what kind of problem am i looking at here if my car wont start when i try the key but it can be rolled off a hill and popped into gear, starts just fine. I can turn the key to the on position (the second turn) and all the lights work, the radio flips on....just like normal. it just won't even attempt to start when i turn the key again. I did draing the battery down the other night leaving the lights on and it started up the next morning, but now it wont.

who's got an answer?

 

Your starter could be bad.

 

check the line that goes to the starter and also the starter ground. If either of these are disconnected, it may not be getting any power to the starter.

The starter is relatively easy to remove.. Remove it and take it to advance, napa, autozone, or somewhere else and have them test the starter.. If it is bad, they will know.

Check back in when you have done this..

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Archidictus &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Your starter could be bad.</TD></TR></TABLE>

could be your battery also, check the starting voltage , sometimes you can get 12 volts with out a load, but once you apply a load it drops below 9.6 volts which is the lowest a car can start with.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by BatuKing &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">could be your battery also, check the starting voltage , sometimes you can get 12 volts with out a load, but once you apply a load it drops below 9.6 volts which is the lowest a car can start with.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Check your battery first. Get it load tested. It may not be a common thing in warmer climats that batteries die, but up north it's one of the first things we check when an engine does not crank.

If you already have the starter out, just bench test it. If you have booster cables or any other thick wires (10 - 12 gauge) that splits in two, connect one end on the batt. terminals . On the other end take the grounded wire and connect to any part of the casing on the starter. Now for the positive connection, connect that end to the two electrical connectors on the starter. If you only connect it on one of the connectors, the spline gear won't spin and extend. Before you connect the positive terminal on the starter, make sure you have your foot on the starter so that it doesn't spin out of control.... it has some decent torque.

If you're not too sure how to do this, bring it to a shop and have them check it out.

Good luck