truck won't start tow truck can't jump....batteries or worse?

[americana]

stopped to get a soda after some yard work and when i tried to start olga she wouldn't have any of it.

i called roadside assistance and the guy tried to jump (one battery) and i got a little more activity, but not enough to start.

any ideas? the guy at the dealership told me to tow it in to see if anything is shorted. good idea or is it just a wasted $50?

anyplace close to me (san francisco) that sells the optima yellow tops for cheap? the yellow tops are the better of the two, right?

i hope i'm not headed to selling the beast in disgust after a lot of costly repairs like the beemer.

------------------
regards,

peter
1998 24v 4x4 QC, SLT, Sport, Leather, Linex, snug lid, center line wheels, Smittybilt side steps,color matched fender flares, stull grills, tow hooks----first diesel, dodge etc. i'm in love!

FREE CARL!!

 

[Whitmore]

I think your batts must be real dead or you have some bad connections,You can jump it but it will take a while to charge the system up enough(1/2 hour) Kevin

------------------
2001 eth dee,qc,lwb,3. 55,camper and tow pkg,driftwood,cummins e-brake,jardine 4" exhaust,dz alum checker run boards,bed rail,tailgate protector,better built alum checker toolbox with home made fuel tank under box,"CUMN" licence plates and captain vol fire dept plate too

 

[bpete]

Did the tow truck have a heavy set of jumper cables? Mine are made of 2O welding lead, I start a lot of irrigation engines and let me tell you the bigger and shorter the better. Also try to hook up to the other battery, one may be worse than the other. One should start it but it's better with two.

Brant

 

[americana]

thanks, guys. i'm at the girlfriends place. i just logged on again and she said "it's too soon for there to be replies. " i said it wasn't... . thanks

so i shouldn't even bother with letting DC run a check on it? just go with fresh yellow tops? didn't have any low battery probs before this... . kind of alluva sudden.

see you after the movie (oh, brother where art thou?).

thanks again.

 

[illflem]

Chris,it think the problem is the tow truck dude had small cables or a poor connection in combination with a poor connection on your battery cables. When it's time for new batteries the problem is usually with the first start in the morning when they first start going out,after warm up there won't be a problem until they are way gone. I think you may be able to get by with cleaning the inside of the clamps and the battery posts,many times they are corroded but look fine until you remove them. You still may need a jump though.

 

[Tom C]

on my last Dodge when the bats were getting old It would not start sometimes (usually in the morning when cold). If I connected to the drivers side bat to jump start, it would not. but if I connected to the passenger bat it would. might try the other bat with some heavy duty cables.

Good luck!

------------------
2001. 5 2500 4X4, QC, Auto, 3. 54 LSD, SLT, SWB, Trailer, Camper & Snow plow Packages, White, 35k# Cody Hitch, 20' Gooseneck Lowboy flat-bed Trailer.

 

[Cooker]

IMO you can tell when the batteries are getting weak (the truck may not turn over as quick), but it is usually a gradual thing and you may not even notice. All of a sudden one day the darn things just cash in. Not like on a gasser when it turns over one last time and luckily fires, and this can go on for weeks before the battery is completely done. Ditto on what everyone else said about the tow truck

 

[M_Pulling]

Having driven tow trucks since Feb. 1982 I can tell you that I found some Diesels that have two batterys so dead that one set of the normal heavy duty jumper cables on most tow trucks will not be enough. I carried a second set of 'O' or 'OO' cables on the truck and hooked one set to each battery that would usually do the trick. On a few occasions we have had to use two trucks to start one diesel. Most batteries will give some advance warning of imminent failure. Usually if a vehicle started normally then all of a sudden does absolutely nothing it is a good indication of terminals in need of some attention. In any event there are a lot of things to do before a $50 greenback to the dealer.

My $. 02 worth.

------------------
2001 2500 QC 4X2 Flame Red Clear Coat
Magalia Ram

 

[americana]

thanks for the help, guys.

the tow truck driver tried both batteries, with what looked to be the heaviest set of jumper cables i've seen (keep in mind i am a newbie to diesels and serious work trucks). he also tried to get a good purchase on the terminals. didn't clean the posts, though. it started early in the morning as usual. i stopped literally for less than 2 min after a 5 min drive after doing chores on my rental property to get a soda... then nothing.

wonder if redwood city dodge'll just let me come in on monday and just throw in some batteries? what are my odds with out incurring any charges? not good, i think. think i should let them run some diagnostics just to make sure i didn't fry anything trying to start the truck so many times? any comments would be appreciated.

thanks again, guys... .

p. s. where can i buy some yellow tops for as inexpensively as possible?

 

[illflem]

americana,check the thread "batteries"over in Products/Acces. right now,seems like Cosco may be the place.

 

[Rambling]

Americana, if these are the originals it is likely the batts went south as others have said. Even if they aren't, if you are going to install them yourself, you still want to have the electrical system checked. Wouldn't want the new ones to suffer an early death because of an unknown problem.

 

[Huntmastr1]

OK Here is my take on this subject.

I have run into this problem several times!!!!

What happens is one battery dies then it draws power away from the other till eventually both battery's die.

When jump starting a vehicle with 2 or more battery's you should disconnect all but one battery. Charge or jump start with just the one or no battery using a good set of cables. If you try to jump start with two dead battery's they will soak all the assist power and leave nothing to turn over the starter. I have always been able to get the starter turning over this way even on farm tractors and Road tractors.
FWIW.

------------------
Jeff Powell
Alvin, Texas

98. 5, 2500, QC, SLT, White, LWB, 4X4, ISB Cummins, Auto, 3. 55 LSD, Gooseneck, K & N, TST 3-way Lockup switch,TSB, 275 HP injectors, lost Muffler.

2K1, 3500, QC, SLT, Flame Red, LWB, ETH HO ISB Cummins, 6 Speed, 3. 55 LSD, Trailer tow Mirrors, all options but leather and travel group.

 

[americana]

thanks, guys. at least now i know how to jump a diesel. optimas should be here any minute. then i am going to the dealer to drop them in (VERY nice of them). they said they couldn't diagnose any electrical probs without good batteries in the truck.

i'll let you know how it goes.

 

[americana]

so i installed the otpima yellow tops last night. it was a pain.

first the service manager didn't leave the truck outside the service area like he said, but the sales manager was really cool about letting me into the service area. then the service manager didn't leave my keys with the only good alarm remote i have. i replaced one battery and the alarm started to go off!

then i had to remove a filter from the amsoil dual remote battery mount that i got from tedd kidd to remove it to get at the battery.

it was a pain but i got the optimas installed. did i mention it was at 8pm and a cold sf peninsula night?

olga started right up, but the engine light was on. the service manager said they would finally take a look at it today.

wish me luck... .