S40 V40 Cars: won't start.

[Jim Brown]

My Volvo S40 2003 won't start. Being going great , replaced a couple of bulbs and now it won't start! Battery seems fine , all lights, radio etc working fine except the small red light in the corner of dashboard (alarm). Ive checked all fuses and they are fine. When I turn Key I hear a fast clicking noise and a kind of grating. Hard to describe. Any help greatly appreciated.

[clarkey1984]

Fast clicking, aka solenoid chatter, is a classic symptom of a dead battery, the first thing I'd try and do is jump start it.

[Jim Brown]

Would a dead battery not prevent all lights etc from working?

[Jim Brown]

Would dead battery not prevent all lights.radio etc from working?

[aldred309uk]

Battery can have enough juice to illuminate the lights but not enough to start the car. Ticking when trying to start is definitely a sign of low battery.

[amarshe]

I've had this twice; first time, original 10 year old Volvo battery failed during the hottest day of the year. Sounded like a machine gun but no movement and all lights worked.

Second time defective replacement battery...lasted less than two years...

[Jim Brown]

Best description yet, sounds like a machine gun. Cheers.

[canis]

You'll probably notice the panel lights dim when you try the starter with key in position III. Like others have said, it's almost certainly a flat battery.

A bigger question is; Why is it flat? At this time of year, batteries are having a hard time. They don't like the cold weather. A battery might be fine all day - but left overnight in the cold, they lose their charge. That's the sign of a battery which is old and needs replacing.