battery?? cables? please help!!!!

[MiZZ]

i posted this in the under the hood, but i forgot about this section!! any help appreciated!

whats going on guys, had my explorer for a while and haven't had to post many new threads askin whats wrong because it never gave me any problems and never left me stranded.... till yesterday...

before i go on, it's a 1992 explorer XLT automatic, 130k miles

yesterday morning i got in and started it up, no problems... i'm driving up the street about 5 mins up... i notice a power steering type whinning sound when i accelerate that was never there.... and a smell... now my PS pump has been starved for a while, a few months ago i hit a curb to avoid an accident in the ice and it cracked a small crack in the steering box area... so PS fluid would go in, but come out just as fast... so i top it off as much as i can but sometimes it was running on no PS fluid, obviously harder to drive LOL and i only let it go on no fluid if i simply had none and there were no stores around. the leak was so bad a whole bottle, even with stop leak lasted about 5 mins of driving before it was bone dry. but thats not the problem im having.

enough blabbering, on to the problem... so i hear the noise so i pull into a parking lot and pop the hood, engines still running perfect at this time... so i pull open the PS fluid cap, a little bit of smoke comes out.... so im thinking the pump finally burnt out or seized up.... so i shut the truck off to go to the little convience store where i oulled in and get some PS fluid to throw in there... go and get the PS fluid, put it in, try and start the truck..... sounds like have a dead battery...

I tried to start it a couple times, it wants to turn over but it just simply sounds like it's not getting juice... i got it to turn over and start for a second then it died, which was weird... so i get a friend to come out and jump me, but before we put the cables on we notice the negative battery cable terminal end getting VERY hot, and even melting (yea melting the metal terminals (the cable terminals, not battery terminals)..).... i went to autozone and bought a nice gold plated negative battery cable (the tsunami audio type terminals with the hex/alen wrench adjustable holes) i put that on, and give it a jump..... nothing.... put a new battery in from my friends car just to see if it was my battery, nothing... sounds like it wants to go but has a dead batt... even the lights dim when u try and turn it over, but they're perfectly bright with em just on, all windows etc are fast.... seems like the batts dead just wen u try and turn it over. i don't get it.

after messing around with it for an hour or so i call AAA to come tow it home, the AAA guy trys bypassing the battery ground and all, tried messiing with the starter, etc etc.... even tried jumping it again with his truck... no luck... so longggggg story short, shes sitting out front and i'm just wondering what i could check and maybe get back to yas with what happens, so i can figure this out.... I know a little bit here and there and i have my explorer haynes manual, which really don't help much, but if anyone can let me know a couple problem areas to check out that would be great. i need my baby back on the road, haha.



thanks,
Mike

 

[Burns]

If the power steering pump is locked up i dont think the starter will have the power to start it.

 

[MiZZ]

any way to bypass this, or see for a fact if this is the problem? or better yet, how can i fix this?

what would be the cause of the hot negative cable/terminal? the termial pretty much desinagrated when i tapped it with a hammer, the wires were all corroded as well. it got so hot it melted, not sure thats normal! could it be from trying to crank it over a bunch of times

thanks a lot for your reply/help!

-mike

 

[Burns]

wait a min. Did you hit the battery?

 

[MiZZ]

nah not like that LOL, when i noticed the cables were hot i just tapped the termial to see what was up (didn't want to touch it, obviously lol). i know enough not to bash on a battery LOL i should have re-phrased it, i tapped the negative terminal end on the cables and it pretty much desinagrated, also i didnt use the metal part of the hammer haha

also i put in a differant battery and the same problem, so i'm pretty sure it's not the battery, it's a newer (about 6 months) die hard gold, was always strong and like i said my lights and everything are all still perfectly bright, till i try and crank it over then everything dims, it does a quick crank then dies out, like a dead battery pretty much.... it definetly does sound like what you said, somethings locked up and the truck don't have the power to turn it over..

 

[Burns]

That makes me feel better. lol

Well have you replaced that termanal yet?

 

[MiZZ]

yea i mentioned that i replaced the negative terminal in the first post, but i know it's kind of long to read all of it haha... i replaced it with one of the best ones i could get, LOL a $20 "gold plated" tsunami negative terminal, it's pretty heavy duty so i'm sure this one wont melt, haha but i never seen battery terminals get so hot they melt and desinagrate out of no where. it was weird.

I know the little backyard basics about cars but i'm lost right here, it's never left me stranded before LOL. i'd like to fix this asap, today if possible!

any help appreciated,

thanks again

-mike

 

[MiZZ]

just got back from autozone, tested the alternator, and the battery... both passed fine... i have a feeling the pump locked up like mentioned. is there any way to bypass the pump just to get it to a shop? or?

thanks

 

[MiZZ]

would a froze/stuck pump even cause this or am i looking in the wrong direction on all of this?? could it be the starter or relay?

not sure why the pump was making that noise and smoking though, it must be the problem.... any way to get around this just to take it up the street to a shop,, i cant fork out another tow fee!

 

[JDraper]

Try taking the belt that runs around the p/s pump off and starting it. You won't do any harm to the truck, but it will tell you if that's the problem.

If it is the problem, it would also explain the hot battery cable ends. The starter will draw as much current as it can trying to turn the truck over. If it can't, a lot of that energy gets turned into heat.

 

[MiZZ]

thats the problem ritght there! i pulled off the belt, it started right up... LOL wow i wish i did that earlier, looks like i have a PS pump to replace!

any way to break loose the pully on the PS pump just till tomorrow so i can get to work in the AM and change the pump when i get home?