can a loose battery cause a car not to start? Options

[homebuilder]

Hi,

My car every once in a while will not start. The starter turns over but it does not catch. Then if I wait a while it will work.

A mechanic looked at it when it did this once, he went under the hood saw my battery was not tied down properly, he moved it over hit the top of the cable and it started. Now I do not know if it was him moving the battery or just the normal, wait a minute and it works.

So anyone else have this problem? Anyone think it is the battery?

I plan to secure the battery anyway, but just wondering if that's really the problem.

[RabidTRD]

If the engine is turning, it has nothing to do with the charging system.

Typically it's something to do with the ignition in relation to spark. Or you could have an issue where fuel is not getting through fast enough, (weak pump or clogged fuel filter) and when you try to start it the second time, and it works is because the fuel has reached the injectors/gone into the cylinder. A bad ignition module can cause this issue too.

To start, when is the last time you've had a tune up? (New plugs, wires, cap, rotor, fuel filter, air filter, and cleaned out the throttle body) Also, what year is your car, what engine are we talking about and is it California emissions or Federal emissions?

This post has been edited by RabidTRD: Feb 6, 2013 - 10:50 PM

[homebuilder]

If the engine is turning, it has nothing to do with the charging system.

Typically it's something to do with the ignition in relation to spark. Or you could have an issue where fuel is not getting through fast enough, (weak pump or clogged fuel filter) and when you try to start it the second time, and it works is because the fuel has reached the injectors/gone into the cylinder. A bad ignition module can cause this issue too.

To start, when is the last time you've had a tune up? (New plugs, wires, cap, rotor, fuel filter, air filter, and cleaned out the throttle body) Also, what year is your car, what engine are we talking about and is it California emissions or Federal emissions?

Thanks,

I have had five different mechanics all tell me different things. Six months ago I replaced the distributor for stopping in the middle of the freeway. I thought then it might be fuel ,but the mechanic said there was an engine code saying the distributor was bad. It was not just a distributor cap, I am unfamiliar with the term, I think it was a distributor with some ignition part in it that was involved with timing, would that be the ignition module? It cost around 300 to fix, 150 was parts.

I was planning on replacing the fuel filter this weekend. I do not have a pressure tester to test the fuel pump. Any other way to test it?

Ummm afraid to display my ignorance again, but what is the throttle body and how do you clean out?

Thanks for the advice.