Car Start Problems

It’s officially cold outside and that means car start problems are on the rise. Many of these issues are typically caused by weak batteries that have picked the coldest possible night to leave you stranded. My biggest suggestion to our readers is to familiarize yourself with what a tune up is, so that you can best try to avoid getting stuck in the cold.

If you are trouble shooting car start problems, you may find the below suggestions helpful in your quest to diagnose the issues you are having with your vehicle. I have broken the trouble shooting suggestions down into 3 categories, motor will not rotate when trying to start, motor turns over but will not start, motor starts but immediately dies.

Motor Will Not Rotate When Trying To Start

In other words, you put the key into your ignition, turn it and you get no sound or a clicking noise. You do not hear the vehicle turning over:

• Have you checked your battery terminal connections to be sure they are not loose or have built up corrosion?
• If there is no corrosion on the cables, have you checked to see if the battery is discharged or faulty? If you switch the ignition to “run” without starting the car, do you have any accessories that run? If no accessories are running, your battery is fully discharged.
• Are you getting a security light that may indicate to you that your vehicle’s anti-theft system is engaging or is faulty?
• Does your vehicle have a body control module? Have you verified if the module is not faulty? If you have an F-body you can repair your BCM easily.
• Have you verified that your ignition switch is not faulty? Sometimes you can wiggle the ignition cylinder with your key and start a car with a finicky ignition switch.
• Have you inspected all wiring from your battery posts to your starter and ignition switch? Have your checked your ground wires and straps to make sure they are still attached and not damaged?
• Is your vehicle in Park or Neutral? Vehicles cannot start in gear as a designed safety feature.
• Have you checked your starter relays / ignition fuses to make sure they are working?
• Have you checked your starter solenoid to see if it is faulty?
• Have you checked to see if your starter motor is jammed in the flex-plate or flywheel?
• Have you verified that your engine is not seized? You can use a breaker bar and socket to turn your crank. If the motor will not turn by hand, you have internal engine damage and the motor is seized.

Motor Turns Over But Will Not Start

In other words, when you go to turn your vehicle on and are experiencing car start problems, can you hear the motor spinning?

• Have you checked your fuel pump fuses? Is the fuel pump working?
• Do you have proper fuel pressure? Have you verified this with a mechanical fuel pressure gauge?
• Are your fuel injectors clogged?
• Do you have gas in your car? If you only have a little bit of gas are you parked on an incline? If so, fuel may not be reaching the pump. Park the car on flat ground and try to start it again
• Is your vehicle equipped with an ignition control module? Have you tested that it is working?
• Are your spark plugs in good working order and free from grease, oil, water or other contaminants?
• Does your battery have enough charge to turn the starter motor? If the vehicle is cranking slowly, verify voltage with an OHM meter.
• Is your fuel contaminated?
• Have you done recent engine work and pinched a wire such as your crank position sensor wire?

Motor Starts But Immediately Dies

• Do you have an anti-theft light coming on? You could have an anti-theft system engaging or faulty.
• Have you checked for vacuum leaks?
• Have you checked your battery cables for loose, damaged or corroded wiring?
• Do you have proper fuel pressure?
• Do you have a faulty body control module?
• Have you verified your idle air control valve is clean and operational?
• If you car is equipped with a Mass Air Flow (MAF) sensor, have you verified it is not dirty and is operational?

If you are having car start problems, hopefully the above trouble shooting tips can give you a number of starting points to explore and help ease the diagnosis of your problems.

We hope to add some more tips to our readers weekly. To subscribe to getting all of our posts, enter your email into our subscription box on the right hand side of your screen. If you are on a mobile device the subscription box will be at the bottom of our page.

minor car scratch repair | deep scratch and key marks repair guide | frame rust repair guide | Leasing vs owning a vehicle | buffing & polishing pad types