Well, my wife parked her 96 Accord wagon with VTEC engine in the garage and apparently left the headlamps on. Battery appears to be dead. Used the shift release lever to get it out of park, since there is no room in the garage to do anything, and towed/pulled it out of the garage using our other car.

Tried to simply jump start it, with the result of getting no cranking, just clicking, which I guess would be either a bad starter or solenoid (or do these things still have relays?). Would there be any point to transferring the good battery from the other car or are my results going to be the same as jump starting? They are the same type battery, but I expect I would get the same clicking.

Any suggestions of what to do?

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Originally Posted by someconcerns

Well, my wife parked her 96 Accord wagon with VTEC engine in the garage and apparently left the headlamps on. Battery appears to be dead. Used the shift release lever to get it out of park, since there is no room in the garage to do anything, and towed/pulled it out of the garage using our other car.

Tried to simply jump start it, with the result of getting no cranking, just clicking, which I guess would be either a bad starter or solenoid (or do these things still have relays?). Would there be any point to transferring the good battery from the other car or are my results going to be the same as jump starting? They are the same type battery, but I expect I would get the same clicking.

Any suggestions of what to do?

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To add to the info available, the dealer replaced the coil and igniter in May 2005. They charge an arm & leg, but the local mechanic couldn't even diagnose the problem.

Since Hondas normally only come with a 36-month battery, I would go to Costco and buy a new 100-month battery. They have the best deal on batteries that I've seen. Next, I would clean the battery cable connections and even the terminals on the new battery. Hook everything back up and try to start the car. If you hear a "click, click, click," then the starter solenoid (relay) is probably bad. With a 3 year old Honda, however, that would be very unusual. Try this and let me know how it goes. We can go from there.

The other possibility is that you are not waiting long enough. The quality of jumper cables is pretty poor unless you search out good ones. I think you still just have low juice. It ran and worked fine before battery was drained no reason to think otherwise. The clicking is also a result of low voltage and or low battery.

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Originally Posted by txgreasemonkey

Since Hondas normally only come with a 36-month battery, I would go to Costco and buy a new 100-month battery. They have the best deal on batteries that I've seen. Next, I would clean the battery cable connections and even the terminals on the new battery. Hook everything back up and try to start the car. If you hear a "click, click, click," then the starter solenoid (relay) is probably bad. With a 3 year old Honda, however, that would be very unusual. Try this and let me know how it goes. We can go from there.

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Battery was replaced in May 2005, by the mechanic who later sent me on to the dealer. I will clean the contacts and let you know, probably tomorrow.

Should I use my battery charger to charge up this *dead* battery in the meantime?

Absolutley! Good luck

Yes, but check the water level first. If low, add distilled water. Leave caps off while charging.

Sorry, I got the year of your Accord confused with the posting just before your's.

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Originally Posted by someconcerns

Well, my wife parked her 96 Accord wagon with VTEC engine in the garage and apparently left the headlamps on. Battery appears to be dead. Used the shift release lever to get it out of park, since there is no room in the garage to do anything, and towed/pulled it out of the garage using our other car.

Tried to simply jump start it, with the result of getting no cranking, just clicking, which I guess would be either a bad starter or solenoid (or do these things still have relays?). Would there be any point to transferring the good battery from the other car or are my results going to be the same as jump starting? They are the same type battery, but I expect I would get the same clicking.

Any suggestions of what to do?

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Your battery is just real dead. Might need a new one but get a car charger and let it charge for 6-12 hours

Umm, been trying to charge the battery (just 18 months old) at 2 amp rate, but meter now reads 3 amps, instead of going DOWN to 1 amp rate. Does this mean I should stop charging? Been charging for about 90 minutes. Battery has enough water in it, no plates are exposed and all cells are at same level. I have the caps off.

It's likely and indication that the battery is shot.

OK. I have a perfectly good battery of the same type in the toyota. Should I switch that into the Honda and see if that does the trick? I would assume that - if it's just a real dead battery - this would let it start.

Personally, I would go and buy a new battery.

Try and start the car.. . If it does not start exchange battery's this will at the very least point you in a direction. Bad cables. . Bad solenoid.. . Bad ground.

U should be charging it on 12 amp. Your charger may only be 2 and 6 amp. Charge it for a good 12 hours.

Well guys, I tried the battery from our Toyota and the Honda fired right up. Took the dead battery back to where I got it (it had an 84 month warranty) and they replaced it, no problem. The Honda fires right up with that one too. So... thank you VERY much for your help. I'm hoping the new battery stays charged and the wife doesn't find a way to mess it up!