Intermittent no start

TITO BOMBACI

MEMBER
1994 NISSAN QUEST
3.0L
6 CYL
AUTOMATIC
300,000 MILES

Hello and thanks for your patient willingness to help me.

1. The battery is two months old, holds a charge and I do not think it is a weak alternator only because right now my Fluke meter reads 12.55+ volts and it is been sitting all day. Still, you will know best.

2. It started fine at dawn, before parking after driving a bit to the store. Power locks, power windows worked, unlocked just fine and when I turn the ignition key all the appropriate warning status lights do come on. Continuing through to the click and that is it. One click, nothing happens, no crank.

3. The only thing after the one click that "happens" is the status lights go off, door locks do not work, even the headlights are completely dead.

4. Next, I use my Fluke to approximate the standing voltage and it is at 12.55 immediately.

5. Then after scratching my head a few minutes, I find the power locks work, and so do the headlights bright as usual.

6. Shut off the headlights, turn the key and the exact same scenarios from number 1 through number three repeat. No headlights.

So this is my situation, hope it makes sense to you.

Thanks, Tito

2 Replies

CARADIODOC

MECHANIC
33,763 POSTS

Very common problem on a lot of vehicle brands. Follow the smaller positive battery wire to the under-hood fuse box and be sure that connection is clean and tight.

As long as you have a voltmeter and know how to use it, you can verify this cause before you fix it by getting the problem to act up, then turning on the head lights to keep it acting up. Take a voltage reading with the meter's negative probe right on the battery negative cable, then use the positive probe to measure the voltage on the stud on the fuse box. You should find very low voltage there. Next, move the positive probe to the terminal bolted to that stud. You will find full battery voltage there. The different voltages on two things at the same point in the circuit will prove there's a bad connection there.