Quote:
Originally Posted by V
I couldn't open the hood of my car tonight, and the plug is inside the hood, so it's about a 50/50 shot whether or not I can start the car tonight. It's never let me down before, but damn, it's cold out there tonight.
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There are a couple of simple tricks to helping your car start after not plugging it in... Most importantly, when cranking the engine, make sure there are no other systems or or anything electrical running (or attempting to). Make sure these things are all off and only turn them on after the engine is running... Fan, stereo, interior lights... Anything that draws power. That simple trick (trick is the wrong word, it is more like logic) has saved me numerous times.
Another one that has helped me a few times is the amount of cranking. You get out there and try to start your ride and it just goes rrRRrrRRrrrrrrrrRRrrrr...
I will always kill the first attempt very shortly, and make double sure that all extraneous systems are off. Doors are closed (lights), stereo is off, everything is off... Then try cranking and let 'er crank for a good 10-15 seconds, a little bit of gas may help, but don't go stomping the pedal. This should get it going. If after 15-20 seconds it hasn't started, you're pretty much screwed. Get out the charger/plug it in/call a tow truck... Plugging it in at this point will probably work if you wait an hour. If it was already plugged in, you need a boost.