JojosOlds98

Son was driving the 1968 Olds 98 and ran out of gas. Guage is out so he kept trying to start it. It drained the battery. Jumped it added gas and drove it home. He said the panel lights were dimming as he drove home. Made it home. Went to check it out the next morning and noticed he left the headlights on. Charged the battery, had it checked, and it was good. Put it back on, but it didn't even try to turnover. Went to Autozone and bought a new starter. Didn't know how long the old one had been on. When I went to connect it I got the familiar spark telling the battery was alive. When I put the key in the ignition the car made the buzzing sound telling that the door was open. A good sign. I turn the key and get a small spark from the battery where the posts and cables make a connection and nothing from the car. It acts like the battery is dead. No radio, no lights, no buzzing sound from the open door. I remove the cables and repeat. When I turn the key I got the same small spark and dead. I made sure all post connections were tight. Good battery, new starter, but no power. Could it be my alternator/generator or something else? Thinking it's something simple or at least hope it is. I would appreciate any help, suggestions, or advice. I will wait patiently. Thanks and cruise safely.

matt69olds

You have a poor connection at the battery. Clean and inspect the cables. It’s possible the extended crank time compromised a less than ideal connection, due to the heat. It takes far more current to engage the starter than to run the lights and key buzzer, what’s good enough for those won’t be near enough for the starter.

stellar

X2 When cleaning the connections at the battery, use a knife to scrape the inside of the cable connection to the post and scrape the post also. Do this to take the hard surface crust off the connections to soft lead. Often a wire brush will make it shine but won't remove the oxidated crust. When you get the car running again, I would look into the spark when connecting the battery.. It shouldn't do that. Get it running first.