2000 Montana Sluggish Start sometimes

[Teambanzai]

Hey Guys,

First time poster. Been reading alot of the threads since I purchsed my Montana in November. I had been researching mini-vans forever and the Montana was near the bottom of my list. I really wanted a Villager/Quest or MPV, but a dealer had a 2000 Montana Extd on sale for $ 3,995 so I couldn't pass it up. It did have 97,500 miles on it, but the previous owners had kept it immaculate. Plus it has a tow package (well at least a tow hitch, but we will get to that in another post). I love it so far. I had it checked out by a mechanic and it will need some things done to it. So far I've slapped on a new set of Raybestos ceramic brake pads and new rotars and 4 new Kumho A/S 795's. The new tires make a world of difference.

Anyway you guys are great for information and helpful advice, which leads me to this question. Two times in the last month it has acted like it didn't want to start. Both times I had been driving for a while, got out for a short period (5-15 min) and then tried to restart. The first time my son had left his Nintendo DS plugged into the lighter plug. The second time I had left the hazard lights flashing. In both instances when trying to crank it felt like it wasn't getting any power and didn't want to turn over. I had to try to crank it 3 times each. The only time it cranked was when I made sure eveything was turned off - radio, wipers, hazards, etc. Has this happened to anyone else? Does this sound like and alternator, battery or wiring issue?

Thanks - Brian

[GregA]

Originally Posted by Teambanzai

...The first time my son had left his Nintendo DS plugged into the lighter plug. The second time I had left the hazard lights flashing... The only time it cranked was when I made sure eveything was turned off - radio, wipers, hazards, etc....

Hey Brian - Welcome to the forum!

Since this problem only seems to occur when something is left on or attached to the accessory power, it MAY be the battery getting weak, especially if it is the original battery.

BUT ... Before you replace it, check and clean ALL the connections in the Charging and Starting systems (Battery, Alternator, Starter).

You should be able to have the battery & Alternator tested at a parts store for little or no cost.

Oh yeah - You might want to read the Chevy Venture, Pontiac Trans Sport, and the Olds Silhouette forums too. They are basically the same vans with different option packages.

Hope this helps.

Take Care,

[Teambanzai]

Another thing I failed to mention was that the clock on the stereo reset to 12:00, so there was a definate power interuption to the stereo.

I'll check all the hook ups and wires and see if they are clean.

[Teambanzai]

Turns out it was the battery. I got up this morning and pulled out all of the seats so my wfe could haul some stuff and it wouldn't turn over at all. Got under there and checked around and the Battery was dead. A couple of interesting things about it...

1) The Positive Battery terminal had pretty much seperated. It was an AC Delco Battery and I hear they are prone to this. It literally came right off the battery and stayed in the battery connector cable.

2) Well the we couldn't get the screw/post out of the battery cable. We sprayed it with WD-40, wrenched at it, cussed at it and tried to poke it out with a screw driver, then cussed it some more but nothing worked. I was afraid we were going to have to replace the whole cable, but my neighbor grabbed his power drill and drilled on it for a few seconds and it popped right out.