I have trouble starting my car after I leave the alarm on for a little while. When I try to start it it doesn't crank. The electronics turn on (radio, instrument lights, etc.). It takes a few tries before it'll crank and start. I just replaced the battery with a Optima and still experience this problem. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

11/17/04 - Hey guys, I'm still having starting problems. I've checked the battery connections and ground connection - all seem to be secure. I've had Acura check it all out about 3 times now. They tested the battery, alternator, starter and fuel system. They couldn't reproduce the problem, so they couldn't figure it out. Any ideas? Thanks.


Modified by ITR43 at 9:59 PM 11/17/2004

 

Check to make sure your battery terminal connections are secure.

 

is the fuel pump cuting on? what kinda of ecu do you have does it still have the imm. in it?

 

wait,did you take out anything else?

 

I have the stock ecu with the immobilizer. The car has intake and header. The terminal connections seem to be secure. I've had Acura check my immobilizer a little while ago and they said it's ok. Any other possibilities? Does this sound like a alternator or starter problem?

 

maybe a ground somewhere?

 

Aftermarket alarm? The starter kill function on them sometimes fails and kills the starter all of the time.

 

Can you hear the fuel pump prime..?

Might be a main realy

 

i had the same problem today, almost dropped a load in my pants, still not sure but we'll see please let me know if you figure it out

 

back from the dead...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ITR43 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">back from the dead...</TD></TR></TABLE>

How sure are you that it's related to the alarm? Maybe your starter motor is drawing too much current.

Are there ANY other symptoms that could help? Do you have an aftermarket stereo or any other accessories that are connected to Battery that should be switched on/off?

Not much fun heading into winter with starting issues.

 

if you say that acura tested the battery, alternator, starter and fuel system...what about 1) dist. cap and rotor?
2) did you look at the ignitor?
3) what about the resistance of the plug wires?
4) what about the resistance of the coil?
it seems you still have a few avenues to explore before you start ripping out that alarm. good luck.

 

The car is pretty much stock. Intake and Header are the only mods. Just recently replaced the battery and spark plugs. Stereo is stock. Starting problems sometimes also occur when I go to start the car in the morning and the alarm is disarmed. Car is garaged, so cold weather shouldn't be the problem and alarm shouldn't be drawing any current. I'm totally stumped.

 

Take a test light and place it between the battery and the positive cable, then turn the ing on then off. See if the light is still on in the test light- If so you have a draw on the battery.
If not... ?

Have you checked the power of the battery? could be weak enough to prevent starts.

Also If you have a chipped key try using the other one instead of the normal one- I had that problem and it was the key that did not let the car start. Go figure...

 

I am fairly certain that it is not my alarm. I paid good money to have a reputable shop install it with the works. Acura also tested the immobilizer and each key chip. I'll have to check out the cap and rotor sometime this weekend. And also the test light on the battery.

Some have mentioned the main relay....where exactly is this? If this is like a fuse, then wouldn't it cause the car to never start and not just randomly? Any other ideas -- I want to get this taken care of before the rain starts coming in.

 

If I understand correctly, when the problem occurs the engine doesn't turn over at all? If this is the case you may have a problem with the contacts in the starter solenoid. I've seen this problem a few times, especially if the starter has ever been removed (ie: clutch replacement) or if the car has high mileage (worn contacts). When the starter is reinstalled during clutch replacement, it is possible to overtighten the nut that secures the power wire to the starter. This causes the contact to become misaligned inside the starter solenoid. HTH.

 

mikey's car use to do that because he has a chipped valve in Cylinder #3 and it wasn't getting enough spark. Maybe do a compression test

 

I once had a nagging problem where it would start sometimes and not in others. I found out that it was the solenoid switch on the starter. This is that little female spade connector on a small wire that goes on the starter. Pull it off and use a set of pliers and sqeeze the terminal so that it gets a better bite. After I did that, I had no starting problems.

Also, in the past, in another incident where I couldn't start the car, I found that my transmission ground was loose.