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help!!! 06 impala won't start!
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Classic battery issue. Doesn't matter if the lights are bright and everything looks fine. I've been through this exact same situation ... last year, actually. Double-check your connections. Make sure they're super clean and tight. My connections looked super clean, but one of them wasn't tight ... even though I hadn't touched them in forever. Just vibrated loose, I guess. You could put a little pressure on the terminal head and spin it a bit. Didn't even suspect this because the first thing I checked were the lights. Was embarrassed when it turned out to just be a loose connection!
A 2006 probably needed a new battery in 2010-2011, then again in 2015, then again in 2019-2020, and the current battery is what ... two years old? If your connections are clean and tight, then get the battery load tested. Might have a dead cell inside ... and maybe you get some pro-rated amount toward a replacement battery ...
A 2006 probably needed a new battery in 2010-2011, then again in 2015, then again in 2019-2020, and the current battery is what ... two years old? If your connections are clean and tight, then get the battery load tested. Might have a dead cell inside ... and maybe you get some pro-rated amount toward a replacement battery ...
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Do you still remember which connection was loose on your car? Did you check all the connections from battery to the starter? My battery is actually old, I replaced it in 12/2016, so it's indeed time to change. This problem first occurred in a very cold freezing day, and the battery voltage reading was about 11.5 V at that time, and since then I haven't got it started up again. I will check the connections and try a jump start then, thanks a lot for your information !
It was the POS (+) cable that was loose. And No, I didn't check the connections beyond the top of the battery. It was my fault entirely. Just didn't tighten it enough. It worked fine for a long time, but then one day ... click ... click ... click (leaving work one night). Lights were bright as day! One of the co-worker guys came out to give me a hand and when he saw the lights were bright as day he pushed on the battery connections. 30 years working on my vehicles and I didn't even think to do that. Embarrassing!
Buy yourself one of those small "jump start" Lithium battery packs. Harbor Freight sells a "Viking" unit for around $80 ... that's what I bought. I've used it a few times. Seems to work well. It'll get you started anywhere when your battery fails (instead of waiting forever for AAA). Just need to charge it about once a month in the house to make sure it's got the strength to do the job. Comes with a carrying case and fits in the glovebox (or trunk).
@joe2016 : yeah - I watched the video ... no idea what happened there ... maybe he was testing a damaged unit?
I can tell you that I put mine to the test for a whole week when my 2011 Equinox’s 5-year-old battery died at work on a Monday and, because I only had one vehicle running at the time, I continued jumping the battery twice every day (morning and night) to get to the weekend - except ... I didn’t quite make it! Friday night, leaving work, I got the battery jumped yet again (with the Viking ... so that was NINE jumps of a “dead“ battery), but then the weirdest thing happened (this time): After driving home just fine with bright lights each time beforehand, this time the car barely moved out of its parking spot! It was like the transmission wouldn’t get out of 1st gear! Then, I turned the car off and that was it! Had to borrow the company truck and go get the replacement battery, and install it right there in the dark!
So - I can say that my Viking unit (at least) worked just fine ... until the end - when I think I saw smoke coming from it, but it was dark, so I can’t be sure. It has recharged fine since, but I haven’t had to use it (again), so who knows? Almost want to tell everyone at work to call me next time their battery fails so I can give it a good test! It’s possible all that repeated jumping of a dead-dead-dead (shorted?) battery ended up damaging the Viking? And maybe that was the state of the Viking used in the YouTube testing?
I can tell you that I put mine to the test for a whole week when my 2011 Equinox’s 5-year-old battery died at work on a Monday and, because I only had one vehicle running at the time, I continued jumping the battery twice every day (morning and night) to get to the weekend - except ... I didn’t quite make it! Friday night, leaving work, I got the battery jumped yet again (with the Viking ... so that was NINE jumps of a “dead“ battery), but then the weirdest thing happened (this time): After driving home just fine with bright lights each time beforehand, this time the car barely moved out of its parking spot! It was like the transmission wouldn’t get out of 1st gear! Then, I turned the car off and that was it! Had to borrow the company truck and go get the replacement battery, and install it right there in the dark!
So - I can say that my Viking unit (at least) worked just fine ... until the end - when I think I saw smoke coming from it, but it was dark, so I can’t be sure. It has recharged fine since, but I haven’t had to use it (again), so who knows? Almost want to tell everyone at work to call me next time their battery fails so I can give it a good test! It’s possible all that repeated jumping of a dead-dead-dead (shorted?) battery ended up damaging the Viking? And maybe that was the state of the Viking used in the YouTube testing?
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Hi guys, I am coming back to update. Yes it's the battery issue, I jump started it using a small Lithium battery pack 
It's embarrassing that I should have tried it first before spending time checking other parts, lol... Thank you all for the information!
It's embarrassing that I should have tried it first before spending time checking other parts, lol... Thank you all for the information!I had the same problem recently turned out the commutator bars where the motor brushes deliver their current were burnt in spots and if landing on those spots the starter will not turn the motor over to start the engine.
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