G'day all,

I have a 2001 VS ute with a 5ltr that I am having starting problem with. When I picked the car up my mate used a large battery that he uses when he is camping for his fridge etc, it took a while but the car started and drove onto and off the trailer, no worries.

I changed the terminals for new ones and put a freshly charged car battery in (600 cca) and all I got was some dash lights, drove the Nissan patrol up and connected good jumper leads to it to which I got the fuel pump to run and the starter to go tic tic tic tic tic tic

I don't have a multimeter (and don't really know how to use one) but I checked all the 15-20 amp fuses which are all fine. All wiring seems to be fine but from what I can see the starter motor is covered in oil from a gasket leak.

I left the battery in the car for a week and now it needs charging again.

Where to from here is what I need to know guys; before I take it to an auto elec I would like to have a crack at it myself.

Cheers all

Al

It sounds like the 600CCA battery is not in very good shape. If it needs charging in only 1 week while just sitting in the car either it is self discharging (which is a sure sign it is at end of life) or something in the car electrical system is draining it.
By the way, "CCA" is a slightly misleading term, and stands for "Cold Cranking Amps". This is not a measure of the battery capacity, only a measure of the internal resistance of the battery and its ability to supply current to a very heavy load, such as a starter motor, for a short time. The capacity of the battery to supply current for a longer period of time is measured as ampere hours, or AH for short. Make sure your battery is the correct AH rating for the car. I believe the VS requires a 54AH battery minimum.
Also, if you have a sealed, or maintenance free battery (the type which has no vent plugs in the top and no way to top up the electrolyte) make sure your battery charger is suitable to charge it. Sealed lead acid batteries are not as tolerant of mistreatment as the older type of battery, and require better charger voltage control.
After you've charged it, see if it will run the headlights on high beam. If it does, hit the starter and see if the headlights dim substantially.
Try swapping a known good battery into it to prove the point.

You were bang on the money GM5735, my battery was stuffed and even when I tried jumping it, there was so much resistance it wouldn't do a thing. Bought a new one specifically for this ute and BANG she fired up no worries.

Cheers man

Al