Q: New Battery, New Alternator, Truck still wont start

asked by on January 18, 2017

I have a 2012 ram 1500 hemi. when you would go to start it, it would click once like a dead battery, but if you wait a minute then try starting it, it starts right up. then after about 2 days of that it wouldn't start at all. took the battery in and it was a bad cell, replaced it. different problem now. jump the truck, drive it around for awhile park it, turn it off and its dead. so we replaced the alternator yesterday. but same problem. jump it, drive it around, park it and its dead. Before I jump the truck, my tuner tells me the voltage is 12.9 once jumped, the voltage is 14.6-14.8 and it does not die unless you turn it off.

My car has 108000 miles.
My car has an automatic transmission.

Hello, It sounds like you may have a faulty starter relay. If the clicking noise went away after replacing the battery, it is likely that the dead battery is what caused the clicking sound as a result of being too weak to turn the motor over. The random intermittent failure to turn the starter over sounds like a failing starter relay. The starter relay directs power from the battery to the starter solenoid which then engages the starter when you turn the key. When this is not working properly, you may notice intermittent starting problems including no response when turning the key to start. Generally, when this does fail, it does so very randomly and usually without warning other than intermittent starting. The power from the battery will still power other accessories such as radio, horn, etc., but you may not have any power to the starter. I would recommend having an expert from YourMechanic come to your location to diagnose and inspect your vehicle.

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