# Is my Taurus really a Gremlin? **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** electrical-wiring, start, ford, taurus\ **Created:** [March 12, 2011, 11:42pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-my-taurus-really-a-gremlin/62538 "2011-03-12T23:42:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![fahysm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a4c791/32.png) [@fahysm](https://community.cartalk.com/u/fahysm)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2011, 11:42pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-my-taurus-really-a-gremlin/62538/1 "2011-03-12T23:42:23Z")
My 99 Taurus won’t start if it’s been raining heavily, or gets too cold. We recently had a ton of rain, and it’s now dead as a doornail! I went to start it the other morning, and everything was fine until I tried to ignition, then everything went out. I turned the key to the On position and slowly, the dashboard lights came back on. It made a “ticktickticktick” sound while they were coming back on then all of a sudden, the windshield wipers went on and the interior lights, indicators and whatnot all sprung back to life. Tried the ignition, but the whole died all over again. I think there’s a short in the wiring somewhere, but wanted a professional, not to mention more experienced, opinion. ---
**Author:** ![ok4450](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9bcb4/32.png) [@ok4450](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ok4450)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2011, 12:35am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-my-taurus-really-a-gremlin/62538/2 "2011-03-13T00:35:43Z")
Just offhand, this sounds like a weak battery or bad battery cable connection to me. ---
**Author:** ![fahysm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a4c791/32.png) [@fahysm](https://community.cartalk.com/u/fahysm)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2011, 12:42am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-my-taurus-really-a-gremlin/62538/3 "2011-03-13T00:42:15Z")
Battery is 1 yr old, connections are clean. Could be cables though? It’s an older car that lived most of it’s life in New York and Wisconsin. ---
**Author:** ![oblivion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3ab097/32.png) [@oblivion](https://community.cartalk.com/u/oblivion)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2011, 1:19pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-my-taurus-really-a-gremlin/62538/4 "2011-03-13T13:19:06Z")
The battery terminals can look clean but still not be making very good contact. Also, have you checked the other end of both battery cables? ---
**Author:** ![cigroller](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c68b51/32.png) [@cigroller](https://community.cartalk.com/u/cigroller)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2011, 1:32pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/is-my-taurus-really-a-gremlin/62538/5 "2011-03-13T13:32:01Z")
In addition to that, there can be corrosion hiding underneath of the cable insulation. Before I went spending much money on a professional I would worry about these things. Start by pulling both ends, cleaning & reattaching wrench tight, as suggested. If that doesn’t get the job done, slice some of that insulation off & if you see any corrosion under there just replace the cables.