The other day, I tried to start my car, and nothing happened. The lights were very dim, so I thought it might be the battery, even though it’s only 6 months old from Advance Auto. I jumped it, took it to the store, and they tested it. The battery, starter, and alternator all showed as good. I drove it home, and it started fine a few times, but now I’m scared to drive it anywhere in case it dies again. Any thoughts before I take it to a repair shop?
How far is Advance Auto from your place? How long had the car been sitting before it wouldn’t start? Also, how short are your usual drives with this car?
Jeremybeans said:
How far is Advance Auto from your place? How long had the car been sitting before it wouldn’t start? Also, how short are your usual drives with this car?
It’s about a 15-minute drive to Advance. Before the battery died, it had been sitting in the driveway for two days.
@Joy
It might be a parasitic drain—something drawing power even when the car is off. Is the rear liftgate fully closed? Sometimes I don’t close mine properly, and the back dome light stays on. I have a 2012 Soul too.
@Jeremybeans
Good point. Everything seems off, but I’ll double-check tomorrow.
Joy said:
@Jeremybeans
Good point. Everything seems off, but I’ll double-check tomorrow.
How long have you had this car? Is this the first time this has happened?
Joy said:
@Jeremybeans
Good point. Everything seems off, but I’ll double-check tomorrow.
How long have you had this car? Is this the first time this has happened?
I bought it new in 2012. This is the first time it’s happened.
@Joy
Same here—base model 1.6L. I’ve had one electrical issue with the wiring harness. Worst case, it could be a parasitic drain, but check the easy stuff first.
Jeremybeans said:
@Joy
Same here—base model 1.6L. I’ve had one electrical issue with the wiring harness. Worst case, it could be a parasitic drain, but check the easy stuff first.
Thanks, I’ll look into it.
@Jeremybeans
I’ve had that little light in the back of my 2012 Soul stay on before. I replaced it with LEDs running along the crack in the back where the dark plastic meets the white part.
@Joy
How short are your usual drives with this car? How long was the car off when they tested the battery?
Jeremybeans said:
@Joy
How short are your usual drives with this car? How long was the car off when they tested the battery?
Most days, I drive about 15 minutes to the store and back. Once a week, I drive to town—30 minutes each way, plus about an hour of city driving before heading home. When I got to Advance, it was only a few minutes before they tested it.
I had a similar issue with my 2012. It turned out to be the battery connections, and later, the battery itself. Not sure if it’s related, but my 2016 stalled a few times over the summer and was hard to start afterward. The tachometer would act up until I restarted it. That ended up being the crankshaft position sensor. Hopefully, it’s something minor!
@YukiJane
Thanks.
@YukiJane
Same thing happens to me. Sometimes I open the door, put in the key, hear the dings, and when I turn the key, everything goes dead. I have to fiddle with the battery connections to get power back. It’s probably the connections—just tighten them up.
@Princeton
I’ve had that happen too. Cleaning the battery connections from corrosion fixed it.
It could be a bad connection in your battery cables, either at the terminals or a junction point.
Tracy said:
It could be a bad connection in your battery cables, either at the terminals or a junction point.
I’ll check that out. Thanks.
I keep one of these in my car for peace of mind: link 
KiaRevolution said:
I keep one of these in my car for peace of mind: link
Good idea. I keep jumper cables in the car.