[Help] Cold weather car starting

[Normal Rob]

Hands up - I'm clueless when it comes to cars.

This year, my wife's car has not been starting in the cold/damp mornings. The battery dies before it sparks into life. I've heard that spaying the spark plugs with WD40 can help with this but if I lift the bonnet i wouldn't even know where to begin. I can just about manage to jump start the car - but that's it and I don't want to have to do that at 6am every morning not least because i have to double park my car alongside on a busy road and it's dangerous as hell.

So...

A - Would using WD40 help?
B - If so then where, and how, should i apply it?

TIA.

 

[Ⓩ-Ⓐ-Ⓜ-Ⓞ-Ⓡ-Ⓐ]

Maybe new battery and/or starter motor is needed? Although I'm not much of a car guy, I'm sure someone on here would be give better advice than me!

 

[Arthritic Toe]

WD40 will help if the problem is wet leads (squirt it liberally over the leads at the front of the engine). Sounds like the battery may be getting a bit weak though - get a new one and avoid a world of pain.

 

[Deleted member 2719]

Petrol
Diesel
Electric or non binary?

 

[Icy Gull]

I would suggest that you need a new battery. The more modern the car, with all the electric gizmos the quicker it loses it’s charge. This is a typical time of year for a car battery to give up the ghost.

Do you just get a click but with lights on the dashboard? Try the horn, if that’s weak you battery is probably fubbared. Unless you want to be jump starting it every time you start it after standing overnight, I’d get it changed

A weak battery can just give up at traffic lights, more so if you have a stop/start battery. Now that is an experience your wife won’t want in rush hour!

If you are a member of the AA or the like they will probably carry a battery and change it for you having checked the battery charge. You’ll probably pay a bit more for the battery but if you don’t feel confident changing it (it’s piece of piss on most cars btw) that’s the way to go imo.

WD 40 is probably not your friend in this case unless the electrics have water on them and then you’d have to know where to spray.

 

[macky]

another vote for a new battery How does the engine turn when she first gets in If it's weak then deffo a new battery

 

[beorhthelm]

sign of battery going, get a new one. most* are easy to change if you have a couple of spanners and sockets, or find a indi garage that should fit for a nominal amount. (sort of thing a stealership will charge a fixed price for well over the odds for a 10 min job).

*some can be a bitch due to access in modern cars.

cant imagine how WD40 would help here. that used to be good for spraying terminals/HT leads where they'd got wet.

 

[Algernon]

Get in the car.
Put headlights on.
Try to start the car.
If the lights go dim then battery is flat and is in need of a charge or replacement.
If lights don't go dim then it could be starter motor, bad connection, wiring etc.
Cold weather will show up a weak/failing battery.

If the car is petrol or diesel the above applies.

If it's a diesel it could be a heater plug problem.

 

[Normal Rob]

The battery is only about 3 -4years old and turns over well to start with - but the engine never kicks in. After trying for 10 seconds or so I stop, leave it for a few seconds then try again. By the 3rd time the battery is giving up.

During this the engine almost kicks in - but just lightly flutters and doesn't catch.

 

[Madafwo]

Another vote for a new battery.

They used to be a 5 minute job but when I had to do mine recently it involved the airbox having to come out, which means the headlight has to come out as well, which needs some of the bumper removing. All in all I was out there for about an hour.

The battery is only about 3 -4years old and turns over well to start with - but the engine never kicks in. After trying for 10 seconds or so I stop, leave it for a few seconds then try again. By the 3rd time the battery is giving up.

During this the engine almost kicks in - but just lightly flutters and doesn't catch.

If it kicks in with a jump start I'd still say try a new battery.

 

[GREASED WEASEL]

Have you tried turning it off and on again?

 

[Deleted member 2719]

I have to admit as you said you were clueless on cars so I was testing you on the fuel type as you mentioned spark plugs also, just to see if you knew, not to belittle you, but cars are not everyones thing and it surprising how much wrong information people can give via communication.
I find so many people don't ask enough questions and shoot in the dark on diagnosis.

I would want to know how often do you use it ?is it all short runs? all at night? before thinking the battery is a goner.
Do you turn it over for 2 seconds or 30 seconds before it goes flat, how slow does it turnover.

Although that said, if he want to just flip a coin, the battery will have the better odds!


If you fit a battery Rob and do short runs see if you can get one to suit lots of starts, as like most things there are options!
If you are fitting it yourself disconnect earth lead first and reconnect it last (usually the negative pole)

Good luck.

 

[Normal Rob]

I have to admit as you said you were clueless on cars so I was testing you on the fuel type as you mentioned spark plugs also, just to see if you knew, not to belittle you, but cars are not everyones thing and it surprising how much wrong information people can give via communication.
I find so many people don't ask enough questions and shoot in the dark on diagnosis.

