2004 Accord starting problem?
I went on vacation 2 weeks ago, and while I was gone my 2004 Accord LX
V6 with 55,000 miles sat in the driveway. I got back on a Monday, and didn't try starting the car until I went to work on Tuesday morning. The car cranked slowly, as if the battery were low, and took a few tries before it started. Ran fine once it started. I figured that maybe the battery had discharged a bit while sitting for a week, although that seems like too short a period of time to really make a difference. On Thursday, there was a very bad storm here in the midwest with a threat of hail. While at work, I pulled my car into a covered warehouse area to avoid any damage in case it did hail. When I went to leave, I turned the key and got the "clicking" noise you get when the battery isn't supplying enough power to the starter. Tried the key a second time and the car turned right over and ran fine. Made a mental note to have this checked out. Very busy on Friday. On Saturday, I had 3 episodes where I went to start the car and either got the clicking noise again, or else no response at all, as in a dead battery. Each time, the car started fine on the second or third try and ran fine once it started. I wanted to take it in to my mechanic, but the storm had knocked out the power and he was closed for 3 days. On Sunday, I removed the battery from the car, cleaned the terminals and connectors, checked the ground wire, and put the battery on a charger all day. When I first connected the charger, the meter in the charger read 4 amps. After a couple hours, it went to 2 amps, but would go no lower after 8 hours of charging. At this point I'm thinking it's time for a new battery. Original battery is in the car and is 3 years old. Later on Sunday, I was filing away some papers and came across a reciept for service (power seat wire harness recall & oil change) that I had done at the dealer on June 4. On the reciept was printed the results of the electrical test they routinely do on all cars brought in for service, and it noted that the battery base voltage and cold-cranking amperage were within factory specifications (425 IPS???). Sunday evening and all day Monday the car has started and run just fine. And I forgot to mention, my model Accord does not have an electrical gauge in the dashboard, and the red warning light has never come on. Assuming that it is functioning properly, that would rule out an alternator problem - correct? Does anybody have any thoughts on this starting problem? I certainly have no objections to replacing the battery, but the dealers test showed OK just 2 months ago. Is there something else I should be looking into? Thanks for taking the time to read and for any advice you can offer. G |
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