Abear

iTrader: (1)

So all this started last night. I heard a rattle on my way home last night and was just to tired to worry about it. So I get up today and decide to try and find it. So I turn the car on and there it is. Come to find out, its the bolt on the driver side that holds the midpipe to the headers. I get under there and for the life of me cant get it to tighten. I finally get it about 30 minutes ago and try to start my car. Nothing, car wont start, so I jump it with my dads car. I then decide to go drive around and give the battery a little charge, so as Im driving I am coming to a stop sign and I put my foot on the brake and the car dies, right there in the middle of the stop sign. So I put it in neutral and was about to push it into the the parking lot when I noticed all the dash lights were still on. So I try and start it and it comes on.

I have no idea wtf is going on. Last thing I did electrically to the car was put in some new tweeters but that was about a week ago. Last thing I did mechnically was have the oil changed yesterday. I dont think anything went wrong at the place I took it, because I have been going there since I got the car. I am gonna take the car up there tomorrow and have them check my battery. I am thinking there is a short somewhere, but where is the question.

OH yeah, when I started the car the first time today it had a low idle problem but that was because of the bolt being loose on the exhaust, but because of that, the battery didnt get a charge and I think thats why it didnt start when I tried to start it earlier.

I just wanted to know if anyone has had this problem or if anyone knows what could be causing this other than a short?

turbogs300

Check for loose or corroded battery terminals, check battery. Is the battery charge light on on the dash? If not then it's probably the battery. If the idle was low for too long the alternator probably wasn't charging.

Abear

iTrader: (1)

The battery light comes on when I have the key in the on position. I checked the cables, even the cable coming from the alternator. Everything is nice and tight. The car seems to be doing fine now, I guess I just need to run it a little bit longer and let the battery charge again. I had the stereo playing at the time, I just didnt realize it was turned up as loud as it was. I will go check and see if it starts up again and make sure the battery light was on. Either way the batterys getting checked tomorrow.

Ok, I just checked it, it started fine, and the battery light was on. So hopefully everything is ok now. I will let you know what they say tomorrow.

Also, Jael, do you think that was the problem, the low idle? The car was on with low idle for maybe 5 minutes, but as I was trying to tighten the bolt, I had my stereo on...I didnt realize what was going on, so I didnt think much of it.

Abear

iTrader: (1)

It happened again. I dont understand it, I dont know why this is happening. Its not that the alternator is gone, because otherwise the car wouldnt stay running . I drove maybe 15-20 minutes going at speeds between 70 and 80, and the battery is still acting up. As I was coming to a stop, I had my music on, my headlights on, and once I hit the brakes, the car shut off and then turned back on.
It has to be the battery, the only thing is the battery is almost brand new. Its an Optima redtop 35 series. Do you think if I go and buy one of those battery chargers from like walmart it will charge it and fix the problem? I can leave it plugged in however long it takes. It just really makes me mad, because I cant figure out if it is JUST the battery, or if I have a short somewhere.

DBaristo

Its not the battery mate, if it was the car would not crank over at all.That optima red top is one of the best on the market. Try resetting the ECU maybe its learned the idle in the wrong place. (pull the EFI fuses in the fusebox or just straight up disconnect the battery for a couple of minutes). Mine is doing this all the time since I fitted remote start. The idle is basically too low so when you roll down to a stop the revs are insufficient to keep the engine going. Now mine being a manual I drop the clutch out when I know I am going to stop and when it cuts out I bump it which re-starts the car. You however can't do that. I need to manually adjust my idle until it is high enough.

It could also be a faulty idle control valve so if an ECU reset doesn't fix it look at that next. To stop it cutting out you can adjust the idle up manually but that is only a temporary measure as I am finding out the ECU relearns and adjusts itself accordingly.

If you have a battery light on the dash permanently then there is an alternator fault. You can test the alternator easily enough by sticking a multimeter across the battery, you should get 12 volts or so with the engine off (if not your battery is discharged) when you then start the engine up the voltage should rise to around 13 volts. Wallah battery and alternator tested.

turbogs300

Go to checker or autozone and have them test the battery and the alternator for free. They also have a voltmeter for around $8 or so that plugs into the cigarette lighter so you can monitor the voltage. This way when it dies again, you can see if it's low voltage or something else, like fuel or spark or something electrical intermittent.

biggimp

$20 says its a vacuum leak

turbogs300

Vey well could be since it seems to start up with no problems. Or a loose TPS out of adjustment. It's really hard to tell till he gives us more info

Oh and since this all seems to have started ater your box slid around in the trunk with enough force to crack the paint and leave a small dent, better check out the wiring and everything in trunk, including amp wiring.

Abear

iTrader: (1)

Im gonna have the battery checked monday, Ive been driving my dads truck this weekend until I have time to take a look at the car. This actually all started after I got my oil changed. Funny thing is the guy that did it knocked my Fuse box for my amp completely off and it fell down through the engine bay. It may have knocked something loose on that side. My 90,000 mile service is due and I will take the car to Lexus and have them do that and also check everything to make sure everything is like it should be. If the guy did knock something loose on the car, I will get them to fix it because Lexus will probably charge me a butt load. I hope everyones weekend is going well, thanks for all the advice.

On the plus side of all this, I got a new phone because I ran over mine as I was moving my car, man I love insurance.

PS. The amp is bolted down, its screwed do into the frame, I didnt take a chance on messing this amp up. Even so, I will check all the connections in the trunk.

DBaristo

A vacuum leak can cause idle cut out??

Abear

iTrader: (1)

Wow, this could have been easily solved a long time ago. If TurboGS300 ever gives you advice, you better take it!!!!!! It turns out my battery was just loose. I was looking over my car and had the battery unplugged to reset the ECU. When I hooked the battery back up, there was no power to the car. I was like....
Then I realize what was wrong and I started laughing, I didnt stop laughing for almost 5 minutes. Sorry I didnt take the advice sooner man. Sometimes I make really bad mistakes.

turbogs300

Good to hear you figured it out and it cost you nothing!

Abear

iTrader: (1)

30 dollars for a battery terminal, but gotta have the best for my baby, ya know?!

Check it...