operate the vehicle)? I was picking up some prescriptions at the pharmacy's drive-thru yesterday and I turned the engine off. I don't drive it that often (about 5,000 miles/year) but previous to this, there had been no problems (except for normal "consumables" maintenance) with the car whatsoever. Anyway; when I went to start the car and drive away, it wouldn't turn over. It took a few seconds for the dash lights to come on and the power windows wouldn't budge. The wife and I pushed the car into a parking spot and called for a jump-start.
Jump-starting the car worked (to a certain extent). The radio made a horrible noise (sort of like "alternator noise" but more like a popping) so I turned it off. It was then that I noticed that the (digital) odometer and the "idiot light" for the electrical system were flickering. When the car was idling the flicker wasn't noticeable but when the tachometer read above 1,500 or so it would flicker faster and seemed to be stronger (as if the alternator was feeding the car unregulated AC power).
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We made it home and then the car wouldn't start; it was as dead as it was at the pharmacy. We got a battery charger and left it on the car for about half an hour. When I tried to turn it over I heard about five rapid clicks coming from the vicinity of the starter motor and then it was dead again. The charger has a "jump" setting so I tried that. No dice.
The funny thing is that the "battery tester" on the charger says the battery is good and my multimeter reads in the vicinity of 12 volts at the battery terminals and when I follow the wiring to the alternator. Yet there's not enough power to operate the power windows or door locks and it takes several seconds for the dash lights to illuminate after I turn the ignition switch to "on". Before the wiseacres chime in; all the fuses and wiring seem to be (or actually test as) good and I've cleaned the battery terminals. I should be getting a code reader over here tomorrow so I'll see what that tells me. For the time being, though, I'm confused by these conflicting symptoms. Any ideas?
Jump-starting the car worked (to a certain extent). The radio made a horrible noise (sort of like "alternator noise" but more like a popping) so I turned it off. It was then that I noticed that the (digital) odometer and the "idiot light" for the electrical system were flickering. When the car was idling the flicker wasn't noticeable but when the tachometer read above 1,500 or so it would flicker faster and seemed to be stronger (as if the alternator was feeding the car unregulated AC power).
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We made it home and then the car wouldn't start; it was as dead as it was at the pharmacy. We got a battery charger and left it on the car for about half an hour. When I tried to turn it over I heard about five rapid clicks coming from the vicinity of the starter motor and then it was dead again. The charger has a "jump" setting so I tried that. No dice.
The funny thing is that the "battery tester" on the charger says the battery is good and my multimeter reads in the vicinity of 12 volts at the battery terminals and when I follow the wiring to the alternator. Yet there's not enough power to operate the power windows or door locks and it takes several seconds for the dash lights to illuminate after I turn the ignition switch to "on". Before the wiseacres chime in; all the fuses and wiring seem to be (or actually test as) good and I've cleaned the battery terminals. I should be getting a code reader over here tomorrow so I'll see what that tells me. For the time being, though, I'm confused by these conflicting symptoms. Any ideas?