Ok guys I need your expertise on this
I was driving along tuesday night and I come out of my apt complex. As usual the car slides sideways because of the too much power versus michelin pilots i have on there (no thats not the problem)

Ok, so after my little slide I got a check traction control light and a check abs light. the car was still running fine, but i figured i would pull over to for check codes and this way i can bring it to my shop knowing whats wrong with it.

So, I couldnt get it to check codes (thats not the problem), so i figured maybe I need to turn it off and turn it back on.
I turn it off......... go to flip the key to turn it back on ......... nothing.
not even one light, not even a click.

ABSOLUTELY NOTHING
it was as if there was no battery hooked to the car.

my awesome service advisor and awesome tech came out after hours (give it was 30-45 minutes after hours but still...) and looked at the car. the tech wiggled the positive battery cable and then i got some lights and the starter went click one time, then everything died again. no power. like there was no battery. happened once more the same way after he wiggled it, but after that nothing.

DEAD

the car sat over night and the next day the tech went to where the car was (since it was stranded in a parking lot) with a tow truck and a jumper box. he tried jumping it before the tow truck driver put it on the flat bed and damn if it didnt start right up. they went back to the dealership and i think they said they had to jump it a few more times but after it sat for a while and even over night, the car was fine. no codes nothing. diagnostics was perfect

i have no idea what happened, neither did the tech. the tech didnt do anything but check it out and since nothing came up wrong by the computers and such he didnt charge me, but he also said he didnt fix anything and he feels there is still a problem that will creep up again.

so i am asking you guys, what do you think this could be.
has this happened to anyone before and what was the fix?
anything to help me would be great since i would hate to drive this car far away and end up stuck without a clue to what is going on

the mechanic did say that a low voltage record was found which probably triggered the abs.
but then again i dont know.
still weird for me not to have any power.

PLEASE HELP

 

Buy a New Battery....... Low voltage is what set off your abs and traction control lights. Beleive me when these batteries go there is know warning they just go....

 

Did anyone check the battery voltage to see what it was? My *GUESS* is that's what your issue would be. Also, check all your grounds. Good luck

 

I must say I agree, you have something up with the electrical system. Ask me how I know! I just got done trying to track down a problem very similar to yours. I hate it when you get no codes! Thats the worst, but keep in mind there was a day before computers telling you what was wrong. Just go about it logically. Electrical problems I feel are the worst to track down. Just keep it simple and look for clues, as small as they may seem. Check your fuses, seriously....this is the first clue. Check your battery and terminals, check the alternator. Believe it or not, remove your alternator and thoroughly check the wiring. Pull back the wire looms to really look at the wires. For me I had 2 pinched wires that were wedge between the valve cover and the alternator causing a ground short. It ended up killing my battery and putting a 2 volt drain on my whole system. I changed out relays, fuses, the battery, and an alternator before finding the problem. All this again, with no codes setting off.

 

ok just to let you know it is a brand new battery. only been in the car a month and there is no stereo or any other after market stuff other then my s/c to draw on it hard

 

What type od battery is it? And does the car sit for days or weeks without driving?

C5s can run down a battery (especially a AGM battery in 2-3 weeks if not driven). A lot of us use battery tenders when car is not driven for 3 days or more.

 

My thought is the crimp on the battery cables may be letting go therefore when they slightly tweaked the cable, it started. Make sure your battery connections are clean and tight as well as the major ground that's between it and the fuse block.

 

check the connection at the starter too. All of the batteries power goes to the starter solenoid.
I have also seen batteries break internally. There is a lead path inside the battery that can break internally and cause intermittent issues like this. I used to be a battery dealer for 6 years and rarely ran into this problem, but it's worth checking. Also, it is possible to have corrosion underneath the battery cables where you wouldn't see it until you remove the cables from the battery and inspect them.

 

The car can sit for probably no more then two to three days tops. i usually drive it when i am off which is 4-5 days a week.

the battery is new, it is a napa battery that is there top of the line with side mounts only because i have the magnacooler on top of the battery.

as for the battery though it does seem like a battery probably since it didnt take much to get the car going and it keeps going.
maybe i am wrong but i think XtremeVette might be right, it might be a short or a electrical problme.

but then again i dont know so that is why i am asking for your help!!
appreciate the comments and suggestion, please keep them coming so i can bring them up with my tech

 

It's not a short. The word short is a term used too loosely. Part of my responsibility at work is working on battery backup systems and maintaining those batteries, so think about what I'm about to say. A short circuit is a circuit that bypasses resistance. When that happens, the current increases only limited by the power source. Current is electron flow and when it flows through resistance, it causes heat. If it were shorted, the low resistance would cause such a high current that your car would go up in smoke or the battery plates would ionize releasing hydrogen and the heat would most likely ignite it causing the battery to explode, so it's not a short!
It's an OPEN!
That's the long explanation because I can't sleep!

 

If the battery is good, then it's most likely the cable connections to the battery. Sometimes corrosion builds up where the connector lug is crimped to the battery cable. When you wriggle the wires or tug on the lugs it makes an intermittent but temporary connection and often times will not support the current required to spin the starter motor so all you get is a few clicks of the starter solenoid.

BTW, I have a highly modded '98 C5 with an Optima battery and since I primarily use my car for track events now, it sits sometimes for up to two weeks without any issues. My battery does NOT discharge after a few days. If yours does, then you've got something drawing too much current when your ignition is off. BLOWNBLUEZ06 is correct. This is an open circuit issue and not a short (as far as starting your car is concerned, however there could be a low resistance short somewhere causing your battery to discharge prematurely).

 

so basically the issue is probably an "open circuit" as blownbluez06 said, in the areas or the way XtremeVette say.
Would I be correct in this statement of what you guys are saying?

 

Yes most likely a dirty connection at the battery itself take them apart clean them up with a scotch brite pad or steel wool (the bolts too) most likely that's your problem might be the terminal on the starter or the fuse box terminal though (where you jump it)

 

Hi, if the Battery is 100% known to be good, and a load test is the only way to know for sure, then from your description of wiggling the cables and getting power, it is very logical to look at the cables, and the cable conections first. Check the conections at the battery, starter, and the ones going to the fuse block. Make very sure that there is no underneath corrosion and that they are properly tight. Both the positive and negative. Also make sure the connection between the cable and the end terminal is not separating or corroded.
Good Luck

 

I've seen this happen at least twice on other cars. The fact that you recently put a new battery in may be related. If there is a poor contact at the battery terminal, the amount of juice needed when you start the car can cause the contact area to arc and then actually become an open circuit resulting in the condition you see. After a while the contact area may allow low current which would allow your dash lights, etc., but then once you go to crank the starter the high current flow will cause the issue again.

The more common issue is your battery connections may not be clean. If you remove the battery connections, clean and apply some dielectric grease, and tighten down you are usually OK. However some of the earlier model batteries would leak acid at the side terminal and result in corrosion at the battery cable terminal inside the rubber boot. You can remove the terminal from the boot by removing the bolt completely. When I changed my battery 2 years ago I did this as a precaution and found the terminal inside the rubber boot completely covered in white corrosion that over time would have likely affected the contacts. Check that out.

 

I agree with checking the battery connections... seen this happen a couple times before and it was nothing more complicated than a loose or dirty connection.

 

If all above suggestions fail try:
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/showthread.php?t=896875

 

The one time this happened to me it was the battery. The OEM battery died without warning and gave exactly the same symptoms. I replaced it anyway but it wouldn't recharge. It had 8k miles on it at the time.

 

deegee, so what was the solution......

 

Load test the battery at the 8mm bolt head this will "load" the connection at the batt.