Starting issue - Battery or starter

[Dino615]

Good morning. I have a 16 Escalade ESV. About a month ago I had to change out the display screen on the dash. Within a couple days of doing that, I started having issues with starting. At least one in 5 starts, when I hit my start button all the electronics cut out, there is a short pause with a weird clicking, then the truck starts. The clock is always reset to 12:00 and the radio on 87.9. Now a few days ago when I hit the start button, it starts just clicking with all the dash coming on and off in between clicks. I have to hit the start to get it to stop. Try it several times and it will start intermittently now. I charged the batter to full, then put a load tester on it and it shows good. I went to Autozone and they tested it and it showed the battery is good, but the starter is bad. My concern is when it starts and I am driving, the voltage goes from 14.8 down to 13.9. I don't mind replacing the starter, I just don't want to spend a couple hundred and the time to replace it and have it turn out to be the battery. Any thoughts or suggestions?

 

[Joseph Garcia]

When you changed out the display screen on the dash, did you disconnect the battery during that project? I'm trying to understand if there is some relationship between the two.

It appears that your battery itself is good, so my first recommendation is that you double check all electrical connections and grounds associated with the battery and starter circuits. The battery cables often oxidize and deteriorate under the protective plastic coating near the actual lead connectors attaching to the battery, so when checking for good 12V and ground connections, check out these areas, as well. Check the electrical connectors at the starter, to ensure that they are clean and tight. Check ground connectors on the engine block and firewall to ensure that they are clean and tight.

Once you have confirmed that all related electrical connectors are clean and tight, and there is no oxidation and deterioration under the main wires protective coatings, let us know, and we will offer recommendations regarding checking out the starter.

 

[Dino615]

So I already had the battery disconnected so I knew those connections were good. The new radio hasn't had any issues, and no issues when it was running, only when starting. I pulled the panel with the start button and checked the start/stop button. Nothing seemed loose but with the panel off I was able to start it 5 times in a row without issue. I put the panel back in and it has started multiple times since without issue. I am wondering if I had the harness or a wire kinked or bent to the side that was causing an issue.

 

[Joseph Garcia]

That is certainly a possibility. Keep track of it and report back to us on how things go during the next week, even if you have no further issues. It will become part of our collective knowledge base.

 

[PG01]

Check your battery cables again. They rot/corrode from the inside out. I can almost guarantee that’s your problem. Take them off the battery again and follow them to the starter and to the ground points. 99.999999% sure your problem is right there.

PS: Your starter has nothing to do with the gauge on the dash, it’s a bad ground or positive cable.

 

[DWTahoe]

Another thing to add, is that I think the fluctuation in voltage while driving is normal. I thought I read something about how the truck will actually let the battery discharge and charge back up so its not overcharging the battery. However, I may be mistaken, obviously it doesn't completely discharge it but I think it's normal to see the voltage change.

 

[Dino615]

Good morning. I am back with an update, and unfortunately the same issue and something else that may apply. So with the initial starting issue, every time the vehicle would not start, the gauge on the dash said low voltage and it showed 11.5v. I can throw a 40amp jump box on it and by the time I walk around to the driver side and get it, it would start. So even though my battery tester, and the auto parts tester said the battery was good, I replaced it. Maybe, just maybe, it was a bad cell only hitting bad at certain times. That was 3 weeks ago. Last Tuesday I started having an issue that only happened one other time but I could not figure it out at the time because it was so weird. Got in the truck, started it and went to pull out and my steering locked up. If I pull straight forward, or straight backward it is fine, but if I try to turn either direction, but only at slow speed like in a parking lot, the steering would lock up. Well I figured out that the vehicle is actually turning on and off. So when I turn the wheel its like I turned the truck off, but as soon as I let go, it start running again. The few times it happened were in parking lot speeds and I can usually hit the stop button to stop the vehicle, then start it again and it's ok. Now, this morning it was 32degrees so I remote started the truck so it would be warm when I took the kids to school. It took us exactly 10 minutes to get to the truck because after we loaded and I opened my door, the vehicle stopped. When I pushed the start button, nothing. Not even a click. I push the button and dead silence. It didn't even try to click. So, I hop out, grab my jump starter and throw it on 40 amp, walk around to the driver side and hit the button and boom, truck starts. I am at a total loss. The vehicle runs just fine once it's running. The voltage on the dash is all over between 11.8 and today it hit 15.1, but the vehicle runs so that leads me to believe it's not the alternator or else it would die while running at some point. Is there something between alternator and battery not allowing to charge the battery so I only get so many starts and then the battery is too weak to start the truck?

Thanks for all your responses above too, it's definitely helpful.

 

[PG01]

Check your cables bud. They may look fine but ....

 

[Dino615]

Check your cables bud. They may look fine but ....

Do you have one in particular that you think may be causing this?

 

[sealandsky]

Good morning. I am back with an update, and unfortunately the same issue and something else that may apply. So with the initial starting issue, every time the vehicle would not start, the gauge on the dash said low voltage and it showed 11.5v. I can throw a 40amp jump box on it and by the time I walk around to the driver side and get it, it would start. So even though my battery tester, and the auto parts tester said the battery was good, I replaced it. Maybe, just maybe, it was a bad cell only hitting bad at certain times. That was 3 weeks ago. Last Tuesday I started having an issue that only happened one other time but I could not figure it out at the time because it was so weird. Got in the truck, started it and went to pull out and my steering locked up. If I pull straight forward, or straight backward it is fine, but if I try to turn either direction, but only at slow speed like in a parking lot, the steering would lock up. Well I figured out that the vehicle is actually turning on and off. So when I turn the wheel its like I turned the truck off, but as soon as I let go, it start running again. The few times it happened were in parking lot speeds and I can usually hit the stop button to stop the vehicle, then start it again and it's ok. Now, this morning it was 32degrees so I remote started the truck so it would be warm when I took the kids to school. It took us exactly 10 minutes to get to the truck because after we loaded and I opened my door, the vehicle stopped. When I pushed the start button, nothing. Not even a click. I push the button and dead silence. It didn't even try to click. So, I hop out, grab my jump starter and throw it on 40 amp, walk around to the driver side and hit the button and boom, truck starts. I am at a total loss. The vehicle runs just fine once it's running. The voltage on the dash is all over between 11.8 and today it hit 15.1, but the vehicle runs so that leads me to believe it's not the alternator or else it would die while running at some point. Is there something between alternator and battery not allowing to charge the battery so I only get so many starts and then the battery is too weak to start the truck?

Thanks for all your responses above too, it's definitely helpful.

How old is your battery?