Hey guys, I got my car back yesterday from the Panel beater after having the entire thing resprayed (2 weeks). Anyways when I gave the car to them she would strart up straight away every time. When i got there the guy said that he thinks the battery might have gone dead from having doors open and shiz... I don't get this when the battery should be disconnected? anyways.. Last night we charged and checked the battery. This morning dad helped me and did all the checks on the battery, fluid, volts etc. all was good. When i tried to start it, it just kept trying and trying. eventually it started, but i had to give it a couple of goes. Sounded like the starter motor was fine, but it would actually start the engine. Any ideas please. And maybe a how to for dummy's like me please (otherwise google is my friend) Thanks in advance guys James - Jantht05
Maybe check your alternator as ive heard that spray dust can get stuck inside it if not covered up properly & it can wear out the alternator & have starting issues. Not sure how true that is, but just thought i would post just in case it could be it. Also check your connectors & terminals. Abraham
Will be worth checking the battery terminal connectors. Or changing them. Had the same issue, changed mine. Now it starts first time every time.
I had the nose panel off last night having a look at whats installed when i put this Pod filter on and it was all pretty clean under there. I love the paint job. I'll be taking some photos this weekend when I get it out to a decent spot
It started by lunch time. So i took it around to the mechanic around the corner form work cause we know him. Left it running, battery was at 14 volts, turned it off.. still at 14. Tryed to start it again and dropped right down to 6.5 volts. So we jumped it and it started without the problem. So i think the problem with my diagnosing last night was i didnt get a reading while trying to crank it over. So when ever I was getting a reading it was at 14 volts. So new battery it is. I've left it with him cause he's going to use the power saver and all so I could get back to work. If all is well this arvo when i get it back then it was the battery this whole time. Cheers for the help boys
All the bloke said was.. "it's a century battery" haha Something I didn't know but apparently they are shite
I hope the panel beater or apprentice hasn't taken it for a joyride and flogged the arse off it. Could it have low compression? I heard of it happening before.
TBH, I have a feeling they have. Me being forgetful and stupid I didnt write down the odo. reading when i gave it to them. And i swear when i did hand it over it had pretty much a full tank (because I hadn't used it for the week to get to and from work). When i got it back it almost had the fuel light on.. but then again I can't be certain. If they did I just hope they haven't f^%$#d anything :/ Lesson learnt I guess.
Neil the mechanic already checked this for me. I bought a battery off him for convenience since i don't have time to jump my car and get it on the way home. Otherwise I would of got one cheaper some where.
Oh man, I feel for you if that's what they have done, its going to be an expensive lesson. You said it still cranks fine yeah?..... I would compression test it as soon as possible to at least know if its still healthy inside. If the engine for some reason has very low compression then you will know that something is up. Maybe calmly suggest to the panel beater that you are a bit suspicious of what happened to your car whilst it was in his care, and then watch his facial reaction and how he responds, it might give you a clue or two.?
Sorry I am still new to everything mechanical. How would I go about a compression test? I would ask him but the blokes accent is so hard to understand I just wouldn't even bother. He's Irish and I couldn't understand him so bad, I started txting him about updates of my cars progress haha How much damage could they really had done though? :/ I do believe the problem lays within the battery though.
To do a compression test, you have to remove all the spark plugs, and screw one of these in. My local auto parts shop sells them for about $60 Some are even as cheap as $20 Then you pull out your igntion/fuel pump fuse, and then hold your foot flat on the accelerator and crank the engine over a few times whilst watching the compression test gauge, it should read the maximum compression in about 3 or four revolutions. Record what each cylinders compression is on a piece of paper. After you do all the cylinders then put a spoonful of oil into each cylinder through the spark plug holes and do the compression test again. If the compression reads a bit heaps higher than the un-oiled test then you know the rings are somewhat worn out. To do the test though you need to have a strong fully charged battery in order to get a true compression reading. It depends on how much it was flogged (if it was at all?) to how much damage could be done. I take it when you did finally get it started to go to the mechanics it ran fine with no knocks or rattles?
Hey that useful information actually. I might try and do a compression test with the aid of my brother just out of interest. I'm yet to get it back with the new battery (still at work), but when it was running and I was driving (to work and from work the the mechanic) it seemed find tbh. I will keep a closer eye on it for the next week though to see if i notice anything. After extensively cleaning it yesterday as well, (sorry this is getting off topic) I started to notice problems created by the panel beaters that didnt exist before hand. split interior in one spot. Not visible when door is closed though. Leak some where that leads in the interior lining of the hatch etc.. Pretty annoyed about that but they did do a pretty good job on the paint IMO.
