Jump box didnt have enough power? Ive tried to jump cars before with dead batteries and they didnt start. Needed a second car to jump it.

 

We weren't jumping off a box, but another guys car....

I'm really freaked out that it might be the alternator, even though I've been reading about the Optima issues on the boards here since it happened.

If it is the alternator, how long would it be before the battery dies again. EVerytime i start the car I'm being very attentive to how it feels as it's turning over (is it struggling etc). But would it be a matter of days for the battery to die again? Yesterday I drove the car to and from work (30 miles) and stopped at the gym for a total of 3 starts. (I'm carrying my jumper cables in my trunk until I feel sure that I won't get stranded again )

 

Why don't you just check the voltage? If the alternator is gone, it won't charge the battery, right? If the battery won't charge, it'll just keep getting less and less volts at rest. However, as soon as you can manage to get the car started, put a voltmeter on the battery terminals. If the alternator is working OK, you should get around 14 volts. If it's not working, you'll just get whatever the battery was showing at rest and it will continue to drop as the engine runs.

 

If he drove all that way and started and stopped the car like that, and was running just off the battery... it would have died. No way it would run that long. Somethings not right here, but I highly doubt its the alternator

 

I dont think the s2000 will run more than 5-10 minutes MAX with a dead alternator. To keep our motor spinning, we need a lot of spark, and without an alternator, the EPS and spark will kill the battery fast. Not only that, the last 2 minutes will be very weak.

 

So then it's looks like the battery just died then?

I would check the voltage but i don't have a voltimeter I kno i kno. And right now I'm a shift at work from 10pm to 10am, so I need to sleep all day so i don't kill myself driving home.

Are there any devices that can kill a battery without accessing the engine bay? Reason I ask is: the same time my car died, another car in the parking lot was getting towed for a maintenance issue, I didn't get a chance to ask what happened, but foul play maybe? (totally a conspiracy theory)

Again, thanks for keeping the info flowing, you guys all rock

 

I've heard through the "underground" that there has been increased UFO activity in your area. These little grey guys walk around in trench coats and zap all kinds of earthly equipment with high powered electromagnetic beam projected from a PEG dispenser. I think your car has fallen prey to "parking lot refluxion".

 

an EMP?

Electro-Magnetic Pulse? any thermonuclear events in your area lately?

 

He does live in Vegas... close to Area 51

 

You guys watch waaaaaaay to much Matrix.

Oh, and John, change your avatar to this.....