Starting the car is becoming DIFFICULT!!! - Camaro5 Chevy Camaro Forum / Camaro ZL1, SS and V6 Forums

jsmith · 11-08-2009, 09:56 PM

I was wondering if anyone has had this problem yet.....

For the past 3 weeks my Camaro has become harder and harder to start. I took it to the dealer and they found that the battery had 1 dead cell. So they replaced the battery but the problem continues.
When I go to start the car it is like the car is having difficulty cranking/turning over... at times when I turn the key to start the car it seems if the car does not have enough CRANKING AMPS and the car seems to bog down trying to start, seeming like it has no power to finish the start-up process. Does anyone have any ideas what the problem could be??????

HeavyD · 11-08-2009, 10:47 PM

Sounds like the battery isn't charging properly, or you have a key off electrical load that is killing the battery.

hot ss · 11-08-2009, 10:50 PM

my car seems a tad sluggish on the cold start as well.
optima, ftw soon. i have a spare yellow and a red on the shelf, think im gonna throw a red in.

jsmith · 11-08-2009, 10:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeavyD

Sounds like the battery isn't charging properly, or you have a key off electrical load that is killing the battery.

I am taking it in again tomorrow.... what does having a key off electrical load mean?

jsmith · 11-08-2009, 10:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hot ss

my car seems a tad sluggish on the cold start as well.
optima, ftw soon. i have a spare yellow and a red on the shelf, think im gonna throw a red in.

The cold start is always the best start for me.... any other start has been the problem.

GrnMchin · 11-08-2009, 11:06 PM

Make sure the ground is secure. I know if the motor is not grounded properly it can cause the same issue. My 67 Nova would sometimes do the same and then had a small fire because to the shifter cable grounding out causing the outer sheath to melt. I spent a few days double checking my car and it it came down to a loose ground strap on the motor.

Sierra · 11-08-2009, 11:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeavyD

Sounds like the battery isn't charging properly, or you have a key off electrical load that is killing the battery.

My thoughts also.

HeavyD · 11-09-2009, 11:49 AM

A key off electrical load, or key off parasitic load is when an electrical or electronic device is malfunctioning and still uses electricity even though it is turned off. Key off simply means that the ignition key is off and out of the car. Most cars will constantly draw around 20 milliamps for things like radio memory and when the body computer goes to sleep mode. But sometimes they start to use too much and will draw 10 times that, or more. It will get to the point where your daily driving isn't long enough to fully recharge your battery and 3 weeks later your having problems again. Sometimes alternators can "leak" current back due to a bad diode in the rectifier bridge. To confirm this they would simply remove the ground cable at the battery and make sure everything is turned off and then connected a quality multimeter between the ground cable and battery terminal and measure the amps going through. There would be a spec for that, but anything more than 50 milliamps in a car like that would be excessive. If there is an excessive amount what you do then is start pulling fuses until the current draw falls, then you have found your problem circuit. Can be tricky to find, good thing for warranty!

anthonybyram · 11-09-2009, 12:01 PM

Check your ground. Bad ground it what it sounds like.

jsmith · 11-09-2009, 05:18 PM

Okay, I just got a call from the dealer my camaro had a bad connection on the starter. They had to order me a new starter because the connection would not tighten up when they tried to tighten the connection bolt to the starter.
They gave me a rental car and hopefully will have the car back before Thursday.

THANKS FOR ALL THE SUGGESTIONS!!!!!!

11-08-2009, 09:56 PM	#1
jsmith Drives: 2010 Camaro 2SS IBM Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Northern California Posts: 76	Starting the car is becoming DIFFICULT!!!...UPDATE..BAD STARTER I was wondering if anyone has had this problem yet..... For the past 3 weeks my Camaro has become harder and harder to start. I took it to the dealer and they found that the battery had 1 dead cell. So they replaced the battery but the problem continues. When I go to start the car it is like the car is having difficulty cranking/turning over... at times when I turn the key to start the car it seems if the car does not have enough CRANKING AMPS and the car seems to bog down trying to start, seeming like it has no power to finish the start-up process. Does anyone have any ideas what the problem could be?????? __________________ Ordered on 3/31/09: 2010 Camaro 2SS IBM Black Leather L99 Event 1100 - 4/2/09 Event 2000 - 4/6/09 Event 3000 - 4/10/09 Event 3300 - 4/27/09 Event 3800 - 5/12/09 VIN#9436 Event 4200 - 5/18/09 :party0038: Event 5000 - 5/28/09 delivered Last edited by jsmith; 11-09-2009 at 05:21 PM.

11-08-2009, 11:06 PM	#6
GrnMchin Not easy being Green Drives: 67 Nova SS Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Olympia, WA Posts: 2,256	Make sure the ground is secure. I know if the motor is not grounded properly it can cause the same issue. My 67 Nova would sometimes do the same and then had a small fire because to the shifter cable grounding out causing the outer sheath to melt. I spent a few days double checking my car and it it came down to a loose ground strap on the motor. __________________ The 68 Camaro build project

11-09-2009, 05:18 PM	#10
jsmith Drives: 2010 Camaro 2SS IBM Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Northern California Posts: 76	Okay, I just got a call from the dealer my camaro had a bad connection on the starter. They had to order me a new starter because the connection would not tighten up when they tried to tighten the connection bolt to the starter. They gave me a rental car and hopefully will have the car back before Thursday. THANKS FOR ALL THE SUGGESTIONS!!!!!! __________________ Ordered on 3/31/09: 2010 Camaro 2SS IBM Black Leather L99 Event 1100 - 4/2/09 Event 2000 - 4/6/09 Event 3000 - 4/10/09 Event 3300 - 4/27/09 Event 3800 - 5/12/09 VIN#9436 Event 4200 - 5/18/09 :party0038: Event 5000 - 5/28/09 delivered

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11-08-2009, 10:47 PM	#2
HeavyD Drives: 1SSRS RY L99 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Ontario Posts: 1,323	Sounds like the battery isn't charging properly, or you have a key off electrical load that is killing the battery.

11-08-2009, 10:50 PM	#3
hot ss Drives: aqua 2ss l99 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Edmonton Posts: 1,215	my car seems a tad sluggish on the cold start as well. optima, ftw soon. i have a spare yellow and a red on the shelf, think im gonna throw a red in.

11-09-2009, 11:49 AM	#8
HeavyD Drives: 1SSRS RY L99 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Ontario Posts: 1,323	A key off electrical load, or key off parasitic load is when an electrical or electronic device is malfunctioning and still uses electricity even though it is turned off. Key off simply means that the ignition key is off and out of the car. Most cars will constantly draw around 20 milliamps for things like radio memory and when the body computer goes to sleep mode. But sometimes they start to use too much and will draw 10 times that, or more. It will get to the point where your daily driving isn't long enough to fully recharge your battery and 3 weeks later your having problems again. Sometimes alternators can "leak" current back due to a bad diode in the rectifier bridge. To confirm this they would simply remove the ground cable at the battery and make sure everything is turned off and then connected a quality multimeter between the ground cable and battery terminal and measure the amps going through. There would be a spec for that, but anything more than 50 milliamps in a car like that would be excessive. If there is an excessive amount what you do then is start pulling fuses until the current draw falls, then you have found your problem circuit. Can be tricky to find, good thing for warranty!

11-09-2009, 12:01 PM	#9
anthonybyram Drives: 1972 Z28, torch red,454 Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: mexico,mo Posts: 562 View My Garage	Check your ground. Bad ground it what it sounds like.