Left map light on - car wouldnt start

[ZeroChalk]

Last night I tried to start my car and it wouldn\'t start. I clutched in, turned the key, dash board and fog lights came on, but it seemed like the engine wouldn\'t turn over. I tried like 6 times before it finally worked (just barely).

I drive the car only on weekends (because I live and work downtown), so it spends most of its life babied inside my parent\'s garage. The weekend prior, I had accidentally left my map light on for a couple of hours. Could that have possibly drained my battery? Was my battery drained? The car is relatively new with just barely 10k on it. I figured it should have been fine, but I do have HIDs. Did the temperature combined with weekly non usage also contribute to the problem? Should I have my parent\'s start the car once in a while?

Is there another underlying issue?

[RedRaptor]

I\'ve left both my map lights on for the entire night multiple times (I have to stop) before and it never drained the battery. However I do drive my car every day.

[Kevin@nextmod]

Hmmmm...the easiest way that i learned in school is get a voltmeter for about maybe $40? or maybe a tad more. Trust me its worth having that in hand. If the battery is charged then its mostly your alternator. If you think its your battery thats dead, boost your car then take it for a ride for about 30 mins or take it for a spin on the hwy. Then get back home turn off the car then wait maybe 30 mins then go back and start the car. If it starts great if not its your alternator.

Ask yourself a question is your car cranking but won\'t start, or it won\'t crank at all?

Heres what I learned in school. (And Sorry if i said anything wrong and please correct me)

[majic]

battery seems ok (lights/electricals come on)
alternator - not running till engine is running (non issue)

i see 2 possibilities.. starter and/or fuel pump.. there\'s a tsb on the fuel pump and i think it\'s an intermittent issue so most likely this is it.. did it make any noise (turning over, or just *click click click*) the latter would imply the starter.. (in my not mechanic\'s opinion) :D

[FLIPDADY]

Left my map lights on all night and started the car in the morning. It took a while for the car to turn over but it finally did. Now it\'s fine, so I wouldn\'t worry about it.

[MajesticBlueNTO]

Originally posted by ZeroChalk


Last night I tried to start my car and it wouldn\'t start. I clutched in, turned the key, dash board and fog lights came on, but it seemed like the engine wouldn\'t turn over. I tried like 6 times before it finally worked (just barely).

I drive the car only on weekends (because I live and work downtown), so it spends most of its life babied inside my parent\'s garage. The weekend prior, I had accidentally left my map light on for a couple of hours. Could that have possibly drained my battery? Was my battery drained? The car is relatively new with just barely 10k on it. I figured it should have been fine, but I do have HIDs. Did the temperature combined with weekly non usage also contribute to the problem? Should I have my parent\'s start the car once in a while?

Is there another underlying issue?



the starter requires waaaaaaaaay more juice from the battery than the dashboard and fog lights; especially in the cold.

question though, did you start the car and drive it for a while after noticing that the map light was left on? if so, then the battery should\'ve been recharged by the alternator.

if not, then the drain from the map light, coupled with the charge that is lost from the battery just sitting there for a week, could drain it enough such that the hard start experienced last night isn\'t surprising.

if you\'re really worried, have an AVR test done on the battery at a local Crappy Tire, or even the dealership. if the battery is no longer holding a charge, this will determine so.

cheap DIY test, like Pearl_Hatch said, pick up a multimeter from CTire (a cheap one should be no more than $20) and
test across the terminals of the battery with the car off...it should read around 12.5 Volts. Now turn on the car...it should read approx. 14.x Volts (indicating that the alternator is charging it).

drive around, let it sit for a day and, before starting it, test the voltage again, if it is below 12V, your battery isn\'t holding the charge. not likely since the car is 10k old but i\'ve seen stranger things.

in the cold weather like now, try to drive your car at least once or twice during the week.

[ZeroChalk]

Majic, thanks.. I\'ve started reading up on the fuel pump tsb. I know it\'s not the starter because the engine started to turn over but it just seemed like it didn\'t have the extra umph. Let\'s see if this happens next week.

MajesticBlueN, I left the map light on for roughly five to seven hours max. I was walking out of the garage to catch my ride d/t when I realized my map light had been on. I fired the car up for less than a minute but didn\'t have the chance to drive it around (partly because of my lift and second I had just washed the car).

Thanks for the ideas about the voltmeter, I\'ll see if I can borrow one.