Car won't start and shuts off while driving

[VK56VD]

Hello Fellow Bitogers,

The car is a 1997 Saturn Sl2 with 150k miles. A few days ago, my girl friend pulled the car out of a parking spot. After putting it into drive, it completely shut off. She started the car up and everything was fine for a couple of days. I did notice while driving behind her, that when she's at a stop light and her brake lights are on, they flicker a little as if there isn't enough power going to them.

Yesterday, the car wouldn't start in the morning. At first all the lights on the dashboard came on, but when I turned the key to start it, all the lights went dead and the car would not start. The starter didn't even turn over. I than jumped started the car and it idled fine for 10 mins. When my girl friend began driving it, the car shut off after 30 seconds on the road and would not start. No lights would come on the dashboard and everything was completely dead when I attempted to turn the ignition key to get the engine to turn over. I than again jump started the car, drove it 20 feet, where it completely shut down again.

I than connected a battery booster pack to the car and drove it to my mechanic. After disconnecting the battery booster pack from the battery, we turned the car off. We than attempted to re-start it and it started fine. I've tried driving it today to see if I can replicate the problem but it seems it does not want to do this again. My mechanic says he tested the battery and the alternator, and did a load test on the battery and everything seems fine. Until the problem replicates itself with the mechanic present, they cannot find the source of the problem as there can be many including an alternator, ignition, or problem with the electrical system. I really want to get to the problem and replace the broken part as it is very unsafe having the car turn off in the middle of the highway while driving and frankly don't feel comfortable for my girlfriend getting stranded some where while driving this car. What do you think this can be and what are some ways to figure what is up with this thing?

Another thing to add is that my girlfriend mentioned that the ABS light and Brake light came on while she was driving a few days ago as well. Not sure if this is related to the above or a separate issue all together.

Thanks for your help.

 

[The Critic]

Try posting on Saturnfans.com.

I want to say that it's the Crankshaft Position Sensor, but if yours failed the engine would at least turn over. It just won't start.

 

[Merkava_4]

Quote:
My mechanic says he tested the battery and the alternator, and did a load test on the battery and everything seems fine.


It sure sounds like a bad alternator that completely killed the battery though.

 

[VK56VD]

Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
Quote:
My mechanic says he tested the battery and the alternator, and did a load test on the battery and everything seems fine.


It sure sounds like a bad alternator that completely killed the battery though.


Merkava-

I am also leaning towards the alternator. Seems like it stops working, leaving the car only with the battery. After some driving, the battery completely drains and the car shuts off. If it is the alternator, the problem is intermittent. Perhaps the alternator is going south and letting us know by randomly not working and than working again for some time.


Perhaps when the mechanic checked the alternator it was working fine as I drove today without a problem.

 

[mechtech2]

Clean the battery cables and terminals , and any other grounds - both ends.
Alternator and/or battery are prime suspects at this point.

 

[Axe Man]

Originally Posted By: mechtech2
Clean the battery cables and terminals , and any other grounds - both ends.
Alternator and/or battery are prime suspects at this point.


Agree with Mechtech. Clean all cables first. If that doesn't help go after the alternator. Common failure on Saturns. The reason is their location. Buried behind the engine and fail due to heat.

 

[andyd]

Mech tech X3, eliminate the cheap easy stuff 1st

 

[VK56VD]

Thanks for all the replies, they are very helpful.

Another thing that I want to add is that my girlfriend mentioned radio stations resetting themselves a few days earlier. Another thing to note is that the battery in this car is 3 months old.


Here is a reply from one of the guys at Saturnfans.com regarding this issue:

First thing to do is to remove the battery cables and closely inspect them under the heavy insulation for corroded wires, especially the RED positive one. Its not readily visible for side terminal batteries when the cable terminals corrodes as the heavy covering hides (sometimes) a cracked battery terminal leaking acid into the cable slowly destroying the wire strands under the insulation. Suddenly starting symptoms arise, all the lights work but no starting occurs or nothing lights up and boosting works until the next start and the vicious cycle begins again until the cables are examined closely. You may have this problem and must visually inspect the cables carefully. The best indication of this problem is if there's wetness/corrosion/dry blue powdery deposits inside the cable where the wires reside.

You're description seems to be an electrical issue with the main battery connections including the ends connected to the starter and the frame/engine ground. Examine these connections carefully and clean any corrosion, replace the cables as necessary if in doubt. If the battery is older than 4-yrs consider it to be on its last legs.

 

[kargo27]

Our Ford Contour used to do a similar thing. It ended up being the alternator going south. Check to make sure that your belts are not slipping on the alternator, too. But....at 150k miles, if you haven't changed the alternator, I'd bet my bottom dollar that's it. That's a great life for an alternator. I'd buy the same kind, don't go aftermarket.

I agree with the guys said above, also check for a loose alternator/battery cable that may be contacting intermittently.

 

[The Critic]

Guess I was wrong, but yes the alternator is a common problem on these cars.

I have a 96 SL2 with 108k and my first alternator died after 63k.

 

[HM12460]

i too, agree with the above. it sure sounds like the alternator. i'd check/clean the battery cables first though.

 

[VK56VD]

A lot of people with Saturns are pointing to the battery cables as being corroded and in need of replacement and the possible source of this problem.

My question is this. When the car dies while driving, no lights come on the dashboard, no chime, the dome light does not come on, and there are no clicking relay noises and no starter noises (as when the starter attempts to turn the engine over) when I turn the key. Everything is completely dead, the same way it would be if the battery wasn't connected to the car at all. If it is the battery wires, why would all the lights turn on the dashboard and the car starts when the battery booster pack is connected to the car. Wouldn't the car not start if the battery cables were bad as no electricity would be able to come from the booster pack as well?


If it is the cables, what parts would I need? Positive battery cable, negative battery cable, and ground cable? Are these parts called battery terminals or battery wires?

 

[XS650]

Corrosion at the battery terminals could give you those symptoms. When an external battery pack is connected to your it most likely is hooked dirtectly to your cables instead of the battery terminal, thereby bypassing one of the corroded connections.

On top of that, corroded connections can act weirdly. A little extra voltage like a fresh battery pack can cause enough current to flow to temporarily cause the corrosion to bridge, then it might work for days.

As some others have said, the smart approach would be to disconnect each cable at both ends and clean the connections so that you have bright metal on both sides of the connection. And inspect the cables for sorrosion.

You symptoms don't fit a dying alternator. With a dieing alternator you will end up with a battery too weak to crank the car but still get some dash lights instead of everything going completely dead at once.

Car batteries are more dangerous that people think. Be sure to remove any rings, watches, etc before working around a battery. Eye protection is a good idea too.

Disconnect the ground cable at the battery before you start disconnecting other cables.

 

[VK56VD]

Thanks for your response. I will most likely get new battery wires. If the connectors are corroded most likely there is corrosion under the insulation of the wire as well.

How much do battery wires run and what parts would I need?
Are the wires hard to replace?
I would also like to change the ground wire as well if it's separate from the battery wires.

I may call the Saturn dealership & a few auto parts stores and ask how much $ all these wires run. Is there a special name for these wires I should refer to them as?

 

[XS650]

Originally Posted By: Spartuss
Thanks for your response. I will most likely get new battery wires. If the connectors are corroded most likely there is corrosion under the insulation of the wire as well.



It sounds like that's a problem with Saturns, but normally the connection can be really rasty and the cable fine.

If you have some patience, try removing and cleaning the connections on the battery and alternator first. Those are the easiest, cheapest and most often the cause of a bad connection problem.