QuestionTed,
I hope this isn't too detailed, but here goes. I live in Arizona, Phoenix metro area, and have a 1999 Toyota Camry 4 cylinder that has around 108,000 miles. It's been a good, dependable car. A couple of weeks ago, our 1999 Lexus RX3?? went dead, so I jump started it using the Camry as the booster car. The Lexus has run fine ever since.
Maybe a week later, the Camry went dead, so we used the Lexus as the booster car to jump start it. (The Camry's battery, by the way, is just about 3 years old). The Camry ran fine and started fine for a few days. Then I started having to jump start the Camry nearly every day to get it going.
As I recall, on the day of a jump start, I think the Camry would re-start fine on its own later that same day (although interior lights seemed a little dim at re-start and the re-start wasn't always "strong"), but the next day, to get it going, we'd have to jump start it.
By the way, I've had a bad starter before (I don't think it was on the Camry), and so I am somewhat familiar with the clicking sounds a dying starter makes. With my present problem, when I turned the ignition on to the Camry, 2 or 3 times I've heard a bit of a clicking noise, but I don't think it was nearly as loud or as pronounced as when I had a known bad starter problem.
Today, I tried to jump start the Camry via the Lexus and it wouldn't jump start. I removed the terminals from the Camry battery and cleaned them with baking soda and water, using a toothbrush. After cleaning the terminals and reattaching them, I opened the driver's-side door and several lights started blinking -- the exterior back and front lights, the interior dome light, and even every interior back-lit area I know of (like the area that houses the speedometer) was blinking. This blinking lasted for right about 30 seconds then stopped. If I'm not mistaken, it happens whenever I open the door.
A guy at an auto parts store told me to make sure the terminals were free of anything, so I again removed the terminals and wiped them down with a cloth. The Camry still wouldn't start or jump start. Maybe on one attempt the engine budged a teeny bit when I turned the ignition, but when I tried again there was virtually zero response.
I called another auto-parts store and they suggested I get a new battery, and so I did. The results are the same -- the car won't start and when the door is opened the light blinking lasts for about 30 seconds. It's strange because with the key in the ignition, the radio works, the clock works, everything seems to work fine except the car won't start. I turn the ignition and the engine does not even make a peep. I called the auto-parts store again and the guy who suggested I buy a new battery now suggested I put the car in neutral and try to start it. This didn't work. I'm at a loss. I'm eager to hear what you have to say.
AnswerSo basically the problem is that all those lights blink and the car won't start. There is an alarm system installed on this car that is causing this, look for a small red LED either mounted on the face of the dash or on a small bracket on the bottom of the dash, this means there is an aftermarket alarm. Try doing this:
Disconnect the negative terminal on the battery
Open the door and turn the key to the ON position
Leave the door open
reconnect the battery and see if it then starts
let me know the result.
