philosofy1

lately i have been driving my civic (93 dx w/b16 [auto-manual swap]) and i am having starting problems. i use to have this problem when my oem starter went out. i went through 2 starters from autozone. the 2nd one seemed to work the best. maybe a month ago i decided to run the battery to the trunk. after that i started having the problem again.

now i have a battery and alternator that is about one year old, all my ground wires have been replaced (new oem) and today i just replaced it again with a new starter. as for the wires from the auto setup, everything is connected right, so what can be my problem.

i have my ground wire (from the battery) running to a bolt in the trunk area (one of the four that the support in the back). is this a good area? if not, then where is? it is not my main relay, because this too is alittle over a year old (new as well).

can someone help me out? i need my car to start at will.

boosted_ejcivic

iTrader: (2)

big enough ground wire? go with a 4 gauge wire

philosofy1

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by boosted_ejcivic &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">big enough ground wire? go with a 4 gauge wire</TD></TR></TABLE>

that's exactly what i have. it runs from the negative terminal to the chassis.

anyone else?

pgpunkguy

you know your starter is bad for sure? when you took the starter out, did you have it tested to see if it was indeed bad?

i'm wondering if the your the pressure switch on your clutch pedal is bad. (it detects that the clutch pedal is depressed when you try and start yoru car.) if that is bad, it will think your clutch is not pressed and your car won't start.

when i had problems starting my car, i overrode my clutch switch (maybe not the smartest idea)... but that wasn't the issue. it ended up being that my starter solenoid was going bad and was working intermittently.

as for ground wires... it's not a bad idea to have 4gauge wires for other grounds, not just battery-to-chassis.

philosofy1

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by pgpunkguy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">you know your starter is bad for sure? when you took the starter out, did you have it tested to see if it was indeed bad?

i'm wondering if the your the pressure switch on your clutch pedal is bad. (it detects that the clutch pedal is depressed when you try and start yoru car.) if that is bad, it will think your clutch is not pressed and your car won't start.

when i had problems starting my car, i overrode my clutch switch (maybe not the smartest idea)... but that wasn't the issue. it ended up being that my starter solenoid was going bad and was working intermittently.

as for ground wires... it's not a bad idea to have 4gauge wires for other grounds, not just battery-to-chassis.</TD></TR></TABLE>

it used to be auto and now it's manual, there is no clutch pressure switch. my ground wires are brand new, picked them up from the dealer.

i just was going through some reciepts and found when this problem started, back in march of 2006. on the reciept, it says the diagnose was the wasn't starting and it 1 ground wire was replaced and there was 3 bad connection in the starter solenoid circuit.

where the hell is the starter solenoid circuit?

philosofy1

maybe i just have a bad ignition switch? what are the symptoms to a bad ignition switch?

can i use one off of a manual one, though mine is a auto?

philosofy1

BUMP #1

philosofy1

BUMP #2

pgpunkguy

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by philosofy1 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">it used to be auto and now it's manual, there is no clutch pressure switch. my ground wires are brand new, picked them up from the dealer.

i just was going through some reciepts and found when this problem started, back in march of 2006. on the reciept, it says the diagnose was the wasn't starting and it 1 ground wire was replaced and there was 3 bad connection in the starter solenoid circuit.

where the hell is the starter solenoid circuit?</TD></TR></TABLE>

if you mean the actual solenoid, that is on the starter housing. the starter is the bigger cylindrical thing, and the smaller one is the solenoid.

so, when you did the auto -&gt; manual swap, you disabled the clutch pressure switch when you installed the clutch pedal?

gsxr1k05

pgpunkguy, THERE ARE NO WIRES TO RUN THE PRESSURE SWITCH TO.. when you do an auto2man swap, you DO NOT have to push the clutch in to start the car.

JDM DERF

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by boosted_ejcivic &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">big enough ground wire? go with a 4 gauge wire</TD></TR></TABLE>

try a 0 gauge

super china china

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by philosofy1 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">maybe i just have a bad ignition switch? what are the symptoms to a bad ignition switch?

can i use one off of a manual one, though mine is a auto?</TD></TR></TABLE>

correct me if im wrong(politley), but arent you supposed to change ignition switches(put in a manual one) when you do auto&gt;manual anyways?

