Truck has no power to start engine

So basically my truck has had issues starting lately. I'll go to turn the key and the engine will turn over very slowly and then start to speed up eventually firing. It'll do it hot or cold. I can drive it for hours, turn it off, and immediately turn it back on and it'll do it then. When I do turn the key the radio and my scan-gauge flicker. My battery is about 18 months old and I replaced the starter contacts a year or so ago. I just cleaned the battery terminals today and it still does it. The problem also seems to be getting worst. Sometimes my radio will also just randomly turn off and then turn back on again.

 

Are you near an auto zone ?
They can load test the battery for free .
Thats the first thing I would do is double check the condition of the battery .
It may not be your problem but load testing will eliminate the possibility

 

They supposedly tested my battery and alternator and said both of them were fine. But my faith in a guy who works at Autozone isn't very high.

 

All the battery voltage is going to tell him with the engine running is if the alternator is charging.

I suggest getting the battery and electrical system properly load tested.

When you have a bad draw on cranking the only way to know for sure what is going on is to get an electrical system load test done. OP, If you don't like the local Autozone place then you can always go to Advance Auto, or Orelies, or any other major chain and they can do this test. It will check your battery condition, alternator output, and starter draw.

I am going to suspect that there is an issue with starter draw because I think you have a bad ground. What you are describing is a perfect example of a ground that is not making solid contact, and thus is not capable of sustaining a load. Check the main engine ground to the block, as well as the battery ground to the fender, and the engine grounding strap to the firewall to be sure all are clean and tight. Don't just crank down on them, Remove the ground and clean it, as well as the surface it bolts to. Then bolt it all back up.

 

Might check your cables too. I had corrosion down in my battery cables once that caused similar symptoms

 

If the cables themselves are bad, then it is time for my electrical upgrade Kit! (Shameless plug)

 

1) Check grounds
2) Get battery load tested again
3) Replace battery

 

Fixed it for ya! Hahahaha

 

You replaced starter contacts a year ago, but the starter proper may be going...when the windings get old, they can cause a huge draw...

 

It just seems weird that it would choose now to go. The battery going early makes sense to me because I'm exposing it to extreme heat here in Phoenix. The ground is also a possibility because I could have wiggled something loose from beating on my shit.

 

This seems to have fixed the problem:

Diehard Platinum Battery
Untitled by 4Running Daily, on Flickr

 

May have. At least in the short term.

May want to check the voltage every few weeks. And check for parasitic draw. Those Sears Platinum batteries should stay between 13.5-13.8 if you drive regularly and enough distance to keep them charged.

 

I'm retarded. My scan gauge measures voltage. So yes, I will be monitoring it.

 

13.5-13.8voltage is when your engine is running and what that is, is what your alternator is putting out ,usually a battery will be around 12.8 to 12.4 at wrest that is the batterys normal state of charge it is a 12 v battery it has 6 cells each cell cunducts about 2.1 volts equaling about 12.6..a easy way to test your battery is remove the fuel pump relay right next to your battery put a multi meter on the batt and crank the engine,I forget the exact numbers but any drop more that a volt or 2 should tell you your battery may have a dead cell.if that tests good try a voltage drop test just look up starter voltage drop test.do it on your positive circuit to your starter and on your ground circuit,these tests are the preferred method of testing for technicians that know what they are doing and it is proven to be very effective.

 

While you are right that a battery's normal nominal charge state is 12.6, I will disagree with you on a technician's preferred method of testing. Yes, I do use a volt meter to check voltage, but I will use a capacitance tester to verify a battery's state of charge before trusting a simple volt meter. A bad winding in that fuel pump, or a bad ground on that fuel pump would show 12V on a simple volt meter test, but when cranking will have a voltage drop that would make you THINK it was a bad cell in the battery, when the battery is actually fine. A capacitance test is the only way to properly test a battery, and this is ESPECIALLY true when it comes to the newer AGM and gel cell batteries.

 

I have the same battery.
It's new.
It's 14.1 while the truck is running. It'll stay at 13.5-13.8 for about 4-5 days. But yes it'll eventually drop and stay at 12.8 after about seven-nine days.
If it doesn't stay at 13.5-13.8 for the first month or two of ownership and it's driven enough to fully charge the battery I'd guess to suspect an issue.

I should of added that.

 

That 13.5-13.8 that you see it showing is a surface charge. Automotive batteries are 12.6 volts standard.

 

WHATS THIS a ASE MASTER TECH doesnt know how to do a proper voltage drop test,its not just cranking your engine and watching battery's state of charge, its done in multiple places and tests continuity through large circuits when a simple ohms test would show good continuity but isnt,yes I will do a capacitance test and also check each cells specific gravity, and yes I am also a master certified technician,but for heavy duty diesel.if you are a master tech you should be getting multiple webenars that explain this voltage drop,,are you not getting them?

 

you got proof of yours? and yes I know you cant test each cell on a jell cell batt so dont even go there.just sayin?maybe you should take a advanced electrical class cause you should know what im talking about.if you dont want to do a voltage drop test you can do it the hard way which is measure your voltage then your amp draw and use ohms law to figure out true resistance on each circuit,mainly on from batt to starter then starter to ground,thats what voltage drop test does,its not measuring what your battery drops when cranking, its used for measuring resistance in larger circuits like to your starter, and also you do the same thing with alternator.

 

ok im sorry I got a little wound up, we are all friends here,I recognize you are correct about the windings in the fuel pump but you need to understand what voltage drop tests are,if you want to be a master certified mechanic,4 real.also in the msg I sent it said remove the fuel pump relay therefore you have no voltage to the fuel pump.........so?