Good day,

My vehicle specs are as follows:

2004
Discovery SE
54 thousand kms

No major over haul or major repairs done to my knowledge. Research into previous service record from Ontraio didn't have any information.

I have had approximately 5 times now that I can clearly remember that my vehicle was laboured during start up. It would take a full 1 two 2 seconds of turning over before the engine would start to run.

I do not turn the service lights on before turning the key.

I have checked my battery and the window still indicates green.

I have mentioned this to a mechanic friend and he said it may be a starter issue as well.

If it is a battery issue should I replace the battery with a deep cycle high crank modle ?

If it is the starter are there any fellow Albertian Rover owners who can recomend a place to purchase a starter that won't cost a complete arm and leg ?

Thank you for your time and effort regarding my request.

 

do you have another battery that you know for certain is good that you can put in the rover? That would narrow it down to either the battery or the starter.

 

NiteTrain,

I do not have another battery that is for certain in good working order.

Would ittime better spent ifI take it to Canadian Tire or some other place like that to have the battery tested ?

Thank you.

 

have a friend with a car and a set of jumper cables?

 

I would say it depends on what you mean by "laboured", if its spinning (turning over) at normal speed on the starterbut takes a long time to fire, then the battery is cranking the engine over fine...so I would be tempted to sway more towards ignition / plug problems.

How ever, If you mean its turning "slowly" on the starter compared to normal, then its likely the battery cannot deliver enough CCA's to crank the engine over fast enough. If it is this, then connect it up to another vehicle and use some Jump leads, if it spins over fast again and fires up in normal time, then again that points to the battery.

 

The little green "light" on the battery only tells you if it has charge or not, not the over all condition of the battery.
Go and have the battery and atlernator tested.
But at 4 years old it is a pretty safe bet that your battery is going bad. You will know for a fact in another month when it is really cold out and the truck wont turn over.
As for the deep cycle battery, no, do not get one. They are low CCA (cold cranking amps [the higher amp the better for a car]) and are made for trolling motors, RV lightingand other things that drain batteries over and over. Constant draining and recharging of a battery will cut its life in half unless it is a deep cycle battery.
SO get yours tested, thenIF need be buy the best battery that you can afford.

 

Make sure your cables are clean and tight then go have someone perform a battery and alternator load testr to get some accurate information to base your next step on.

 

I recently replaced my starter. It sounded like a low battery when I would start it....very labored cranking. I debated replacing the battery although it appeared to be pretty new. I checked my alternator output and found it to be good. Until it wouldnt start period did I know it was the starter because when I turned the key I still got power to the starter solonoid. When I took the starter in it actually still turned on the test stand but it was weak. Bought a remanufactured one for 129 and I am rolling again.I would recommend finding someone that will let you borrow a newer battery to confirm though. Changing the starter in my Disco 1 was one of the hardest things I have ever done on a car.

 

My optima yellow top has "nearly" same CCA as the "factory" battery.

 

Good day all,

Thank you for the detialed help. I'm not a wrench bender of any kind so I would have to take it in to have someone work on it.

When I say the term laboured I mean that the starting sequence is slow and sounds weak. There isn't a strong sounding pitch to the starter as it turns over if that helps for a description.

I'll review on how to check the cables and take a look at my plugs as well.

If I remeber correclty there has been some discussion as to varrious typs of plugs to use. Any recomendations as I look to the future?

Thanks and I'll post the results of the battery and alternator test.

TT870