some1

okay so I'm 3 hours away from home, its a sunday..and I just went outside to start my car...the engine doesn't turn over..when I put the key to ON, everything looks good, the air, radio and everything has power, but nothing turns over...all I hear is a click and then nothing.. I am going to attempt to jump start it just in case the battery doesn't have enough power to kick the engine over (is that possible?? not sure) but I figure thats all I can do now...

does anyone have any idea what it might be (if its not just a "low"/dead battery) ?? this problem happened before only in the morning, but the car would always start after the 2-3 time of turning the key..but this time I tried too many times...

any ideas/help ???

starboy2nv

iTrader: (2)

if its a click... its your starter... just keep trying after 10-20 sec delays...it should start up..

some1

thanks..thats what I figured...I'll keep trying hopefully I can get home

shineynitelite

werd.. as long as all your lights turn on and everything its not your battery



if its a distinct click then its your starter, the click you hear is the solenoid but the gear isnt extending and spinning the flywheel/or flexplate



if its a manual you can pop start it

lefty

will the battery hold a charge? Have it load tested (this should be free of charge) If it won't hold a charge or fails the load test = bad cell replace the battery

FULLRACE

battery will hold fine. If your manual, just bump start that shit. SImply roll it or push faster than 10 mph and feather the clutch till 1st turns it over. If your not going fast enough, when you release the clutch you'll simply stall.

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

It's the starter, if the battery is good, it's the starter. Crank it about 4-5 times it'll start, that means your starter is bad, I just replaced mine a month ago

some1

thanks..well I got home okay...I just kept trying to start it like starboy originally said..it worked after 3-4 tries...this car has been so great in the past 4 years but the last year has been hell...lots of problems with it I'm going insane..I know its almost 10 years old....but everythings breaking down at the same time its killing me!

anyways, thanks for replying everyone..I'm calling around to find a new starter tomorrow

some1

stupid admin wouldn't let me edit my previous message after 5 minutes of posting..wtf?!?!? anyways, I can't seem to find any help on the many questions that people have posted previously....how easy is it to remove/install the starter?? any have any pointers/hints/DIY ??? thanks

Cocoa

iTrader: (2)

Should be just 2 long ass bolts. Not sure if the location will make it a biotch, but it should be pretty easy. Hardest starter I ever had to install was one for the skyline, that shit sucked.

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

It's a bitch on the 3.0 I paid my alternator guy to do it

5-speed

it doesnt look too hard to get to on my 2.2

Cocoa

iTrader: (2)

I did it on the 3.5, but the engine bay was pretty empty cause it was during the swap. Had all the room in the world.

starboy2nv

iTrader: (2)

yes i should know... i sat for 10 mins trying to start my car listening to my boy and his wife fight... LOL

shineynitelite

i finally changed mine cuz i was sick of listening to my g/f bitch, also hard to leave busted street racing locations lol

Cocoa

iTrader: (2)

post some stories, lol.

ib_jimmy

also usually a few wack with the end of a screw driver or a hammer would help. Its not hard swaping out the starter on the 2.x or 3.0....3.0 might be a lil bit tighter spot to pull out...just have to angle it right.

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

That's the main issue, gettin under there. You gotta take the battery out, and the intake to make room, looks like a pain, I was gonna do mine myself, but I got a good deal from my alternator dude, so I let him do it

ib_jimmy

u're suppost to take u're batter off when working with electrical parts like that.

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

I said OUT, take the battery and battery tray OUT

ib_jimmy

some1

okay so I purchased a new starter on Monday, chanced the old one Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday then finally got some time to install the new one Wednesday night. VERY EASY INSTALL ON A 2.2, about 1hr and I'm no mechanic.

For any future readers here's a quick Starter DIY:
0. I pulled out the battery before hand to make some extra room
1. Unbolt bracket holding rad hose (there is one bracket ("starter-bracket") connected to the starter and a 2nd bracket ("rad-hose-bracket") that actually holds the rad hose and is bolted to the to the "starter-bracket". Detach the "rad-hose-bracket" from the "starter-bracket"
2. Pull out plug from starter (look at new starter, you should see an electrical male end on the starter, female plug is connected to something in the engine bay, never cared to look)
3. Pull back the rubber housing away from the starter to expose a nice shiny nut (look at new starter to see what I mean..you will see the new shiny nut and copper bolt). Remove this nut to disconnect the wire.
4. Loosten the top bolt connecting the starter to the engine
5. Loosten and remove the bottom bolt connecting the starter to the engine (I couldn't get this bolt from above so I jacked the car up and got it from underneith)
6. Remove the top bolt and pull the starter out carefully
7. Bolt up the rad hose bracket onto the new starter
8. Remove the "starter-bracket" from the old starter and place it on the new starter
8. Put the new starter in place in the engine bay and hand tighten the top bolt
9. Tighten the bottom bolt
10. Tighten the top bolt securely
11. Bolt the "rad-hose-bracket" back onto to the "starter-bracket"
12. Connect the wire (from step 3) onto the new copper bolt and use the shiny nut to secure it.
13. Slip the female connector (from step 2) into place on the new starter
14. If you pulled out the battery in step 0, then replace it now
15. Test out your new starter by driving to the beer store and picking up a 24 of Miller Lite for your uncle for letting you use his garage and tools.