Car will not start.

[Letfreedomring]

Over the last 20 years, I personally haven't seen any correlation between the price of a battery and its life. Feels like a crap shoot.

Don't get me started on lawn tractor batteries!

 

[THAT Gurl]

Yea there was a need for it. $230 for a freaking battery. On an engine a crank start would probably turn over.

Jeez ... Where'd you get that thing??

 

[dennishoddy]

Don't get me started on lawn tractor batteries!

I was going through those every year when they were $25 each. Now they are around $75. I found the Harbor Freight battery tenders hooked up to them when we are away and during the winter when not being used has had them last over two years now and counting.
One on the three wheeler is going on 4 years now.
All modern vehicles have a tiny battery drain from modern electronics that will suck the battery dry over time which kills auto batteries. Even the old 57 chevy dash clocks kept running from the battery when the ignition was off.

This one will work for mower/generator batteries.
https://www.harborfreight.com/autom...s/12v-automatic-battery-maintainer-59000.html
This one for car/boat batteries.
https://www.harborfreight.com/autom...ttery-maintainer-and-float-charger-62813.html

 

[SoonerP226]

If you're going to not drive it for more than a few days, a battery tender is a very good investment. I bought one of these for my truck when I left it at my folks' house while I was working out of state:
https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tender-Junior-Charger-Maintainer/dp/B06X9GGNZCIt did a lot better than the Walmarts special Schumacher I had used in the past, and they use one of the bigger Deltran multi-outlet chargers at work to keep the batteries up on the fleet vehicles while they're off the road.

 

[StLPro2A]

Late 90s Toyota Rav4 will not even click when I turn the key. Battery seems to be good, connections are good, the fuses I can get to, look OK. What else could it be? Garage kept, no sign of rat chewing the wires. I really need to get it running.

I can explain it to you, but can't understand it for you. If you have to ask, you aren't going to understand the explanation. Apparently you don't have, know what it is, know how to use a VOM???? Start there on YouTube, report back.

 

[RickN]

I can explain it to you, but can't understand it for you. If you have to ask, you aren't going to understand the explanation. Apparently you don't have, know what it is, know how to use a VOM???? Start there on YouTube, report back.

Don't have, can not afford to buy, figured out what the problem was, kiss my hairy old azz.

 

[BillM]

Don't have, can not afford to buy, figured out what the problem was, kiss my hairy old azz.

You can get a decent DVM at Harbor Freight for under $10. If you can't afford that, I'll give you one. Every adult who lives on their own should have one and know how to use it. I still have a Vacuum Tube Volt Meter, or VTVM, kicking around here somewhere. Plus several kinds of idiot lights, called that because any idiot should be able to figure out how to use them. Red probe goes to red terminal, black to black, and the light glows. Bright means goodish battery, dim not so good, and no light dead battery.

You can learn how on YouTube.

https://www.harborfreight.com/elect...ters/7-function-digital-multimeter-63759.html

 

[trekrok]

A battery load tester seems like it would have been handier than a multimeter.

 

[Seadog]

Late 90s Toyota Rav4 will not even click when I turn the key. Battery seems to be good, connections are good, the fuses I can get to, look OK. What else could it be? Garage kept, no sign of rat chewing the wires. I really need to get it running.

This stuff must be contagious. My battery just crapped out yesterday and had to get a jump. Just got a new one this morning. Dam things keep getting more and more expensive

 

[trekrok]

This stuff must be contagious. My battery just crapped out yesterday and had to get a jump. Just got a new one this morning. Dam things keep getting more and more expensive

Hot temps are battery killers.