Difficulty Starting

[alunjones999]

Grand Voyager 3.3 V6, just recently had problems starting, turn key and all you can hear is clicking, thought it might be starter motor not engaging but after a few attempts electrics died, battery looked in a good state so called greenflag, he thought it was battery and put a booster on it, few attempts and it started ok. Was fine for a few weeks then happened again couple of days ago, same thing ( did notice the dials go funny on turning key) disconected battery put a charger on for 10 minutes looked at right voltage so tried again, still clicking, but 2 more attempts it fired up and been fine since. It needs a service so will get it hooked up to check for faults, but anyone had this before? I don't think its the battery, as i say there is a condition light on it which is green, and when I hook up the charger it registers 13.8volts, but lights and dials do a dance when the fault is there????

 

cheers Alun

[7up]

The guy i bought my 3.3 off warned me to be careful when using the interior dimming switch as he found that if it was left in the full on position this could cause problems with the battery draining. As a rule i just have mine left at about half way, just before it clicks and havnt had any issues. Might be something completley different but you never know.

[alunjones999]

Cheers for that 7up, found that out early on, easy to nudge it sometimes by accident too. Yesterday it just wouldn't start at all, tried boosting the battery but nothing, still clicking. Eventually though the battery did give up the ghost wouldnt even take a charge at all so presume it was thats it. Bought new one today(that was an effort, ringing round to find the one with the posts the correct way round!!!) it works now we'll see if that is the problem over the next few days.

[T14086]

Yes I have been through the battery 'hunt' a few times however if you use a junior hacksaw and cut off the plastic lip at the front of the battery tray you can then fit just about any battery and cheaper alternatives.

[alunjones999]

Update, new battery didn't work still same problem!!!

[T14086]

What's happening at the starter motor, are you getting full battery voltage and crank solenoid feed and don't forget a good earth.

[Udtrev]

Is the new battery fully charged ? or as it comes out of the box ?

[alunjones999]

Not sure about the starter motor, but it did seem that a low battery voltage was the problem. Found the problem or problems I think, think original battery was on way out, but I also found a faulty door catch on the rear door, which was causing the interior lights to come on overnight and drain the battery. Door catch snapped yesterday so got it welded and today its starts fine. Well so far so good anyway.

 

Cheers for the advice guys much appreciated.

 

 

Also found a good link for error codes without a diagnostic kit

 

http://www.allpar.com/fix/codes.html

[T14086]

Have had problems with the back door in the past apparently quite a common.

[Haplos]

i have a 2.5td le that does the same works ok for a few weeks then appears as theres not enough power to turn the engine over

jump started it a few times and again fine for a few weeks, i have had it to auto electricians for diagnostics but no fault codes

came back, i have recently resorted to disconecting the battery every night and reconnecting it the next day and seems to be fine

 

[QinteQ]

All 4th gen Voyagers [01-07] have their fuse box [called an IPM] under the bonnet passenger side. In the fusebox there is an IOD [IGNITION-OFF DRAW] fuse. The  20A IOD - bottom LHS of the pic, note all the fuse & relay locations are inside the lid of the fusebox. The IOD is designed to pull HALF out and rest on a ledge, then pop back in. This pulled fuse disconnects the :

 

Remote key fob

Radio
Heater blower
Folding mirrors
Central locks
Interior lights when the key is in the ignition
The power seat

 

and should reduce the draw. The IOD is removed at the factory by Chrysler and reinstalled at the dealership to avoid draining the battery, and can and should be used for example when leaving it at an airport for a couple of weeks. Another idea would be to fit a big red key. If however you are drawing more than 25mA you should rectify the problem.

 

 http://i40.tinypic.com/rc0ufm.jpg