do these battery cables need replacing?

[bluegs03]

Hey guys i have a 1990 mitusibishi eclipse gsx. The car wont start and all it makes is a rapid clicking noise. This has led me to believe that the starter is bad or the battery cables are in too poor of shape to allow the car to start. Here are the battery cables the connectors as you see are really beat up! can these be sanded and cleaned or are they to far gone and need to be replaced. Thanks

one last question the starter for the 1g eclipse is still under the intake manifold right? and its easiest to get at by taking it off? I am planning on having it tested at autozone to determine if i need a new one.

oops and another question! if the starter is bad can you still push start the car? its a manual. Is it true that if you cant push start the car the starter isnt the cause of the no start?

Thanks everyone although i cant promise that this will be my last question i appreciate your help!

Here are the pics

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

Sorry for the quality its a crappy digital camera...

 

[Defiant]

Those look clean. check the grounding points, but it sounds like a dead battery.

 

[project_tsi]

Try charging or replacing the battery with a know good battery to see if that helps first.

Those cables and lugs look ok.

 

[bluegs03]

ok i will try that thanks dsm wisemen!! im going to take the starter out and bring it to autozone

 

[steve]

That positive terminal looks horible. Clean up that corrosion until you have bright metal.

 

[Nors]

If unsure about the cables clean the connections and do a voltage drop test from the starter ground to the negative clamp on the battery. Do the same for the postive side, all this while cranking the engine (disabled from starting)... should be less then .5 volts (even that is high) If it is more, you have extra resitance in the cables and they should be replaced (depending on which test gets you a high voltage reading.. if power side, look into new postive side battery cables, if ground side, check grounds/new cables.

 

[95burgundyesi]

and if it is the cables are just dirty a good way to stop them from getting nasty is putting a little black lithium greese over the terminals. mine would need to be cleans often but after i put some on the exposed part it does a good job.

 

[steve]

Petroleum Jelly also works and isn't quite as messy.

Steve

 

[MilwaukeeGSX]

Make sure the terminals are clamped down correctly, even though they make contact with the battery it doesnt alwys mean it will start.

 

[Talesin]

I just used to put a light film of Coke over my terminals to prevent corrosion. A lot less messy than greases, and seemed to work just as well. Yeah, your positive terminal needs to be scrubbed with a wire brush, but other than that, doesn't look too bad. Probably just a dead battery as noted.

And in either case, you should be able to bump-start the car, unless the battery is *totally* dead. If it's clicking, it should have enough juice to run long enough for the alternator to kick in and take over.
Might want to pull the positive off and make sure you aren't getting corrosion on the inside, leading to a poor connection. If that's happening, it's easiest to just get a new terminal and swap them out, and clean your battery posts with a post cleaner. Then film them both with a bit of Coke, attach and tighten. Add another layer for paranoia, and you're good to go.