Originally Posted by
mogwai
Okay... Quick update:
1. In the time between the first post and now, the trickle charger went from yellow (charging) to green (charged), so the battery itself is probably fine.
2. I had my wife listen while I cranked and after I explained where the clicking noises can originate, she concurs that it is the solenoid, not the relays on the driver's side under the hood or under the dash
Just so I don't have to dig, do you know off the top of your head where the negative cable terminates to the frame/body?
Also will try disconnecting my audio system, as it has 4ga wire tapped directly to the battery. Just one more thing to complicate an already complicated system...
Thanks for the quick feedback!
Ok, first of all, the charger lights don't impress me, I would NEVER trust them to tell me anything! Put a voltmeter on the battery and have the wife hit the key to start and see what you get for an under-load voltage.
Second, of COURSE the battery ground cable can cause this! It is a very short cable that terminates to the body of the car (which is, IMO, a stupid place for it to terminate) under/behind the battery itself.
If you had a LOT of corrosion on the terminals, you may have corrosion IN the terminals. There is NO FIX for this, you must change the cables.
Everything you keep posting is re-confirming bad battery voltage.
This is caused either by a bad battery OR bad battery cables/connections. A battery connection is:
1) The connection between the battery posts and cable clamps.
2) The cables themselves.
3) The connection of the large positive battery cable at the starter.
4) The connection of the battery cable where it connects to ground.
5) The connection of the small positive battery cable where it connects to the engine fuse block.
You say the lights are dim - yet you say the "battery is fine". IF the battery is fine,
then the connections to it or the cables themselves have a problem. There are really no other possibilities. Everything you are posting is indicating poor battery voltage.
FOLLOW the battery ground cable to it's end below/behind the battery and see what the lug looks like.