Battery corrosion

BJHAHR

MEMBER
2013 NISSAN ALTIMA
80,000 MILES

Out of nowhere my car wouldn't start this morning. Interior lights working as we as radio. The car was trying to turn over but wouldn't. After a few tries starting clicking. - Opened the hood saw a lot of corrosion on the terminal as well as the connector. Scraped the terminal off. Tried to jump-start - again the car tried to turn over but wouldn't. Then started clicking again. Took the battery to auto zone for battery check they said it was dead. Installed new battery however the terminal bolt broke due to corrosion. Could the battery cables be bad? There is corrosion on that as well (positive) if so how do I change them myself? Is there a way to test that's the issue?

1 Reply

SCGRANTURISMO

MECHANIC
4,897 POSTS

Hello,

Absolutely, if there is corrosion on the battery cable then it will not let the amperage flow from the battery to the starter. This is known as unwanted resistance, or, resistance that was not designed to be there. In the diagrams down below I have included the wiring diagrams for the starting and charging circuits for your vehicle as well as guides for testing for unwanted resistance in an automotive electrical circuit using the preferred method, called voltage drop. You will need to be able to use a Digital Multi-meter [DMM] in order to go through these guides, so, if you need instructions on how to use one, here is a link to a guide below:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-use-a-voltmeter

Please go through these guides and get back to us with what you find out.

Thanks,
Alex
2CarPros

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