BarnyardEngineering
Well-known Member
- Location
- Rochester, NY
Modern cars do not have "dash lights" anymore. They have computer screens which must stay lit when you hit the starter or the vehicle won't start.If dash lights did not dim while in start position I would be surprised if it is a pure battery problem.
"at least some recharge" may be a fallacy here. The car was started, no doubt fan was cranked to maximum, rear defroster on, radio on, lights on.... AND the battery was down from sitting in the cold for a week to begin with. That's maximum electrical load that the car can experience, and the alternator would be barely treading water, and in fact there may have been a net drain on the battery. Only after the rear defroster kicks off would it be able to start making progress on charging the battery.
That's just a theory. The next theory is a dead spot on the starter. I had a similar issue with my 2015 truck a couple of years ago. Turn the key and nothing. First couple of times the jumper pack made it start, but that turned out to be a coincidence. 99 times out of 100 it was fine. It didn't do it for the longest time, but then one day it wouldn't start at all. I ended up putting a new AC Delco starter on it from Rock Auto and never had a problem again.