Consequences of installing battery cables backwards

street racer

street racer

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Not my bike (thank God) but my van ! I have a Mazda MPV and I drove it to Wal Mart today and had them replace the battery as it is quite old and I am going to sell the car. After 1 1/2 hours of waiting I finally approached the mechanic (I use that term loosely) and asked why the delay. He said sorry but I installed the battery backwards and blew the main fusible link. We soldered the link back together and now it turns over but wont start. Another half hour and the supervisor came out and asked if I needed a ride home. He said they were going to have a garage pick up the Mazda and fix it. Lovely !!

My question is what are the consequences of hooking the battery up backwards ? Right away I think of anything electronic including the alternator being damaged. Also, what can I have Wal Mart put in writing after the car is fixed so that they are liable for any consequences in the near future? Any suggestions ??
 
make sure alternator/generator is good.
check all fusible links

not sure if it could reach the computer.....surely there is an idiot protection on that.

They will figure it all out for you.....for FREE.
 
Take the car back and take it to Mazda yourself. DO NOT let them continue to work on the car. Anything electronic can be suspect until it gets a clean bill of health from the Mazda dealer. Thank them for their time and send them a bill.
 
it couldn't hurt the alternator if it did start but it could short the ecu out . make wal-mart put it in writing or call the B.A.R or if your a AAA member call them and ask advise :: I been a ase master tech for mazda for 22 yrs need more help P.M me
 
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ouch... not uncommon for this to take out an ECU or other controller.. Kiss of death for a BMW.. (about $2500 worth).. BEFORE you accept the vehicle back, make sure the climate control system works, navigation system (if it has one) or any other computer controlled system..

total drag...
 
I would have told them you need a rental car for the ride home on their dime. And as said above for mazda to fix and check everything out before you take delivery.
 
definitely. call them and tell them you want a rental car. And that they are going to let mazda look at it. I mean, if they cant figure out that - means negative and + means positive, do you REALLY want them picking out who works on it to assess the damage? besides that, you want someone looking at it for YOU, not someone looking at it for THEM.
 
Call them and set up a meeting with the store manager and the service manager. YOU TELL THEM how and by whom it will be checked and fixed at their cost. Also you will need comparable transportation in the meantime also at their cost. If they give you ANY run around get an attorney involved ASAP!!!
 
I would try to stay friendly during this little incident.. document everything said and done.. If you get nasty, they will too.. the goal is to get your car fixed and quickly..

With any luck at all the service manager will understand and he already knows his liability.. if you go in screaming foul, lawyer and you owe me this that and the other, he can stonewall you and force you to go the legal route... I can assure you this is NOT how you want to go..

Good luck and keep it nice :)
 
Mr Bogus said:
I would try to stay friendly during this little incident.. document everything said and done.. If you get nasty, they will too.. the goal is to get your car fixed and quickly..

With any luck at all the service manager will understand and he already knows his liability.. if you go in screaming foul, lawyer and you owe me this that and the other, he can stonewall you and force you to go the legal route... I can assure you this is NOT how you want to go..

Good luck and keep it nice :)
Click to expand...

Well said... Keep it nice.
Good luck.
 
Thank you all for the advice. I will let you know the outcome. Also, I am always nice :laugh: I dont need a rental car as I have an extra vehicle and I think I will ask them to pay for a complete inspection of all electronics by a dealer.
 
Update as of 5/23. WalMart still has my car after 18 days. They towed it to a local repair shop but didnt like what the shop told them. Towed it to a second repair shop and they told them the same thing > The main computer is shot ! As of yesterday the repair shop has told WalMart what it will cost to fix the car and they are awaiting authorization from CMI (WalMarts wholly owned insurance provider). I imagine nothing will get done over the holiday weekend so who knows how long it will take to get the car back.
To top it all off CMI told me that if repair costs are 80% of the value of the car they will total it and buy the car from me. I asked what reference they used to value the car and they said NADA Fair Trade In. Wow...just looked at that figure and it is WAYYYYYY below retail value. Anyway, the saga continues......... :banghead:
 
not sure with a bike but my buddy once jumped my jeep wrangler and put the wires ass backwards and the batt. exploded like a loud gunshot. needless to say i needed a new batt.
 
street racer said:
Update as of 5/23. WalMart still has my car after 18 days. They towed it to a local repair shop but didnt like what the shop told them. Towed it to a second repair shop and they told them the same thing > The main computer is shot ! As of yesterday the repair shop has told WalMart what it will cost to fix the car and they are awaiting authorization from CMI (WalMarts wholly owned insurance provider). I imagine nothing will get done over the holiday weekend so who knows how long it will take to get the car back.
To top it all off CMI told me that if repair costs are 80% of the value of the car they will total it and buy the car from me. I asked what reference they used to value the car and they said NADA Fair Trade In. Wow...just looked at that figure and it is WAYYYYYY below retail value. Anyway, the saga continues......... :banghead:
Click to expand...

:snap: Gotta love Wally World :moon:
 
Schism said:
not sure with a bike but my buddy once jumped my jeep wrangler and put the wires ass backwards and the batt. exploded like a loud gunshot. needless to say i needed a new batt.
Click to expand...



I did that once jumping a car with a van the car headlights flashed like camera bulbs + BURNED OUT.:rofl:
 
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