it stated that the car would be hard to start due to a bad ground. Has anyone ever heard of this and how would I find this bad ground?

Trace the negative battery cable to where it bolts on the engine. Make sure that connection is clean and tight.

[Shaguar47]

It probably is the battery, so I'll replace it. Thanks everyone for the info. You guys are great.

[Brian R.]

You're welcome - Check the ground connection first.

[Shaguar47]

We'll, We checked the ground connection, was good. Replaced the battery, still didn't work even though it started a little stronger. So we went ahead and did a little tune up and replaced the spark plugs. Well what do ya know, the spark plugs were the problem. Now it's starting up just fine.

I would just like say thank-you to all who tryed to help me. Thanks again!