Hi guys,

I have recently bought an old 2001 Mondeo 2.0L petrol saloon for running around in up in northern Norway where I live. I left the lights on the other day and had to have a friend jump start me. Now I have come to switch the car on today and the lights come on but nothing. So we tried the jump starting routine again, but no joy this time! The dash lights come on, and the dials all go over to maximum and then return, and there's a machine-gun like clicking sound, and the car sounds like it is JUST about to cough into life, but never actually does! Anyone any thoughts on what this could be? I've not had any major problems with it and don't know a vast amount about cars, so any thoughts before I call the garage would be most appreciated - given labour is about £100/hour here in Norway, i'd like to at least have an idea of whether this is even worth fixing, and if the likely problems are very expensive it will just get a final voyage to the car crushers.

8 hours ago, jnm1990 said:

Hi guys,

I have recently bought an old 2001 Mondeo 2.0L petrol saloon for running around in up in northern Norway where I live. I left the lights on the other day and had to have a friend jump start me. Now I have come to switch the car on today and the lights come on but nothing. So we tried the jump starting routine again, but no joy this time! The dash lights come on, and the dials all go over to maximum and then return, and there's a machine-gun like clicking sound, and the car sounds like it is JUST about to cough into life, but never actually does! Anyone any thoughts on what this could be? I've not had any major problems with it and don't know a vast amount about cars, so any thoughts before I call the garage would be most appreciated - given labour is about £100/hour here in Norway, i'd like to at least have an idea of whether this is even worth fixing, and if the likely problems are very expensive it will just get a final voyage to the car crushers.

Weak battery, the clicking is the tell tale (as far as I'm aware, this is the solenoid on the starter kicking in, the starter getting power but unable to turn as the voltage then drops too low causing the solenoid to unlatch and then the voltage will climb again).

I'd be trying a new battery first!

Hi Micro, thanks for the reply - do you think it is the battery even if an F-350 can't manage to jump start it? I'm totally willing to admit complete ignorance here, but I just figured that f a big truck revving its engine couldn't get it going, then it was more likely to be something a bit more serious!!!!