Jakez

Went out to my car this morning and it's dead as hell, key fob doesn't work (but a little light blinks red on it when I press a button) and the only lights that will come on when I get the door open are the row of buttons around the hazard lights button.

My biggest problem is that the trunk won't open with the manual key. So I can't get to the battery in the back. Which leaves me with a series of questions...

- Does this mean BOTH batteries are dead?
- Can I jump the car from the small auxilary battery in the front or is that a bad idea?
- Can I buy a battery charger for the auxilary battery and charge that and then the key fob will work again so I can open the trunk and get to the main battery?
- What's the cheapest type of battery charger I can safely use? I see one at walmart for $20 but the reviews say it ruined large batteries for some people so that scares me.

Elhonaz

My biggest problem is that the trunk won't open with the manual key
Are you sure you are doing it right? Its sometimes tricky to open.

Does this mean BOTH batteries are dead?
Yes

Can I jump the car from the small auxilary battery in the front or is that a bad idea?
Dont, its a bad idea

Can I buy a battery charger for the auxilary battery and charge that and then the key fob will work again so I can open the trunk and get to the main battery?
Sure you can try, not sure if this will do the trick



What's the cheapest type of battery charger I can safely use? I see one at walmart for $20 but the reviews say it ruined large batteries for some people so that scares me.
I would By Ctek or something similiar, not the cheapest but they work!

Jakez

May not be sure if I'm trying to open the trunk right.. but I turned the key both ways and pulled on the handle and it won't budge..

Elhonaz

When i opened my trunk with the key for the first time it didnt open.. i had to tackle with it for a while before randomly just popped open!

Sir-Boost-a-Lot

iTrader: (1)

To open up your trunk with the key, stick the key in the trunk, turn it counterclockwise until it stops and leave it in that position. Then squeeze the trunk handle and the trunk opens while the key stays put. It will open this way even with no battery in the car at all.

SICAMG

You can charge the battery from the front under the hood. The main battery cable is on top of the fuse/rely box on the drivers side. Its the big pin and nut towards the rear/right side...can't miss it. I have charged from there many times and saves the hassle of going to the trunk. Or when you put a little charge on it you can now open the trunk.

2000UZJ

I have a battery tender hard wired in my trunk and a little waterproof plug routed right underneath the rear bumper. It works great and it's super quick to plug in.

Crissus

Thats a cool idea. Have you secured it with a fuse?
Here in germany that would have to be done because of insurance issues/claims once your car burns down.

2000UZJ

Anything with power I fuse. A $5 fuse is cheaper than a burnt down car lol

SICAMG

I thought it was an over kill idea to hard wire my charger as well but I guess a dead/low battery is very common. After a week sitting my trunk will not open and it has a real hard time trying to start, so I just through the tender on all the time for long storage. Much easyer to do the hard wire with a plug set up. I think I will run it to the front under neath the car to make it even easyer for me since its nose in all the time.

Rob CL

Oh God... Trust me, I feel your pain.

If you are comfortable with pulling up the passenger footwell carpeting, peeling back the insulation, then removing the computer kickpanel, you will have access to the main body fuse links. From there, you can easily connect a trickle charge (with small alligator leads) or a jumper.

Absolutely do NOT try to jump from the SBC battery. It's just not worth it. I had a very similar issue with mine, as well as not being able to get the trunk open. Good luck!

Jakez

Bought a charger
Hooked it up to the auxilary battery
Battery tester said voltage = 12.4
Started the charging
Charged until until it said 100% charged
Battery tester then said voltage = 13.4 then 13.3, 13.2, .... it trickled down slowly over the course of about 5mins..

The car still won't respond at all.

Jakez

Could it be a fuse?

Rob CL

Disconnect both batteries (use the fuse link in the passenger footwell if you still cannot access the trunk) and let the car sit a while. Also, is this a stock vehicle, or do you have aftermarket electronics installed (radar detector, audio, lights, etc.)?

Jakez

Only mod I have are eurocharged headers.

I'm a little confused about the fuse link you and someone else were talking about. It is near and/or above the fuse box under the hood I understand but when looking in that area I'm not sure exactly what I'm supposed to be looking at.

Rob CL

Sending you a PM...

Jakez

Thank you Rob. Going to try that soon here in the morning. I want to check fuses also, but no idea what fuses (and where they are) to check? Can anyone direct me please?

Elhonaz

fuses are under the hood, on right side close to firewall a black box. cant miss. Drivers side open front door, under the small cover thats on the dash and only visible when door is open. In trunk next to battery, and in front passenger footwell under the carpet.

Jakez

Gotcha thanks. Just need to know what fuses I should check that would likely be related to this scenario where the batteries are supposedly fully charged by the car is still lifeless..

Jakez

So I just called roadside assistance for some pointers and the lady said to try "pumping" the trunk handle about 15 times to "build up pressure" before putting the key in and turning it "to the left". Sounded ridiculous but also somewhat plausible.. anyways I tried it numerous different ways and nothing.

2000UZJ

I'm not sure pumping an electrical trunk handle will work. Maybe it's a top sekrit enurgy genurater?

Jakez

Hahaha. Seriously, it hurts my head to wonder where they come up with this stuff..