Do I need a new battery or something else?

Asked by joshisanonymous Jan 05, 2013 at 02:33 PM about the 1999 Ford Contour 4 Dr SE Sedan

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

My car sat for 4 months without even being started up. When I finally did start it, there was no problem. It was taken to a mechanic for a coolant issue and they ran the car a good half hour with no problem. I then drove it about 2 miles homes with no problem. Two days later I went to start it up again and it did absolutely nothing. Not even the power locks were working. I had AAA come out to jump it and their jump packs weren't strong enough but they were able to jump it from their truck. It sat and ran for 20 minutes. I turned it off and then tried to start it again and it just sputtered out. The tow truck driver told me it's the battery but the battery is less than 2 years old. Is he right or could it be something else?

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300SDLGUY answered 11 years ago

It is not unheard of for a battery to fail after two years, usually after it has been drained of power too many times, or could just have been a defective battery to start with. If a battery is drained too often, it can become weak, and ultimately fail to charge regardless of age. Depending on where you purchased the battery, it is most likely under a warranty should say on the battery somewhere, and will be replaced free of charge or prorated, so if you can take it back to where you purchased it, do so, or you can go to most any auto parts store ie: Autozone, Pepboys etc and they can test it for free.

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