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Dakota_Gurrl
Dodge Dakota
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12/13/2005
08:11:55
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 Subject: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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Ok I wrote a few days ago about the problem my truck has with starting and idling. Yesturday she died in the middle of the road, and refused to move. When I tried to start her, she would turn over but not catch, but after several attempts, you could here the loss of battery power so I stopped before I screwed up my starter or anything else. I put my hazards on and my husband pushed her as far off the middle of the road as possible, but without power steering, it's like driving a damn tank. Anyways, after a cold walk home, we cabbed it to Crappy Tire and bought a new battery (700amps), by the time we got back (30 mins) the hazards were dead. We changed the battery and she still wouldn't start, after 5 tries and several curses, she caught...barely. She started and ran awesome for the rest of the day until this morning...same crap new day. This morning when I turned the key, it took a few secs but it started, then died. I did it again with gas and it started, but under 1200rpms made her shake and sputter. Yet again I have to sit in the truck to warm it up, the only thing the new battery has helped was, instead of sitting with my foot on the gas for 8 mins, I sit for 5. Any other ideas? I'm gonna make my monthly mechanic appointment tomorrow morning, wow I'm raking in the airmiles! Thanx guys! :) ~Sandy~...again!
'97 Kota CC 3.9-6 auto 183,394kms.
F.Y.I. The throttle plates were cleaned, and all adaptives were reset in early November. Now what?
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Dodge Dakota
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12/13/2005
09:15:55
|  RE: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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Has the O2 sensor ( just in front of Catalytic )
been changed recently ?? or ever ??
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Dan M
Dodge Dakota
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12/13/2005
11:59:45
| RE: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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700 amps? That was probably not the cold cranking amps. What state do you live? I used to run 1000 (800 something cold cranking) when I lived in Indiana.
When I replaced the battery the last time, I wanted 1000, but advance told me they didn't carry anything that big in Georgia - it was too much "for the south". Funny since north west GA is all mountains.
Get a battery to match the weather.
- Dan M
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Dune_Op1
Dodge Dakota
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12/14/2005
10:03:11
| RE: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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-50 in Ontario? Holy. I never remember it getting that cold in Ontario. LOL!!! I thought only the praries saw temps like that. MAN I hate cranking over my Dak in cold weather like that. Seems like the block heater doesn't even work when it hits that cold. Have you checked your wires recently? Maybe when she's in for it's maintenance have the mechanic check the wires to see if they're gapped and working properly. I suppose it could be a number of things. But I like to work my way from the simple solutions before I dump a crap load of money into the stealership. Hope that helps ya.
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Dakota_Gurrl
Dodge Dakota
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12/14/2005
11:01:11
| RE: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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-50 isn't the actual temp, it's the temp with the windchill factor...the closer you are to lake Ontario, the colder it gets, unlike the prairies who see those temps without windchill. Speaking of heaters, I think mine's dead or dying. It blows air, but it's just mild, not enough to warm you up, but warmer than outside. Probably about the temp it would be if you put it on the cold side on a summer night...just mild. I read alot of posts on here about heating blocks, and the mess they can make of the inside of the truck, but with all the problems she's had lately, and Christmas around the corner, I just can't afford to fix 'em all right now. Any suggestions on a quick fix for the heater, just till mid-January? All summer we had problems with wires, the water pump and lower ball joints, week after week we changed/fixed something new. Then for about a month all was well, then it was the throttle plates, and now it's the battery, heater and possibley more. Please tell me it's worth dropping the money into, she's a 97 with approx. 183,400kms. Oh well, it's not like I could get a new one anyways...may as well fix her eh! Thanx! :)
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bigdave
Dodge Dakota
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12/14/2005
23:25:15
| RE: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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A quick fix for the heater, if you cant get it flushed right away, just swap the hoses on the heater core at the fire wall. It will reverse the flow of coolant, but eventually you will have to get it flushed out.
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OBIO3
Dodge Dakota
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12/14/2005
23:40:33
| RE: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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Check the thermostate first if your teperature guage is regestering cold > If guage does say the engine is warm then the problem is elsewhere for sure > Just for giggles > Wind chill only has an effect on living things > Engines only feel real temperature >
So many problems > So little time
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shdow
Dodge Dakota
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12/15/2005
04:49:45
| RE: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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the higher the CCA (cold cranking amps) amps you can get for cold areas the better BJs warehouse has good deals just write down your group size when shopping for one then look at right group for the CCA and CA here in SFLA CCA not a factor
also when you see your battery start bulging out on the sides it's on borrowed time and cold is the worst enemy of a battery when it starts bulging
with might now lose the volts but the amps will decrease
check your battery cell levels if you have caps that come off the lead plates should be covered with fluid/acid
to do a load test disconnect the battery from the car take a thick piece of metal that can reach both poles touch both poles briefly if you see bright sparks battery has lots of amps if they are dim it's low on charge/amps or going bad
also if you put battery on a auto battery charger
notice the needle indicator if it jumps back and forth you have a dead or low cell let it go for a half hour is it still jumps get new battery
people baby batteries and shouldn't cause they can fail without notice in cold weather
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ftheabus
Dodge Dakota
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12/15/2005
08:43:47
| RE: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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You have got to be kidding. Putting a piece of metal between the battery posts and if its good bright sparks bad dim sparks. amazing what crap people post...
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blue340mopar
Dodge Dakota
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12/15/2005
12:51:02
| RE: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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I replaced the battery in my Dakota also and I believe the factory rating was only 700 CCA. I had a problem where it would not idle and I had to keep my foot on the pedal when idling or it would die. I was told that the battery was run down just enough and not able to supply enough voltage to the computer to keep things running right. I checked all connections to the computer plus all the grounds and so far it has never done that again. Maybe it was the battery, so far so good. Plus 700 CCA will be O.K. but if you want, go a little bigger.
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blue340mopar
Dodge Dakota
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12/15/2005
12:52:06
| RE: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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One other thing, how about the fuel pump? Is that alright?
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toolfan
GenIII
12/15/2005
16:48:27
| RE: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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i think the battery you got is not powerful enough for the truck and you should get a 1000apm or high! if that is 700apms than that means that battery at 80 degrees will have that much power. the cold cranking apms is what you need to look for.
if the truck is that much of a pain you should get a battery blanket or take it in to your house at night. you can also try this in the morning before starting the truck turn on the head lights for 5 secs and that will stimulate the battery and the truck may start quicker!
Sorry posted signature on 12/12 - 12/13/2005 that messed up FIREFOX screens! It worked ok in Internet Explorer. I'M SORRY!! Sincerely TOOLFAN
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Dune_Op1
Dodge Dakota
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12/16/2005
00:04:05
| RE: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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Ya, I wouldn't be taking a piece of metal and touching it to both battery posts either. I'm sure his heart was in the right place though. Thats just me though. I've received enough shocks in my life that I've kind of wised up to that one. LOL!! I'd use a multimeter and monitor voltage and amps at startup to see what she's pushing out.
As for the heater core flush that should buy you a little bit of time to get through the holidays. It's fairly cheap too. Or free if you do it with a garden hose. LOL!!!
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toolfan
GenIII
12/16/2005
00:17:20
|  RE: Winter starting problems cont'd...
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when you use the multimeter if you do, the battery fully charge should read 12.6 volts 12.5 volts=80%-70% charged any thing after that the battery is going to have a hard time starting the engine.
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