DrewMD

iTrader: (1)

i've been going on my auto ingition switch for about a year without any problems.

philosofy1

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JDM DERF &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

try a 0 gauge</TD></TR></TABLE>

no need too.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by super china china &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

correct me if im wrong(politley), but arent you supposed to change ignition switches(put in a manual one) when you do auto&gt;manual anyways?</TD></TR></TABLE>

no, not necessary. as long as the wiring it right for the aut selector you'll be fine. everything is wired right or the car wouldn't start at all.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by DrewMD &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i've been going on my auto ingition switch for about a year without any problems.</TD></TR></TABLE>

not sure if mine is just wearing out.

i have noticed though, after i push start it, it's like i have a couple of starts that are fine. maybe 4-5 starts, after that i have to push start it again.

994door

when you put the battery in the trunk you lose power going to the battery cause of the lenghty wires. same thing happend to me. also try jumping the starter, positive cable directly to the starter (but dont keep it there if it starts) if it starts then you know its good. best i can do

finnstang

When it doesn't start, what does it do when you turn the key to start? Click? Nothing? Crank but never fire?

Ron454321

Did you sand down the area where your ground is?

rleonekc

Do you get a CEL

super china china

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by philosofy1 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
no, not necessary. as long as the wiring it right for the aut selector you'll be fine. everything is wired right or the car wouldn't start at all.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

corrected never done the swap before but thought i read it somewhere.

pgpunkguy

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by gsxr1k05 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">pgpunkguy, THERE ARE NO WIRES TO RUN THE PRESSURE SWITCH TO.. when you do an auto2man swap, you DO NOT have to push the clutch in to start the car.</TD></TR></TABLE>

yeah, good point... once upon a time, i thought about doing a auto-&gt;manual swap on my old EG hatch. but i said f it and traded it for the manual hatch i have now.

philosofy1

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 994door &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">when you put the battery in the trunk you lose power going to the battery cause of the lenghty wires. same thing happend to me. also try jumping the starter, positive cable directly to the starter (but dont keep it there if it starts) if it starts then you know its good. best i can do</TD></TR></TABLE>

the problem is, i had this problem before i swapped the battery to the back.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by finnstang &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">When it doesn't start, what does it do when you turn the key to start? Click? Nothing? Crank but never fire?</TD></TR></TABLE>

when i turn the the key, if it doesn't start i get nothing, no clickinh, no cranking, nothing.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Ron454321 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Did you sand down the area where your ground is?</TD></TR></TABLE>

no, i don't think it would affect being that there's no paint on the threading. i'll try it though, who knows.

i'm going to replace my ignition switch and lets see what happens.

SMOOTHN

iTrader: (1)

this happen to my buddys car a few weeks ago... he took it to tuffy and the said it was his starter ground relay... they replaced and his car is up and running now... he called and asked me whqat it could be and I told him to check all grounds but he didnt check the starter ground relay... I would've probably looked over that too the first couple days...

Syndacate

Electrical auto shop ftw.

So you gotta pay 150-200 bucks - and the reward is your car starts 100% of the time.

I'd be down with that.

philosofy1

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by SMOOTHN &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">this happen to my buddys car a few weeks ago... he took it to tuffy and the said it was his starter ground relay... they replaced and his car is up and running now... he called and asked me whqat it could be and I told him to check all grounds but he didnt check the starter ground relay... I would've probably looked over that too the first couple days... </TD></TR></TABLE>

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Syndacate &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Electrical auto shop ftw.

So you gotta pay 150-200 bucks - and the reward is your car starts 100% of the time.

I'd be down with that.</TD></TR></TABLE>

i removed my battery from the trunk back to under the hood. the car hasn't given any problems yet. all the test i ran before the car would fail. after returning the battery, it passed all the tests. i'm crossing my finger and seeing if it stays this way. not sure why it would give me problems being back there, but oh well.

B serious

iTrader: (1)

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by philosofy1 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

i removed my battery from the trunk back to under the hood. the car hasn't given any problems yet. all the test i ran before the car would fail. after returning the battery, it passed all the tests. i'm crossing my finger and seeing if it stays this way. not sure why it would give me problems being back there, but oh well.</TD></TR></TABLE>

well maybe your power wire (which is really long now) has a large voltage drop due to a high resistance.


Plus, batteries will always have a harder time starting the car from the trunk. There's always going to be energy loss through a longer wire. You lengthned the wire from battery to starter by like..what? 6-8 times or so? maybe more?


Your car really shouldn't have this much trouble starting, however. If you're saying that you have to keep replacing starters..maybe the problem is that autozone starters suck the big one. It could be that simple.

Maybe use a battery with more CCAs/CAs if you're going to have it relocated?

Am i even on the right track with your problem? it's very late.