In my experience with jumping wifemobile (1988 244GL) when wife.sig leaves lights on all day - at first even with 10gauge jumpers it won't crank.

So, thinks I, the 1988 battery is soooo dead that it's sucking up all the juice and there's nont left to crank. Left jumpers hooked up, ran donor car at 2000 rpm for like 15 minutes.

Try again - whamo, she starts. Theory validated.

Next step - explain to wife.sig that even though there is a relay that cuts off the headlights when the key is off (new in 1986 wiring) that doesn't work if one leaves on the parking lights. Even though those four little lights draw less current, in a eight hour day they can drain a battery pretty dry.

As I recall, having headlights on with key in but engine stopped causes a warning dinger/buzzer to sound. Same signal as when door open and key in.

Does your friend have that signal? Has it been silenced?

Regards,

Bob

:>)

I thought about those reasons too, until he told me about the 6 year history of this happening. We'll check the connections anyways, maybe it corroded a little way abck when and hasn't gotten any worse. You said it frankly, good thing it's a manual.
-JonB '83 245

1)I'm gonna put a "lights' off sticker on my 83 245 the way USPS does (did?) on its vehicles, we've all got a lot on our minds, s.times best to treat self like an "idiot."

2)Good grade cables w/ quality teeth on ends for good "bite" are imp. these days, who knows what source will be donor batt. and its location (GM used to have side post batts, do they still do dat?).

3)Betcha the prob. is the starter, does whacking it esp. near solenoid help?
Was the "magic trick" when the unit started dying on my 74 142....

Bon courage,

Franck
--
83 245, 81 244

I've had a similar problem with cheap booster cables. I tried boosting a car. It wouldn't start, so figured it was something else. Somebody else came along with better cables. The car started. Figured it was poor cable connection coupled with poor gauge wire.

Sounds like a starter problem. Start by checking the condition of the heavy wire to the starter, and both ends of the battery ground cable.