I would want to know how often do you use it ?is it all short runs? all at night? before thinking the battery is a goner.
Do you turn it over for 2 seconds or 30 seconds before it goes flat, how slow does it turnover.

Although that said, if he want to just flip a coin, the battery will have the better odds!


If you fit a battery Rob and do short runs see if you can get one to suit lots of starts, as like most things there are options!
If you are fitting it yourself disconnect earth lead first and reconnect it last (usually the negative pole)

Good luck.

It's a diesel. I've not covered myself in glory there have I! (I've just googled it)

There is no way i'd look to replace the battery myself. I'm still not convinced its the battery though. It's not old, turns over quickly until it's near drained. It's as if the engine is cold/damp and just needs more time to warm up. Unfortunately that's about 1 minute more than the battery lasts. Jumping it always gets there quite quickly after the battery has gone.

 

[Bold Seagull]

Petrol
Diesel
Electric or non binary?

Hey Mouldy,

I know you know about cars including F1 ones, so I have an anecdote. Wife broke down on the OSR at the junction with Mile Oak Rd, she caused a pretty tailback that particular evening. I turned up on my bike and managed to push the car with someone off the OSR down onto Southwich St. out of the way. The conversation with Mrs Bold went along the lines of 'you definitely haven't put petrol in it have you', 'no definitely not'. Checked a variety of other possibilities, but alas no, so Westbourne Motors took it home as they couldn't work it out road side either.

Mrs Bold then went through her bag and found a receipt at Tescos Holmbush for 50 litres of petrol. That was a few years ago. If she had said 'I may have done' could have just phoned a mobile tank pumping service. So if I ever get anything wrong, I still have the receipts for 50l of petrol, Westbourne vehicle rescue, Pump out the tank service, and tell Mrs Bold - at least my error didn't cost us this much!

 

[Icy Gull]

It's a diesel. I've not covered myself in glory there have I! (I've just googled it)

There is no way i'd look to replace the battery myself. I'm still not convinced its the battery though. It's not old, turns over quickly until it's near drained. It's as if the engine is cold/damp and just needs more time to warm up. Unfortunately that's about 1 minute more than the battery lasts. Jumping it always gets there quite quickly after the battery has gone.

3-4 years old is quite old and depending on the quality of the battery and how often it is run long enough to charge it up, it could well be on it’s last legs imo.

 

[Bold Seagull]

It's a diesel. I've not covered myself in glory there have I! (I've just googled it)

There is no way i'd look to replace the battery myself. I'm still not convinced its the battery though. It's not old, turns over quickly until it's near drained. It's as if the engine is cold/damp and just needs more time to warm up. Unfortunately that's about 1 minute more than the battery lasts. Jumping it always gets there quite quickly after the battery has gone.

Normal Rob,

We're using our diesel less than usual. Battery is fairly new and never a problem. However, due to under use one day it just wouldn't start. I have a trickle charger and that did nothing either left overnight on charge. We have a call out service as part of our insurance, so he came out, charged the battery using his proper kit - and bingo it's been fine every since. That must have been back end of April, and not a flicker from the battery since. He did say Diesel's take a huge load from a battery to get going. He tested ours and said the battery was in good health, but likely we simply hadn't been doing journey's to properly recharge the battery, so it had been starting the car, but never quite getting it's full charge back.

 

[zefarelly]

Sounds to me like it needs a good service. There's no reason, assuming you're waiting for the glow plugs to warm up, why it shouldnt spring to life after turning over for a few seconds at normal cranking speed.

That's assuming everything is fit and healthy . . . . ie serviced.

diesels rely on glow plugs to pre heat and start . . . . no electrics or ignition so WD40 is useless.

 

[B-right-on]

Car batteries seriously vary in quality. I got one 2 months ago for my car and they varied from £60 to £150.

When I looked into it the warranty went from 2 years for the cheaper model with much less Ah to lifetime warranty and 50% more Ah. Until I looked I didn't realise there was such a difference tbh. Went for a more expensive one with LT warranty more bcs I don't want any more problems with it.

 

[B-right-on]

Sounds to me like it needs a good service. There's no reason, assuming you're waiting for the glow plugs to warm up, why it shouldnt spring to life after turning over for a few seconds at normal cranking speed.

That's assuming everything is fit and healthy . . . . ie serviced.

diesels rely on glow plugs to pre heat and start . . . . no electrics or ignition so WD40 is useless.

Reminded me that I had the same issue with a van of mine, had to get the glow plugs replaced.

The WD40 trick was around in the early 80s when I started driving. Modern cars I can't see having the same issues. Apart from the fact it's a diesel of course.

 

[portslade seagull]

another vote for a new battery How does the engine turn when she first gets in If it's weak then deffo a new battery

This, just go to a garage who can test the cells. Normally a dud one amongst them