93 explorer eddie wont start

[Verno]

Mom of 3, I was going to give you a hard time for getting a vehicle on Friday the 13th, but after reading through all the posts I see you are frustrated enough! My money is on the Negative battery cable. Check it for a loose connection on both ends. Also, when you changed the terminals out what condition was the end of the POS and NEG wires? If not just copper then your problem is in the cables themselves.
With the mileage (and age) you report it would be a good investment to replace both of them now anyhow.

 

[explorermomof3]

Mom of 3, I was going to give you a hard time for getting a vehicle on Friday the 13th, but after reading through all the posts I see you are frustrated enough! My money is on the Negative battery cable. Check it for a loose connection on both ends. Also, when you changed the terminals out what condition was the end of the POS and NEG wires? If not just copper then your problem is in the cables themselves.
With the mileage (and age) you report it would be a good investment to replace both of them now anyhow.

HA HA yeah i know! i was just thinking to myself last night, thats what we get for buying it on friday the 13th! oh well. well i didnt do any of the work, my husband does. i have the old terminals sitting on the counter i can take a picture and post it i guess. theyre nasty thats all i know. i will mention this to my husband and see what he says. thanks!

 

[explorermomof3]

here is a picture of the old battery terminals. sorry its not the greatest quality. we seriously need to upgrade our digital camera. im not sure which one came from which side though.

this one has some of the wire:

 

[geoph1986]

All the white stuff is corrosion on the terminals. I am willing to bet money that the one with more corrosion is the positive cable. Corrosion will go all along the cable on the inside of the insulation. I am now convinced 110% that it is a bad connection/cable. If it were me, I know it's not, but if it were, I would replace the battery cables. My experience has been that corrosion like that is typically caused by a bad ground, others may disagree with me, but that has been my experience. As I understand it you don't have a lot of money kicking around, so I would replace the negative cable first. It costs way less than a positive cable, and may just get you going. If you still get that "clicking" after replacing the ground, replace the positive one. Just like anything old and used, your X is going to have some things wrong with it. Battery cables, like any other part, eventually need replacing. I have had no complaints about my X. It's actually been one of the better vehicles I've owned, and truly the only times it has left me walking has been when I've neglected something, or have gotten it stuck.

 

[explorermomof3]

All the white stuff is corrosion on the terminals. I am willing to bet money that the one with more corrosion is the positive cable. Corrosion will go all along the cable on the inside of the insulation. I am now convinced 110% that it is a bad connection/cable. If it were me, I know it's not, but if it were, I would replace the battery cables. My experience has been that corrosion like that is typically caused by a bad ground, others may disagree with me, but that has been my experience. As I understand it you don't have a lot of money kicking around, so I would replace the negative cable first. It costs way less than a positive cable, and may just get you going. If you still get that "clicking" after replacing the ground, replace the positive one. Just like anything old and used, your X is going to have some things wrong with it. Battery cables, like any other part, eventually need replacing. I have had no complaints about my X. It's actually been one of the better vehicles I've owned, and truly the only times it has left me walking has been when I've neglected something, or have gotten it stuck.

well i do know that before changing them...if standing in front of the truck...looking at the battery, the one with all the corrosion was on the left side of the battery...husband says thats the negative one. thanks. i will check on prices of negative battery cables. i read your post to my husband. any and all information and advice is welcome of course. and like ive told my husband...its a process of elimination...it may be one part..or it could be more then one. we wont know until we "test" them or replace them. i also told my husband we need to get it to start so we can then work on figuring out the 4WD problem! yes we bought it from a dealer knowing the 4WD didnt work......but it was in our price range......and its purple......and an SUV. i figured it could be something simple that the previous owner just didnt want to deal with, you never know! not only that even a brand new car off the lot can break down!

 

[geoph1986]

True indeed, new cars break down all the time. I bought my X cheap because the hubs wouldn't lock. Cleaned them out, put them back on and I haven't had a problem since.

...we can then work on figuring out the 4WD problem!

I know we should deal with one problem at a time, but what's the problem with the 4X4? Hubs not locking, transfer case not engaging?

