Starting problem, Please HELP!!

[btmain]

Ok I have a 96 GT with a manual transmission. I let the battery die on accident cause I left the dome light on. It was a fairly old battery so I went and bought a brand new one. I put it in and got power to everything but when I went to start it it completely shut down, I had nothing. I figured it was the battery and traded for a new one. This time the car started up perfectly. It did about 3 good starts over the course of 2 days. Today I went and drove it around and turned it off. Not even five minutes later it did the same thing to me. Gave me power to everything but when I went to start it it went dead. Please what could this be and how do I fix it!? Thanks in advance!!

 

[btmain]

I forgot to say that it just makes one click and then shuts off and everything goes dead.

 

[joshjwc9]

So accessories work when turned on? Start with the small stuff. Make sure your terminals are super tight and clean. Then start looking for pinched wiring that may have snuck underneath the battery during your installation. Then trace the ground to the body on the motor mount to see if it isn't arching.

Also, what kind of battery replacement is it?

 

[Jinx]

I have always learned, before you go chasing wires, always check your fuses (even the ones in the box under the hood)

 

[btmain]

Yea, all the accessories work but when I turn the key to crank it everything goes dead. It is just the battery that advance auto matched with the car. And all the fuses are good.

 

[Lugnuts]

Sounds like you are getting voltage and not amperage. This would likely rule out the fuse as a fuse is typically good or bad - no gray area. I would lean towards a bad connection or corroded wires. Have you had a corrosion problem in the past on the terminals? If so, the corrosion may have run up the cables. Get too much of that chalky stuff in a stranded wire and you will have problems. I would check all the grounds and wires for the battery and starter.
Hope this helps - Good luck.

 

[Jinx]

... I would lean towards a bad connection or corroded wires. Have you had a corrosion problem in the past on the terminals? If so, the corrosion may have run up the cables. Get too much of that chalky stuff in a stranded wire and you will have problems. I would check all the grounds and wires for the battery and starter.
Hope this helps - Good luck.

This is a good place to start. Seen it happen with my mother's '95 GT.

 

[btmain]

Ok I'll check it out. Thanks!!

 

[btmain]

I went through all the wires and everything checked out ok. Then I had a thought and fixed the problem. It was the starter relay! Just a ten dollar fix. Thanks for all the suggestions!

 

[Jinx]

Glad to hear it. 'Cause the next suggestion would be to make sure the starter was grounded. At least you don't have to replace that main power wire to the starter or any other wires.