Engine died, won't start

[briank]

Looking for some help in the troubleshooting department. I'm decent with maintenance given the proper instruction, but don't have much car experience to draw from.

My wife was driving our '92 LC during some recent storms last week when she said the radio started making weird noises while stopped at an intersection. When she pushed the gas to drive through the intersection, she noticed a significant decrease in power. She just barely made it through the intersection before the engine stopped completely.

When I try to start it, the only noise I here is a slow click (maybe once every 1-2 seconds). There is a check engine light but no red light next to the battery gauge on the dash when the key is turned. My first thought was that the alternator was bad and not charging the battery, but everything else still seem to work off the battery power. The battery measured 11.75 volts with a multimeter (not sure if this is enough?). I would assume it isn't starter related because the engine was running when the problem occurred.

Are there any easy troubleshooting steps I should take before pulling parts to get them tested? Anyone else have a similar problem? Thanks in advance!

 

[CJF]

The battery measured 11.75 volts with a multimeter (not sure if this is enough?)

I'm pretty much an electrical idiot, but: I don't think that's anywhere near enough.

First (and painless) thing to do regardless would be to try jump starting it.

Curtis

 

[briank]

Guess I figured 11.75 was close enough to 12. Just googled it and looks like you're right. If it starts with a jump, guess I'll just pull the alternator and get it tested this weekend.

 

[LS1FJ40]

I had a very similar experience. It ended up being a few things. 1st the alternator was bad (and the belt was extremely loose and worn). 2nd the distributor cap and rotor were bad. Now this may have been purely coincidental but when I jumped it, it cranked fine but wasn't starting. Sprayed starting fluid in to the throttle body and got nothing (which you have to be very careful of doing when jumping a car). Replaced the distributor cap and rotor, jumped it and away I went directly to AutoZone (or any Napa, O'Reilly's etc). They can test your alternator and battery with them in the vehicle to see what amperage your alternator is putting out and what the voltage is on the battery. I didn't have the know how to pull the alternator at the time so I did the old two battery rotation and charged both batteries at night and when one wouldn't start the truck, I switched them out. Ghetto but it got me by. My alternator had a lifetime warranty so I pulled it out and replaced it. It failed 12 days later (with minimal driving and my wife said she noticed that "the battery thingy isn't moving when the truck is running" for a few days. Anyway, just put in the new alternator (have them bench test it before you leave the store to make sure it was remanufactured properly and that you don't go through what I went through.

And it takes around 13-14 volts or something to start a car so your 11.75 isn't going to cut it but will make your 80 a very nice sit-in stereo, for a while that is.

 

[CJF]

Guess I figured 11.75 was close enough to 12. Just googled it and looks like you're right. If it starts with a jump, guess I'll just pull the alternator and get it tested this weekend.

If it starts with a jump, suspect the battery first, and *then* the alt. if it's not putting out sufficient charge.