Anyone know a lot about cars?

Question

There are times my car just won't start. There doesn't seem to be anything uniform that is different like weather or anything like that. I just turn the key and it does nothing. It is as if I turned the key backwards to turn on the radio. Usually everything turns on but the car. It just acts like there is no connection to start it. We replaced the starter about 6 months ago hoping this would fix the problem...it didn't. It will go for a month with no problems, then all of a sudden it happens again. This last time, it acted like it had disconnected from the battery. It started out the same as every other time (radio would come on, heat, etc...) Then nothing would come on. For some reason it later started with no problem at all, but my clock was reset and everything. (And we didn't jump start it.) Today the turn signal was going about 5 times it's regular speed for a short time then went back to normal. Any ideas? Other times it runs great.

It is a 1997 Plymouth Neon

Most of the time when this happens, everything turns on but the car. The radio, heater, anything else will turn on. The car won't even make a noise.

Answer 1

Your car may have a wiring problem. I dont know who changed your starter, but that seemed like it would've been a problem, but if your car is connecting, then not connecting, and the signals are going crazy, it seems like there is a problem with the wiring in that area, instead of the actual starter. Get a mechaninc in your area to check it out.

Answer 2

It would sure help if you could let us know what kind of car it is and the mileage on the car.

My first guess is that you have a loose or corroded battery cable or a marginal battery.

the second guess is that the key that you are putting in the car to turn the ignition switch is worn out. That is a very common occurance on older vehicles with high mileage.

the third is that the electrical ignition switch that has the contacts that are turned by the key cylinder is worn out. Again, this is most common on older, high mileage vehicle.

I'd suggest you start with checking the cables on the battery and checking the condition of the key. If that doesn't work, let us know what kind of car you have so we can consider possible product problems.

hope that helps

Answer 3

I would take it in and have it looked at. It could be something simple like a bad ground wire in the starter assembly or it could be more complex like a bad or burned out wiring harness. Start with the battery and cabless. Make sure that the connections are good (i.e. no corrosion on the terminals, no slits in the battery cables, no loose cables on the terminals.) Something like this can be a real hazard when you are driving though so I would suggest getting it in to a mechanic as soon as possible.

Answer 4

you would probaly get a better answer if you added the make/age of your auto. sounds like a ground problem in your electrical system, start with your ground cable on the battery, make sure there is no oxidization on the copper and you have a good connection from battery to engine then start looking at all the ground wires to lights(heads and tails) and under the dash.If the copper in the battery cables is at all dis colored, replace it. Good Luck.

Answer 5

Start by making sure your battery cables and both clean and tight. If they are and the problem continues, take it to your mechanic and have him take a look, since I can't see it from here.

Answer 6

Loose or corroded battery connection.
(between the battery post and cable.)

Answer 7

sounds like you have a bad ground connection need to check and clean and tighten your ground wire hope that helps you .it could even be dirty or rusted at connections will cause that to happen

Answer 8

i don't know what kind of vechicle you have but it sounds like it could be a ignition switch problem,you may want to try replacing ignition switch and see what happens.

Answer 9

Check your alternator?