Battery smell like rotten eggs sulfur and died

joenobodyyet

New Member
1997 Honda Civic LX manual transmission

My car battery started smelling like sulfur/rotten eggs today and then my car died.

Backstory: A few months ago when I used my air conditioning, there was a belt squealing. Over time it seemed to only happen when I turned on the AC, but then the sound would dissipate. After about 2 weeks it didn't seem to happen at all. Two weeks ago I noticed a rotten egg smell coming from my vents when I used the air conditioner and when I just had the blower on. Usually happened after I was driving for a while. I Never smelled anything from the exhaust. I checked my battery, and 4 days after noticing the smell, I changed my battery to a new one. The old battery had bubbling around the positive terminal (very small bubbling in one pea size spot). It definitely had a slight smell like rotten eggs. I drove down to North Carolina for July 4th week with a new battery and everything was fine. Arrived back in Philadelphia, PA on Saturday and the car was running great. Used the cruise control and air conditioning the entire 7 hours down, 7 hours back.

Today, July 10th, I was driving about an hour away and it started smelling like rotten eggs again. 15 minutes later, the car died on the side of the road while driving. The new battery had 2 ventilation tubes (I got it for free because I was in a rush and don't want to put money in this 97 ha) and they smelled bad. I was able to put a new battery in, but the car sounded like it would start right up, but it just wouldn't turn. While turning the key, I pressed the gas to see if that would help it start, but it didn't work. When I pressed the gas, it felt like nothing would happen, even though turning the key sounded promising. My car is still on the side of the road.

It seems like the batteries are overheating, which is causing them to leak with the rotten egg smell. I think? Could there be a wire shorting somewhere? Is there a sensor that needs to be replaced? If anyone has any ideas, let me know. I'm not an expert but I have worked on my car a bit... because it's a 1997 ha. I had a new alternator put in about a year ago. I wonder if it's overcharging the battery for some reason.
 

joenobodyyet

New Member
Just wondering if the new battery should have been able to start the car, even if the alternator is bad. Would that make sense? I figure since the battery was fully charged, the alternator shouldn't effect the start? Not sure.
 


joenobodyyet

New Member
Step 1: Replace the bad alternator ASAP.

Step 2: Replace the battery destroyed by the bad alternator.
My buddy took a look and this is what he said, "Car has zero compression. Most likely the valves hit the piston. I can see the cam spinning." He thinks the valves are bent. :/
 


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