Urgent Help needed - '96 328is won't crank

[J.DeFeo]

I'm stuck at work in my roommate's 328is and it won't crank. The starter just ticks rapidly whenever I try to start the car. So far as I can tell, the electrics in the car work fine. The windshield wipers and turn signals for example operate normally, which leads me to beleive it's not a battery issue. I checked all of the fuses and they are all fine. Please tell me this is something simple and won't require me to tow the car 62 miles back home.

[whiskychaser]

I'm stuck at work in my roommate's 328is and it won't crank. The starter just ticks rapidly whenever I try to start the car. So far as I can tell, the electrics in the car work fine. The windshield wipers and turn signals for example operate normally, which leads me to beleive it's not a battery issue. I checked all of the fuses and they are all fine. Please tell me this is something simple and won't require me to tow the car 62 miles back home.

Check for obvious loose connections at the starter. If there are any they will feel warm or even hot so be careful. However my best guess is the battery doesnt have enough charge to turn the motor over. If its not an auto you could bump start it. Cause may be something as simple as a slack alternator belt. Hope you get home!

[Evan]

I'm sure you've alread tried to jump start it...

[yaofeng]

Starting need a lot of battery juice. The battery may have run down. Try jump start it.

[J.DeFeo]

God I feel like an idiot. I tried jump starting it prior to making this thread but for some reason in the e36 the battery is hidden god knows where. Turns out I was attaching the negative lead to a post that wasn't grounded, and so it didn't do anything. Checked the e36 bentley book and found the proper posts, and it started right up. Reading is good!