ISU Boomer
Elite Member
Ok, we recently bought our daughter her first car. It's a 2002 Ford Taurus. Everything has been good until a couple days ago. Daughter called and said the car won't start. She was at a gas station and I came to check it out. It wasn't a battery problem. I pretty much knew it was a starter issue. The starter clicked, car never turned over, but all accessories worked. I tried jumping the car just in case. Nope, nothing. Had it towed to the shop and my suspicions were confirmed. A bad starter. Got it replaced yesterday and everything seemed good.
Until tonight. Daughter called again and said her car won't start. I came home and messed with it for awhile. It actually started for me after a couple cranks. I shut it off and started it again. Did this a couple more times and thought all is well. But when I tried again it would not start. It turns over but nothing. Then I noticed smoke. Like lots of it coming from under then hood. I popped the hood and see that it is coming from the negative terminal of the battery.
Also, the new starter is very hot to the touch. The negative battery cable is very hot to the touch. What could be the problem?
My non car mechanic mind tells me maybe the battery cables have a short? Maybe the new starter was installed incorrectly? Just wondering what to check. I doubt the starter was installed incorrectly. Do I buy new battery cables? Any advice from the pros would be appreciated.
Thanks!
Until tonight. Daughter called again and said her car won't start. I came home and messed with it for awhile. It actually started for me after a couple cranks. I shut it off and started it again. Did this a couple more times and thought all is well. But when I tried again it would not start. It turns over but nothing. Then I noticed smoke. Like lots of it coming from under then hood. I popped the hood and see that it is coming from the negative terminal of the battery.
Also, the new starter is very hot to the touch. The negative battery cable is very hot to the touch. What could be the problem?
My non car mechanic mind tells me maybe the battery cables have a short? Maybe the new starter was installed incorrectly? Just wondering what to check. I doubt the starter was installed incorrectly. Do I buy new battery cables? Any advice from the pros would be appreciated.
Thanks!