 

[abbott92]

I just had that problem today with mine, what a coincidence! I figure it's my terminals I need to give them a good cleaning, hopefully that will solve the problem.

P.S. That's a pic of a of suburban, not an X!

 

[explorermomof3]

True indeed, new cars break down all the time. I bought my X cheap because the hubs wouldn't lock. Cleaned them out, put them back on and I haven't had a problem since.



I know we should deal with one problem at a time, but what's the problem with the 4X4? Hubs not locking, transfer case not engaging?

well with the 4WD...of course its push button, manual hubs....no lights on the dash..push buttons nothing happens. thats about all i know.

 

[explorermomof3]

I just had that problem today with mine, what a coincidence! I figure it's my terminals I need to give them a good cleaning, hopefully that will solve the problem.

P.S. That's a pic of a of suburban, not an X!

good luck! lol oh crap it is isnt it, i have a pic of that and one of my truck same exact positioning and same color.......oops my bad lol

 

[ld50]

good luck! lol oh crap it is isnt it, i have a pic of that and one of my truck same exact positioning and same color.......oops my bad lol

I was just wonderin` that myself!
Girls are so cute when they try to talk cars! :::

My experience has been that corrosion like that is typically caused by a bad ground, others may disagree with me

I`ve even heard that it was a product of not enough ventilation around the battery and or lack of terminal covers.
It happens though -whatever causes it.

 

[explorermomof3]

I was just wonderin` that myself!
Girls are so cute when they try to talk cars! :::




I`ve even heard that it was a product of not enough ventilation around the battery and or lack of terminal covers.
It happens though -whatever causes it.

LOL! i try! basically if i cant see the emblem on it that tells you what it is, i have no clue ha ha ha.

yeah something obviously causes it! i think once we do get it back up and running i will invest in a battery/terminal cover

 

[explorermomof3]

UPDATE:

for the hell of it, went out and tried to start it...dome light and door lights are back on normal brightness.....but still wont start......the usual click. so obviously theres a short somewhere with the connections so tomorrow we or i should say my husband will take a look at that.

 

[marragtop]

Have you tried running a jumper wire from the + side of the battery directly to the starter to see if it will engage? I would do that before replacing cables as it will help verify that you do have a cable problem.

 

[explorermomof3]

Have you tried running a jumper wire from the + side of the battery directly to the starter to see if it will engage? I would do that before replacing cables as it will help verify that you do have a cable problem.

no we haven't tried that yet.

 

[marragtop]

Also, the click noise that you are hearing.... is it coming from the solenoid on fender or the solenoid on the starter?

 

[explorermomof3]

its from the solenoid on the fender wall which is the one we have already replaced...the old one was also clicking.

 

[geoph1986]

Also, the click noise that you are hearing.... is it coming from the solenoid on fender or the solenoid on the starter?

She had indicated in an earlier post that she thought it was coming from the fender (post #3). Also in an earlier post I too had suggested to jump the starter directly. From what she's been describing, I'm sure it's a bad connection/cable.

 

[explorermomof3]

yes i did mention it before in an earlier post and geoph1986 did mention the jumper wire from the battery to the starter itself....we just havent gotten to doing it yet because the weather has been to cold. its warming up today though! and this weekend supposed to be it he 50's.

 

[geoph1986]

Well, keep us updated on what you find out, & try to stay warm. I hate working on vehicles in the bitter cold, especially when it's out of necessity. BTW, where in MN do you live? I used to live in Middle River, which is 22 mi north of Thief River Falls on Hwy. 32. It's one of those towns that if you blink when driving through it, you'll miss it. But it is the self proclaimed goose capital of MN.

 

[explorermomof3]

Well, keep us updated on what you find out, & try to stay warm. I hate working on vehicles in the bitter cold, especially when it's out of necessity. BTW, where in MN do you live? I used to live in Middle River, which is 22 mi north of Thief River Falls on Hwy. 32. It's one of those towns that if you blink when driving through it, you'll miss it. But it is the self proclaimed goose capital of MN.

will do. im in New Brighton.