i'm dumb

ok so i left my key in my car (on battery power) for a few hours a little while ago and when i realized how dumb i was i tried to start it up and it halfway turned over and all my electronics came on. i waited a few hours and the next day it started right up. well i made the same mistake agian but this time i did it overnight. and now my electronics and stuff wont even come on even after a bout an hour wiat. does anybody know whtas going on or why it started up before?

this is a 91 honda accord AT by the way.

Sounds like you ran your battery down.  Charge it up or jump it.

ok i'll try it, if i jump it will it be good for a while or will it only run for a while, and by charge do you mean wait and let the alternator do it or like put it on a charger. i dont really know much about car electroncis, sorry.

The reason it cranked the first time is: sometimes the battery will "recharge" itself a little bit - just enough to get the car cranked - if it has not been run all the way down.  The second time the battery totally drained.
As long as you leave it running for a while it should be ok.
Take it to AutoZone though and they will test the battery for free and let you know if you need to hook up a charger to it.  They will probably charge it for free too

if you jump it and then drive on the highway for a while it should recharge it.  or you could charge it with a battery charger.

quote:

ORIGINAL: jessekeels

ok i'll try it, if i jump it will it be good for a while or will it only run for a while, and by charge do you mean wait and let the alternator do it or like put it on a charger. i dont really know much about car electroncis, sorry.

 
If you are not familiar with car batteries, be careful when jumpstarting as if you hook it up wrong the battery can explode.  Should be something in the owner's manual about how to do it right.

When you run it way down, it does a little damage to the battery.  Do it again & it adds up.  Especially if the water level in the cells was low...
 
It's possible that the second time you ran it down far enough so your battery's bad now.  Testing at AutoZone or someplace can tell you what's up.
 

Not to mention leaving your key in the ignition can result in NO car.

yeah i decided to go ahead and replace the battery. my dad tested it with his tester and it was dead. the battery was old and needed to be swapped soon anyway.

I know a lot of people buy expensive batteries, but I buy Duralast from AutoZone because they have a lifetime warranty.  If the battery ever goes dead, you bring it back to AutoZone and they will test it.  If their test shows it's bad they will replace it for free - no questions asked.
And no I don't have any connection to AutoZone or anything either.  I just know from experience.  I have heard WalMart may have the same deal on some of their batteries as well.

I have a duralast as the main battery and the second battery is a yellow top, so yeah, im not too concerned about my car not starting due to a dead battery ^_^

The question is how in the world do you leave your key in the car man? A friend of mine did that at school. His started though. I don't know how the world he did it but it happened.