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Q: i have a 99 dakota 3.9 sport with 5 speed trans. 103k on the clock and running pretty good except them ball joints that suck... anyway i have had the batter replaced for free 3 times since purchasing the truck new in january of 99. 1st time was in feb 00 i was up in canada and battery was completely dead when i woke up in the am. called caa and they jumped me and i went to nearest dealership who told me i had a bad battery. they replaced it for free. in december of 02 i had same problem and dealer where i purchased the truck said same think new battery. tech advised me that there was a batch of bad batteries supplied to dealerships in ne and my battery was one of them. no problamo on my end. i get a new battery and it doesnt cost me a penny. forward to late winter 03. battery not dead but doesnt sound too good. takes a couple of turn overs before it will start and sounds like its really straining. i take to dealership and once again they replace the battery telling me that when they run an electronics test on the truck everything is good except the battery. again covered under warranty so no cost to me except the test cost me $30 which wasnt too bad. fast forward to current day. i am still having a problem with starting. the battery always has juice and truck starts every morning but when it starts it sounds like its really straining. ive also noticed that there is some white/blue green fluffy build up on the negative terminal. i clean it up best i can but within a week or so it comes back. a buddy of mine works at a shop and he told me to come on over after hours and he can put clean the battery terminals correctly with some acid solution that will clean the terminals up properly. it takes about 1 month but the build up returns. im stumped and not sure what to do that this point. any ideas as a side note there is a faint burning smell when i start my truck in the extreme cold less than 10 degrees f when i exit the truck. i tent to start my truck and let it run for a few minutes before i leave for work. the smell is not as noticeable when the temps are higher but its still there. thanks to all that reply. ive found lots of good info in this ng. been lurking for over a year but dont recall ever seeing this specific problem. -- regards slick willy 73 cb 450 95 xj 600 99 dakota sport 03 flstf - parted ways in late july 04 flhrci - entering geezerdom at a mere 32 ... remove the bendover to reply .