Hi, first post on the board. I recently installed a progressive snap-shot device into my Monte Carlo and I believe it has drained the battery but I wanted to see if anyone had other thoughts (I know little about cars unfortunately).

I went to start my Monte Carlo yesterday after not driving it for ~1 month and when I tried to start it all the lights started flashing, the gas gauge started flipping all over the place, and there were clicking sounds coming from under the hood. My best guess is that the battery is dead and I'd try to jump start the car but it is nearly impossible based on the configuration of my apartment's garage (I'm in the deep spot of a 2 person spot with a wall on one side and two cars on the other that NEVER move (I'm not even sure if the owners still live there)) So I've ordered a portable jump starter as that seems like my only option to see if it is a dead battery. If it isn't the battery does anyone have any other ideas? Thank you!

 

If the vehicle wasn't showing any signs of a problem prior to parking it then chances are the battery discharged while it was sitting. If your battery is 4/5 years old it may be time to replace it. As you mentioned, it may be the snap-shot device running it down. If the vehicle sits for extended periods of time on a regular basis you may want to unplug it while the car sits. Then just plug it in when you drive the car.

 

Great thanks, hopefully the portable jump-starter I ordered from amazon will get me up and running!

 

If your battery is severly drained I think the jump start device might not work. Your battery might require a deep cycle charge. I know when my battery was really drained I could not even jump start my Monte. Had to hook up a battery charger and let it charge the battery for about 3 hours. Could you not run an extension cord to your car and hook up a battery charger? If your still showing dash lights, and gauges coming on, hopefully your battery is not fully discharged and the jump start device will work for you. Good luck Let us know how this turns out for you.

 

It's either battery or the anti-theft system at work (something I am not an expert on).

But, if you have some tools, you could remove the battery, get it to just about any auto-parts store. They could charge it AND bench test it once it has a fully charge to tell you if it's bad. At that point, no need to wait on a jump box.

Also, if you have long enough jumper cables (and I do), you can pull a car tight behind the Monte, lining up the shortest distance between battery terminals and run the cables from the front of the Monte to the back. I've had to do that a couple of times on different cars (and once was the Monte).