ok guys... so my car wont start again... im getting @!#$ pissed off and getting ready to buy a pickup truck... but i love my cavy so i wanna fix her so help me out

last time it was just the battery

i dont know if this has to do with my current problem but yesterday i saw that my car was getting ready to overheat... i pulled over... turned off the car... popped the hood... tried to squeeze the radiator hose (one that runs from the engine to the radiator) to relieve the pressure to open the reservior to see if i have ne engine collant in there)... well the hose was hard as a rock... couldnt sqeeze it at all.... my only guess is that there is a blockage somewhere around there... no problem... just take out the radiator... flush it out, and put on new hoses (was gonna do that tis weekend)

neways today i drove my car to work... got a lil hot was fine... drove it out to get lunch... came back... still fine... when i decided to go home i went to start the car and it wouldnt come one... i have an extra battery in the trunk so i switched them out and it started... however it started to idle weird... like it had power then it lost power, had power, lost power, etc... so i turned it off... tryed turning it back on but it wouldnt budge... had a friend try to give me a jump and it still wouldnt turn on... when i turned it onto the ACC, lights and everything came on... when i tryed to start it.... my it ust wouldnt turn over... and my speedometer would just to about 40mph then slowly go back down... my gas was kinda low so i took a gas gan and walked up to the gas station and put in a gal of gas and it still didnt work.... now all i can hear is the starter so the batterys dead again... (wont even attempt to turn over)

so it sounds like an electrical problem to me... with my speedometer going haywire... so besides getting my battery charged where do i start... ne thoughts?

1996 chevy cav
2.2l ohv
5 speed manual tranny

Maybe your Alternator is bad killing your battery?



FU Tuning

autozone testing my alt and said it was fine... could they of @!#$ign up there reading??? yeah thats what im leaning towards b/c i was loosing/gaining power back and forth when i was able to turn it on... plus both of my batteries died within like 2 weeks... and my speedometer in my cluster was going all haywire b/c it was trying to get power... nebody else have ne other ideas besides the alt?

Here is an answer I gave to another post.

It could be your problem?


[Are you SURE all the connections are "shiny" clean and tight, on the cables and the battery?

I would also, whilst the battery is disconnected remove the Negative battery cable where it connects to the chassis and/or engine block, clean up the cable ends and the surfaces it connects to on the chassis/block.

On some models this connection is under the battery tray.

I would suspect a bad connection rather than a component fault]

Alont

got it... it was the ground wire attached to the battery tray... the damn acid keeps on coming back on the tray and messes with the connection... since i can replace the tray b/c its welded to the car... what u guys recommend?

I would install additional cable from battery neg. to engine or do the big 3.

Or you clould just relocated to cable to the frame of the car.... that would be easiest.

Just to add to that already said,

To enable the starter to operate the Negative return is through the engine block--this is what the starter is bolted to.

To enable the chassis electrics to operate the Negative return is through the chassis


So, ideally, you need BOTH block and chassis connected to the NEGATIVE terminal of the battery.

Do as Weebel says and connect the cable to the frame of the car, where you have easy access to it.

Then,as Luis said, under the same bolt/fastener attach a second cable from that point to the engine block.

When you have connected and tightened the cables to the shiny clean points on the chassis apply

some paint over the connection and the fastener.

This will prevent moisture ingress to the connection--standard procedure on aircraft.

Make sure the new ground point will not affect the structural strength etc etc.

Hope this helps


Alont