Hi folks;
This is only the 2nd time this has happened to me, but I want to maybe get a handle on it before I get stuck somewhere.
A few months ago, I got in the car, turned the key to turn the car on, and... nothing.
Lights DID come on. Everything was normal, only, the starter never even tried to turn over. Just nothing.
I tried cycling the key several times and nothing happened. I jumped the solenoid with a pair of scissors I happened to have in the car, and off I went. Next time and the next probably 200 starts, no problems whatsoever.
Then last week, again. Had the car in neutral cause I was going to be lifting it, went to start it, same thing. No start. All the lights were on, they didn't dim as the starter drew power or anything: definitely, the starter just never got the power in the first place.
Shifted the car to park, it started. Shut it off, shifted to neutral again, and it starts right up also.
So I've got this happening just twice in a matter of months, it's not a big deal yet.
I figure it can be:
starter solenoid
neutral safety switch
ignition itself.
Where would you look first?
And what can you do about something that works basically exactly 99% of the time and has only failed twice in hundreds of successful trouble-free starts? (that is to say, how would I isolate the culprit?)
So I'm really hoping for more of a "statistically, it's always been this for me in the past" sort of answer!
The starter solenoid I replaced myself just for maintenance, a couple years ago.
The neutral safety switch was replaced by someone else at some point: it's clearly aftermarket.
Ignition switch probably virgin. Lock cylinder, I replaced, if that has anything to do with anything, about 2 years ago because it was wearing out.
This is only the 2nd time this has happened to me, but I want to maybe get a handle on it before I get stuck somewhere.
A few months ago, I got in the car, turned the key to turn the car on, and... nothing.
Lights DID come on. Everything was normal, only, the starter never even tried to turn over. Just nothing.
I tried cycling the key several times and nothing happened. I jumped the solenoid with a pair of scissors I happened to have in the car, and off I went. Next time and the next probably 200 starts, no problems whatsoever.
Then last week, again. Had the car in neutral cause I was going to be lifting it, went to start it, same thing. No start. All the lights were on, they didn't dim as the starter drew power or anything: definitely, the starter just never got the power in the first place.
Shifted the car to park, it started. Shut it off, shifted to neutral again, and it starts right up also.
So I've got this happening just twice in a matter of months, it's not a big deal yet.
I figure it can be:
starter solenoid
neutral safety switch
ignition itself.
Where would you look first?
And what can you do about something that works basically exactly 99% of the time and has only failed twice in hundreds of successful trouble-free starts? (that is to say, how would I isolate the culprit?)
So I'm really hoping for more of a "statistically, it's always been this for me in the past" sort of answer!
The starter solenoid I replaced myself just for maintenance, a couple years ago.
The neutral safety switch was replaced by someone else at some point: it's clearly aftermarket.
Ignition switch probably virgin. Lock cylinder, I replaced, if that has anything to do with anything, about 2 years ago because it was wearing out.
alon
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