help! what is wrong with my car

i went to go start my car today and when i turned the key over all it did was make loud clicking noises and the interior lights started to flicker, its not the battery i have a new red top in the car, im thinking its the starter solenoid what do you guys suppose it could be

[81DaytonaPaceCar]

Yep, that would be a good guess...or the starter itself...

[WMCC85BERLI]

I would double check all your connections before changing out the starter. If you have a loose connection it does not have the current to turn the starter/crank the engine.

[WMCCjames]

Like Carl said...look at the battery cables and the ground connection first.

[Superman09]

I had my red top die on me.... When my new battery ran out of juice at the track, it would make a clikcing noise but not start, my guages would go crazy, speedo would jump to 160 mph and climp down, rpm would go up, and it would just click.

[GETGONE]

How new is the red top? Brand new? If it is did you trickle charge it for 24 hours like the directions say? If not it will be dead. They're not shipped with a full charge.

[triskit527]

the battery is only 6 months old, i had a red prior for 2 years and it went bad and got a free exchange, the connections to it are all good, ill take the battery out and have it tested. my car was also doing the same thing where the rpm and speedo gauge would jump all crazy

[BP_Z28]

your car is possessed

[GETGONE]

Sure your alternator didn't die and the battery is what kept it going? I had the alt die on my Sonoma and I had a red top in it. It saved my butt and allowed me to make it all the way home just on the battery. The lights were dim as heck and I turned everything else off I could. That sold me on Optimas. I drove home over 35 miles on just the battery!

[triskit527]

the alternator is good cause i can sit in the car and turn the key back and still listen to the radio, the battery is good i got it checked today at autozone, all the connections are good i went through all those today also, so tomorrow i plan on tearing out the starter and takin it up to autozone (hopefully there open tomorrow) and getting that tested. i dont know if any of you have heard of the sit shopkey5.com but i have access to that and all it pretty much is every how-to and diagnostic for every car and thats where that program is pretty much leading in the direction of the starter