panterauffe Report post Posted April 11, 2010 Hi guys. Snow is finally gone and having kept my battery charged with a state of the art trickle charger I decided to give it a go! No power what so ever in my 1/2 year old Optima red top, so I gave it a little bit of starter boost and slowly the starter motor engaged. I heard right away that it wouldn't start and aborted with the attempt by disengaging the ignition key. To my horror the starter motor kept winding until all the fuses in the garage popped and everything finally went silent. What on earth happened? What do I do now? The battery does not accept charging and is indicating as shorted and also removed from the car. I have attempted to mount a new battery but when trying to put the wires on the poles it sparked like crazy and I heard the starter motor coff before I removed the wires... HELP!!!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
huntnphool Report post Posted April 11, 2010 Sounds like a bad starter to me, or is it possible your ignition switch is stuck in the crank position? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
topcabron Report post Posted April 11, 2010 holy SHIT! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Placid Report post Posted April 11, 2010 An empty red top is a broken red top. Once they go empty, they are no good, I had this experience first hand. I got a new one on warranty. Did you try to start it with the charger connected? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abolfaz Report post Posted April 11, 2010 Low voltage is extremely bad for electrical components. I had a situation a few months back while trying to start a large diesel (16 cylinder) with batteries that were too low, the starter solenoid got stuck then welded itself on the "on" position causing the starter to catch on fire and ALL THE WHILE THE DAMN STARTER WAS TRYING TO START THE ENGINE! I'm gonna guess your starter solenoid is shot. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MANG Report post Posted April 11, 2010 that's some scary shit...batteries, power, current, hot wires, etc..it all scares the crap out of me...I fear seeing a car helplessly burn to the ground!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RHershey Report post Posted April 11, 2010 You will need to unhook the wire's from the starter. Then try to hook up the battery. If it does not spark when you hook up the cables to it you will need to check and see if the small wire has 12 volts to it. If it does you have a ignition switch that is most likely bad.It should only have 12 volts on the small wire when the key is in the crank position. If it does not then try to touch the big cable to the stater terminal. Be real careful when you do this becouse if it is staying on it will arc a bunch and try to turn the motor over. If it turns over or sparks a lot the starter solenoid is bad. You will need to be real careful when doing the testing. Do not reveres the cables or you will ruin all kinds of stuff. Be real careful touching the cables too the battery you don't want to have the battery blow up on you. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve400S Report post Posted April 12, 2010 Sounds like your solenoid is stuck. The starter is loading up the battery and that's probably why you are getting the sparks when you go to connect it. Try getting to the starter solenoid and hitting it with something. Might help disengage it. Had the same thing happen on one of my 12cyl F cars. Lucky for me the starter is on top so it was a easy R&R. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
panterauffe Report post Posted April 13, 2010 Thank you all for your prompt and friendly advice. Yes I tried it with the charger hooked up. Now I hear it´s not the best idea. I will give it a go tonight with a friend of mine and will check out your suggestions. Will keep you posted... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
panterauffe Report post Posted April 14, 2010 Guess What??? After a bit of elimination we narrowed it down to the starter motor, gave it a couple of good whacks, hooked up the battery and let everything reset for a few minutes, turned the key and cranked it... Fired right up and ran like a charm. How absolutely fantastic to finally get to hear the engine again after a long dark snowy winter. Now it´s time for a yearly change of all filters and fluids and sit back and wait for the government to sweep away all the sand and salt from the roads... Another week or so and we are right in the beginning of season. Thanks again for your helpful tips and suggestions. So glad you guys are out there! ps. I´m also incredibly relieved I didn´t fry anything, ecu´s and such, while putting extra power onto my shorted Optima. Pure luck I guess, or just maybe we are all underestimating the Italians, hahaha Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tuckerrr Report post Posted April 14, 2010 Guess What??? After a bit of elimination we narrowed it down to the starter motor, gave it a couple of good whacks, hooked up the battery and let everything reset for a few minutes, turned the key and cranked it... Fired right up and ran like a charm. Awesome! Glad it wasn't anything more serious. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
huntnphool Report post Posted April 14, 2010 Glad it was something simple and an easy fix, spring is here. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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