Explorer starting woes

[umarabbas]

guys,

my explorer is giving me a lil trouble starting sometimes.....my brother left hte lights on one night and had to jumpstart my car..he says he ran it for a while after that to recharge the battery..

but since then..sometimes the explorer wont start...specially when it is runing...then turned off and tried to turn right back on on small errands....it gives a weak ignition noise adn then there is a series of clinks...adn then sometimes if i kepe trying suddenly it starts but sometimes it doesnt...i believe its the battery but some say it could be starter or alternator too...

 

[dreamr]

Grab a multimeter, test the voltage at the battery. It should be around 12.5 with the vehicle off. Start it, now test the voltage at the battery again. should be 14.5 or a touch higher. If lower than 12 with vehicle off you should put a charger on the battery , and see if it is able to haold the charge. If low while running your alternator may not be functioning properly.