My Q didn’t start this morning.

[louiegz]

Running late for work and the Q wouldn't start. Luckily, the wifey didn't go to work yet. I hijacked her car. I didn't have a chance to really look at it because I was late, but I turned the key and all I got was clicking. My battery is a bit old, so it could be that. My starter is original. I hope it's not that. We'll see when I get home this afternoon when I try to jump start the Q.

[vicQ45]

clicking is most likely a dead battery. your alternator may be on its way out too. took me 3 batteries to figure that out on my old max. damn autozone testers. jsut jump it and get your alt checked.

[elwesso]

I agree, jump the car and take it to autozone. Theyll check both for free. I bought a duralast 2 years ago and its still going strong...

WHen my battery went out, it just all of a sudden would BARELY crank over.. One day it worked and one day it didnt..... Have them verify the battery is bad and just geta new one... Duralasts seem to be hard to beat with a 3 year replacement guarntee.

[vicQ45]

get an optima red top. you'll have that battery as long as you have your Q! i had one in my max. that thing saw hell i dunno how much and still went strong. its now in its second car ans still going strong. even after sitting shorted out for about a week and then sitting uncharged for about 6 months. they're only about $100 and can't be beat. maintainance-free and the most durable battery out there. dry cells own!

[louiegz]

I was thinking of getting an Optima Red Top. Lets see if it is my battery and I'll get one of those.

[louiegz]

Well, I jumped the Q and it started up. Unfortunately, the battery didn't hold a charge, so I'll be getting a new battery and getting the alternator checked. I'll probably go to a Pep Boys that's near by. If it turns out that my alternator is bad, should I have them change it, or is there a better place I should go to do that?

[maxnix]

Always get a Nissan one from Joe, as labor is a real challenge and mass market ones don't last.

[vicQ45]

always get an OEM alt. anything else won't last. its a really easy DIY, so don't be afraid. i'd bet your alt is bad. same symptoms as my max

[elwesso]

You could probably DIY if you had the guy that helped you with the fuel pump..

Alternator cant be a PITA to get out if its the original, so hope it doesnt need replacement... If you dont drive too much on the bad battery you should be good.

[louiegz]

Well, this weekend I put a new Optima battery in my Q and it starts fine. I did it myself because the wait was too long at the Pep Boys for them to install it. One bad thing about the Optima is that it's too short. I ran out of thread on the tie downs so I couldn't secure the battery down tight. I have to get shorter tie down. The bad part is I didn't have my alternator checked, so I have to get that done. Is there any way of checking it myself, or should I just go back?
Modified by louiegz at 10:16 AM 6/27/2005

[elwesso]

Maybe you could just put something under the battery???

[Rex]

Well, this weekend I put a new Optima battery in my Q and it starts fine. I did it myself because the wait was too long at the Pep Boys for them to install it. One bad thing about the Optima is that it's too short. I ran out of thread on the tie downs so I couldn't secure the battery down tight. I have to get shorter tie down. The bad part is I didn't have my alternator checked, so I have to get that done. Is there any way of checking it myself, or should I just go back?

Modified by louiegz at 10:16 AM 6/27/2005

Go back and get the "free" step/tray that they should have to get it up high enough to be tight. You could have them check it at the same time.

[Jesda]

I used tupperware.

[5zigen]

When my battery was too smalll, I measured about how big the gap between the thing that holds the battery down and the battery itself and cut a slab of wood and shaped it accordingly and put it under the battery. Works like a charm.

[BobE]

Two quick easy ways to verify the alt is working.

Dirt simple. 1) start car.2) turn on interior lite and look at it as U do step 3.3) switch the headlites on, U're looking for the interior lite to dim for a fraction of a second then return to the original brightness. If it stays dimmer the alt is bad!4) switch headlites off, if the interior lite gets brighter the alt is bad!

A bit more technical...1) start car.2) with a voltmeter chk for about 14.4VDC (use lighter socket, but U can do it under the hood also). Less than 14V or more than 15V is not good. However if Ur battery is good but discharged (U had to jump the car) then it can be below 14.4 'till it's charged.

[qship96]

just returned from Nationwide Infiniti with a new factory battery,89.00 out the door.car wouldnt turn over this morning,starts have felt sluggish over the last few days,so I kinda knew it was coming.researched Optima batteries over the weekend,couldnt find the proper sixe{group 27},do they make the correct size for the 90-96 q? previous factory battery was 3.5 years old,surprized it didnt last a little longer? dont most batteries fail/get replaced in the dead of winter?not summer?

[elwesso]

Mine went out in the dead of summer... Heat is just as harmful to batteries as coldness...

[louiegz]

researched Optima batteries over the weekend,couldnt find the proper sixe{group 27},do they make the correct size for the 90-96 q?

I e-mailed Optima, and they said the red top was model 34 and the yellow top was D34/78. I got the red top. We'll see how it works in the long term.

[sultan]

heat is probably worse for batteries than cold. a battery failing in 3 years is not unusual around here. when the batteries go they really go, you turn the key and nothing happens, jump starts don't even work a lot of the time. replace the battery and everything's fine.

i'm running a duralast or whatever from vatozone, but optima red top's are awesome.

[louiegz]

Two quick easy ways to verify the alt is working.

Dirt simple. 1) start car.2) turn on interior lite and look at it as U do step 3.3) switch the headlites on, U're looking for the interior lite to dim for a fraction of a second then return to the original brightness. If it stays dimmer the alt is bad!4) switch headlites off, if the interior lite gets brighter the alt is bad!

Good tip. I did your test last night and it seems that the alternator is fine. The dome light dimmed for a fraction of a second and went back to full brightness. This is good because I wasn't looking forward to having to change my alternator.