Dead battery, can't get into trunk
 

Short question: Can you jump start a miata via the 12v source post by the fuse box under the hood? If not, and all those amps would fry something (which I'm assuming is the case), can you at least trickle charge it with say a 12v/2A charger?

Long explaination:

Dropped my NA off for an alignment, and the -20F here killed the battery.

The tumbler on the trunk has never matched my key, but that was never an issue as there's a release cable inside.. Well, the release cable isn't working right now. It's like there's no resistance when I pull it, and nothing happens. I took the center console apart and the cable is hooked to the lever, so I'm assuming maybe it snapped off somewhere?

It's in a fairly small, fairly slippery parking lot right now, and we got 4 guys to try to push start it, no luck (too slippery to get it going, and the tires don't grip enough to start the engine at the slowish speeds we CAN get it going).

Last time I needed to get it going and couldn't get it jumped we pulled it behind my girlfriend's saturn with a tow rope and "push" started it that way.. so I'm thinking we could do that again, but I need to figure out a way of getting it fully charged up after that.

Search Miata.net for how to get into the trunk.

In a nutshell, remove rear plate. Drill 1/2" hole in dimple at top right. Use needle nose pliers to pull cable, releasing trunk.

Starter terminal/ ground??

You sir (ma'am?) are a gentle(wo)man and a scholar. I have been browsing around there about charging the battery from under the hood, but didn't think to check how to actually get into the trunk.

Only thing is, I think if anything the whole latch is totally frozen... I can pull the cable from in teh cockpit and it doensnt do anything.

Blah.

Faeflora knows how you can get in that trunk.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1390867078

That hot cable should run unfused from the battery to the main fuse in the bay.

You should be able to jumpstart it directly at the starter if you're really, really careful with the cables.

Hmm... if it's just a frozen latch, have you tried a hairdryer ?

OH damn, is yours in the trunk?

Emphasis on *REALLY* careful. There's so much metal in that area that I'd only try this if I were going to be killed by lava spewing out of an active volcano (or similar) if I didn't get my car running in the next 60 seconds.

Do NBs have the little aux power connector under the hood on the left fender? If so, you could try charging the battery through that at, say 10-20 amps or so for a few hours (key must be ON), then disconnect it and try starting again. If they don't have that connector, you can do the same through the cigarette lighter (key in ACC).

But no wire in the whole car is capable of carrying enough current to run the starter with a dead battery aside from the starter cable. Try doing it across any other circuit, and at best you'll just pop a fuse. At worst, you'll melt the relevant wires inside the harness.

This is actually my NA (winter beater) miata that's having this issue, and it has the blue connector, but the thing has never worked for me (I think it's just too corroded to work) but I have a 2A charger, so I can give it a shot, and also the 12v source post in the fuse box.

If you take another minute, couldn't you trace the thick cable from the starter to the main fuse and clamp it on there? Less risk of sparky.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1390916406

This is the post I was planning on using. Not sure if that's what it looks like on an NA or not.. That's exactly what it looked like on my NB tho.

I'm working from home today, and Ill get out there in the cold later today to check it out.. :(

That's the one I meant.

you could try to make a jumper cable with a ring terminal on one end and alligator clip for the donor car side. Looks like there is enough thread on the starter you could put one more ring terminal on just to get the car started.

I don't think I'd want to put cranking amps to it.. I'm sure it would *probably* be okay, but electrical stuff just makes me nervous on cars..

I got it pop started and it's in my garage with my trickle charger now. And the alligator clips on my trickle are small enough to fit in there.

Connect charger leads to the hot terminal on the alternator and the engine block. It is easier.

It would be this (5) terminal on the back of the alternator, right?

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1390918275

EDIT: Found this. Thanks for the help everyone.

http://i228.photobucket.com/albums/e...sowiring-1.jpg

Yes, item #5, which is the heavy gauge electrical cable.

Fuck everything about this situation.

I got the car charged, got it into my (unheated) garage. And it is cold here. I mean, REALLY cold. Got the license plate off (although my plate frame shattered from trying to remove it in the cold, which isn't really a big deal but added to my frustration) got the hold drilled and then realized my needle nose is IN MY TRUNK.

:'( :rofl:

Edit - dumb suggestion, srry