1994 GMC Jimmy My truck wont start!

KERRIANDALI

MEMBER
1994 GMC JIMMY
4 CYL
4WD
AUTOMATIC
17,100 MILES

Hello,
My truck one day just decided not to start. It does not even crank over but the battery is fine. The funny thing is after it sits for a while it will start up and run for a a week or so and then the same problem. My father said it was the battery terminals because they had a lot of green build up on them. He cleaned them with baking soda and it was fine for a week. He was sure that was the problem but today it happened again. I have had problems with it sliding out of gear so it seems like the truck is not acknowledging it is in start. Could this be? But then why would it be in the same position 6 hours later and start?

4 Replies

PEAR69

MECHANIC
1,482 POSTS

The green build up is acid from the battery. Baking soda does clean it up, but it does not fix the problem. Test the batterys' voltage with a dc voltage tester with the engine off and the engine running. Let me know what it is.
Also your battery cables may be corroded from the acid, make sure they are clean and have a good connection.

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Sunday, July 19th, 2009 AT 4:19 PM

KERRIANDALI

MEMBER
3 POSTS

I don't think that it is the cables with the diagnosis that I wrote before because why would it start and then not start without moving the car at all? Also why would all the other components on the car have power it just wont turn over? Please help! It is stuck at a corner store right now and want to get it home or to the shop without paying for towing.

Thanks
Kerri

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Sunday, July 19th, 2009 AT 5:25 PM

KERRIANDALI

MEMBER
3 POSTS

I did try to jump it too!

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Sunday, July 19th, 2009 AT 5:27 PM

PEAR69

MECHANIC
1,482 POSTS

Once again, the green build up is battery acid. This builds up - over time - because the battery is either leaking acid or the acid is vaporizing and causing this build up. If too much acid leaks out, the battery will not create enough voltage to start the engine -- and eventually it will not run the engine at all. If the acid vapor gets in the battery cable insulation you will not see it but it will cause the wire to corrode. The starter in your car draws the most current when it is activated. Just because all the other circuts are showing up good does not mean that the battery cable is not to blame.I am not saying that the battery cable IS to blame, but I am not ruling it out. Testing the batterys voltage will tell us a lot about the condition of the cells in the battery. So like I said before TEST THE BATTERY AND LET ME KNOW WHAT THE VOLTAGE IS. Also, if you tried to jump start the engine and it did not work then that may indicate that the battery cable is bad or starter is bad. However -- a battery that has too low of a voltage will destroy a starter in no time at all. Testing the voltage will determine the condition of the battery so test it before moving on to something else.

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Sunday, July 19th, 2009 AT 9:30 PM