Saturn Vue 2007 in a Comma

I went overseas for two weeks and when I returned my dad was going to use the car to go and pick me up at the airport, but when he tried to start it he heard only a click, experience told him the battery was dead so he brought his car, ran jumper cables to mine and the moment he connected both cables, the Saturn locked his doors by itself and lock him out. Next day after I rested from a long flight I tried to open the car with the extra key or alarm controlers and none worked so we jack into it, after we were able to get in, I put the key in the ignition that was left in the cup holder by my dad and the car was just dead, not even a weak light from when the doors are open, we connected it a portable battery jumper and nothing.



Any ideas you can give me to try before I call a tow truck and take it to the dealer.



Will a battery jumper work if the battery was dead or should I buy a new battery to be safe.

You don’t need to take it to a dealer. Anyone can check out your battery & charging system.

Are you saying that a key wouldn’t manually unlock the door? That is odd.

If the battery did get run down pretty far then it will often take quite a while with jumper cables or jumper box hooked up to get it cranking. The effect isn’t instantaneous. I’d want to put a voltmeter on it to check the battery’s voltage. If low (less than say 12.4V) I’d put a charger on it. If the battery is seriously run down (at 12V or less) I would be hesitant to just jump it since charging back up will put a strain on the alternator.

You should check that all of the cable connections are clean and tight. Pulling and cleaning them - at least at the battery - is not too hard.

If you can figure out getting it running, most any auto parts store will run a full check of the charging system for free. That will tell you whether or not you need a new battery.

If you eventually learn that the battery & charging system are ok then you may want to have someone check it for a parasitic drain (something pulling too much power while the car is off).

In a comma? Sounds like it’s more in an exclamation point!

You may have the vehicle immobilization system which could be briefly covered in the owner’s manual. Probably just useless information but you never know.

The Saturn’s security system has immobilized the vehicle. Try reading the owners’ manual for ideas, but if you find none I’d suggest getting it towed to the dealer.

I admit though, I’m confused about which car is whhich. Is the comatose Saturn your car or your dad’s?

I broke a strut on some ellipses once…

Fixed, turn out it was the battery that had died out. I took it to AutoZone and when they ran the test it said to charge it. I left it there charging for an hour and the put it back in the car, one I put the key in the ignition everything came back to live and once I tried the ignition the car started.

Thanks for your advices guy.