[7tree]

I went to start the truck yesterday afternoon after work and went through the normal sequence of waiting for the start light to turn off and when I went to crank it, it tried turning over for a couple seconds then quit. A buddy tried to help me jump it, but no luck there. When it was hooked up to his truck, the battery meter would jump up to normal range then immediately drop back down to about 6V. If I put the key in and turn it to on when it is not hooked up to another vehicle, I can barely see the dash lights flickering but nothing else will happen. The dome lights are flashing on and off and I can hear the turn signal relay clicking on and off, but that's the only thing that it will do right now.

This morning I put it on a battery tender and it said the batteries were full. I also disconnected both batteries and put a voltmeter on them and it was reading 12V. Any thoughts on where to look next?

 

[themule67]

These trucks need proper voltage for everything to work properly you still could have a bad battery. I would start by pulling the batteries put them on a charger then run them over to a parts store and have them individually, load tested you need to know they are good before moving forward. Also, while you have the cables off make sure the cable ends and battery posts are cleaned. At least this won't cost you any money to start with.

 

[bugman]

A good battery with a full charge on it should measure over 13 volts.

 

[John in OkieLand]

The battery should float at 13.3 or more, with a good Battery Tender.

My EverStart battery tender floats at 13.3

My NAPA 900 mA battery tender floats my batteries at 14.3 all the time.

the batteries are brand new, so it is easy for the battery tender to keep them charged.

 

[7tree]

I pulled the batteries and took them to autozone to have them tested. They were both in the 12.5V/830cca range. Before I put them back in I cleaned the post and cables with a wire brush. When I went to start the truck the lights all came on like normal and it did start but it wasn’t a “strong” start like I’m used to. It seemed to drag a little. Any other ideas? I’ll double check the rules to make sure it’s ok but I’ll see if I can record it later today and post it here.

 

[Greg687]

Check you connections at the starter, then maybe check the starter. Sounds like you had a bad connection at the batteries, so you may have a high resistance cable now.

 

[Manticor]

Check you connections at the starter, then maybe check the starter. Sounds like you had a bad connection at the batteries, so you may have a high resistance cable now.

I have a 2000 and a 2001 F-350's, the battery conections/cables have always been a trouble spot for me, a good cleaning and dialectric grease help my sanity/frustration levels tremendiously.

 

[realdann]

Could also be the starter switch contact disc has arced up and making poor connections. If you have to get a new starter by the DB Electrical version of the Mean Green starter. You will be glad you did!

 

[RudyForman]

I removed the batteries and had them checked at Autozone. Each of them fell inside the range. I used a wire brush to clean the post and wires before reinstalling them. The lights all turned on as usual when I attempted to start the vehicle, but it didn't start as "strongly" as it usually does. It appeared to sag a bit. Other suggestions? I'll check the guidelines again to make sure it's OK, but I'll try to film it later today and share it here.