No start issue.....battery question
 

The car in question is a well-sorted 82SC with no previous issues during my 13 years of ownership. Hasn't been driven since Thanksgiving (Chicago). When I put it away it was running perfectly. I attempted to pull it out of the garage to wash it the other day......no start. Turned over pretty weakly, but wouldn't catch. The car is always on a Battery Tender, but the Optima red-top is about 10 years old. In the past, it has fired up after a winter's rest as if it was driven the day before. The car is mechanically totally stock.

I have spark, the CIS is functioning, as is the fuel pump. Regardless of the problem, I'm going to install a new battery.

My question is can a weak battery by itself cause this situation. Is an up-to-snuff battery an absolute necessity to trigger a strong enough spark/ignition/fuel delivery for starting. Thanks,
Steve

Without trying to sound .....
Did you test the battery before and after trying to start the car?
I've never had a battery last 10 years.

And to answer your question. Maybe before you drained it trying to get it going.

Coincidentally, I had a similar issue yesterday (but the similarity ended when my car started). Anyway, I hadn't driven mine for over a month due to this brutal Tennessee winter (;)) and had to put it on the charger. It started up after that.

When disconnecting my charger, though, I noticed that my battery was made in September 2006. I can't believe it is still working.

+1 need to check the voltage. 13 years is a good run, 3+ years past it's life ain't bad at all.

Would slow cranking contribute to this no-start situation? I'm still going to order a new battery. Anyone? Thanks

Contribute, no. Symptoms of a weak to dead battery, yes. Take it to a FLAPS and test it, especially the Cold Crank Amps

yes.
the cold start valve needs a certain voltage to fire. i dont remember for sure but i am thinking around 9v. if the battery volt drops below that, the CSV will not work.
otherwise a slow starting WARM engine can start with a low battery.

I stand corrected :-)

oh its possible to still have another issue, and probably just because i said yes he will have another issue. but i would fix the battery before i did anything else.

tony has tested the CSV firing voltage just for an issue like this, i just dont remember for sure what it was.