Starts with a boost

[Kingme2]

So, was up early for my drive to work, thought I'd give a quick polish so it shined on the ride in... 10 mins later, hop into the seat, poke the key in... Nothing. I was no longer early, now behind... Tried again.

Nothing. Grabbed booster cables, swished the winter truck in behind, applied Dr.Frankenstein jolts... Quick start. All right! Cables into trunk, zoom to work. End of day... Shame game.decide, now that it is started, head to Costco for a new battery (date on mine said date range from 1998 to 2006...)

After the book at Costco told me the wrong size, and I finally popped in the correct, new battery, in goes the key... Nothing.

Wife comes, boost... And drive home.

When I turn the key, the indicators light briefly, then that is it. No angry starter noises, nada...

Suggestions? Read about remove and hard solder the bullet connectors near starter, will try this...

Other suggestions?
Thx

[AriK]

Brand new battery and no power? Grounds grounds grounds. Check cable going to battery box. Starter ground as well. If that fails try wiggle the wires behind ignition switch while key is turned.

[Kingme2]

Ok, check...will do.

Thanks!

[aj81spider]

Where are you boosting it? If you are connecting to the battery connectors (that's how I'd jumper it) then I'd check the battery connectors for corrosion (especially on the inside where they connect to the battery terminal). If you're connecting somewhere else then I'd check the ground strap from the battery to the car.

[spider2081]

Also check the main engine to body ground that is under the car driver side. It's welded to the drivers floor near the steering box and connects to a transmission or starter bolt. This ground cable is a common problem.

[Kingme2]

Well, did a minimal lookie-lookie, what I felt competent at...

Main ground on tranny is strong (expected a braided something, but found solid copper wire, felt secure)

Battery is brand new, connectors are corrosion free. Applied dielectric grease just in case.

Checked ignition, clamped one of the spade bit connectors a bit... Added dielectric.

Still no good... Starts when I boost it, but only then.

Think it is beyond my fixes... Will be taking to my shop to try to fix. Electrical fixes are sometimes hard to source, and they'll bill by the hour...

Will recommend checking my previous again, but any other bits of wisdom to pass on to check? Everything I save in diagnostic time is $$$ saved off the bill

[81SPIDERMATT]

red wire that has a spade connector at the starter .. remove clean spade give the connector a little pinch so it makes better contact .... try that just for fun before taking it in

[aj81spider]

There are only two reasons why it would start when boosted and not on your battery - the voltage on your battery is too low or the current the battery puts out is not sufficient.

The potential causes for these are bad connections (which you've checked), a bad battery (that's my #1 suspect given that you just bought it and it's never worked) or the alternator is not charging the battery when running and the battery is depleted.

You can check the last one by checking the voltage at the battery when not running (should be between 12 and 12.5 V) and when running (should be between 13 and 14.5 volts). If the battery is below 12 it's not getting charged and is unlikely to be able to start the car. If it appears it's not getting charged, put it on a charger and when fully charged see if it will start the car. If it can that would confirm it. If it can't it's probably a bad battery.

You can confirm the bad battery by pulling one out of another car and seeing if it starts the Fiat.

[RRoller123]

Local garage can test the battery under load too, for free.

[azruss]

a few more connections to check. If you have aftermarket battery clamps, you can have corrosion build up between the cable and the clamp. make sure your ground side battery cable has a good connection to the chassis. If you havent removed and cleaned the battery cable from the starter lugs, do that. Should clean all the cables to both lugs. The small red wire that activates the starter solenoid goes through the key. clean those contacts as well. You can check battery ground by using a jumper cable from the battery to a different chassis ground. You can check the wiring through the key by making a long jumper wire with a spade connector on one end and bare on the other. replace the red wire with the jumper on the starter solenoid. Hit the other end on a good 12v location. If the starter springs to life then your issue is with the ignition switch and the wire connections around it.

[Kingme2]

Azruss, everyone...

Awesome, thanks! I'll give this an evening of fun and adventure.