Won't Start. Ignition Switch??

Mikey

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Could a bad ignition switch be the reason for a no start? Ive checked everything else and this is the only thing left I can come up with. If so, anyone know what kind of labor/money Im looking at to fix a bad switch?
 
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Darianjr1

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Only causes I know of would be battery, starter, alternator, and/or loose wiring. Narrow it down by the sound of what you hear and what has been checked by autozone. And rarely but sure check the fuses it could be something that small
 

001Stunna

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Could a bad ignition switch be the reason for a no start? Ive checked everything else and this is the only thing left I can come up with. If so, anyone know what kind of labor/money Im looking at to fix a bad switch?


Does the car crank and not start?
Have you checked the battery voltage? checked for spark? the fuel pump priming? Main Relay?
 

Mikey

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All I get is "click click". Battery is good, fuel/spark are good. IDK why but I didnt think to check alternator. Darian just reminded me, lol. I'll check that and see. Hope its not the Main Relay....
 

001Stunna

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All I get is "click click". Battery is good, fuel/spark are good. IDK why but I didnt think to check alternator. Darian just reminded me, lol. I'll check that and see. Hope its not the Main Relay....

Could be a bad starter solenoid...however i've had a battery that showed 12.8v but it wouldn;t start the car. Hooked up the battery to charge for 3 hours and it still showed 12.8v afterwards but the car started perfectly.

In addition make sure all the grounds are still intact (battery-chassis/engine chassis/battery to engine(by the tranny dipstick on i4)


...addition...
what usually happens is the starter motor draws from the battery in means of starting the car, however it could be your battery voltage drops too low once the starter starts drawing power and hence make it insufficient to hold the solenoid and it disengages. Reason why you hear the click is as the solenoid engages and disengages, as it disengages the battery voltage recovers allowing the solenoid to re-engage and starting the cycle all over again. The cycling of the starter solenoid is what makes the rapid clicking sound.

I would say trying boosting the car and see if it turns over, if not i would look at ground wires/starter connection wires or the starter.
 
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RedRyder

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If you hear the fuel pump engage (faint whining noise) when you turn the key to the ON position, it’s not your main relay. If you hear clicking when trying to start the car it’s not the starter, if you’re not hearing clicking then it may be the starter or solenoid. If it’s cranking but not turning over it could be the battery, which are sometimes funky like Stunna said. Unlikely it’s the alternator, if the battery wasn’t getting charged you would have noticed the car behaving differently over the past couple days.

Ignition I’m not sure about. You could try resetting the ECU then make sure the front wheels are straight and try starting it again.
 

Mikey

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If it’s cranking but not turning over it could be the battery, which are sometimes funky like Stunna said.
I'll have the battery and alt checked.

You could try resetting the ECU then make sure the front wheels are straight and try starting it again.
What's that about?
 

RedRyder

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Could be irrelevant, but my thinking was that sometimes I can’t insert my key in my ignition depending on how far the wheel is turned. It never goes in at lock (I have to turn it an inch or so back toward center), and at a few intervals inbetween it happens as well (from what I’ve read this seems common).

So I figured it might be possible that if you reset the ECU and started the car with the wheels straight, that would avoid any possible issue that come could arise from these ignitions being twitchy. May not make a difference like I said.
 

Mikey

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Well, the battery thats in it is the one that I bought it with; Interstate. Blegh! Lol. Not a fan at all. But, until now, I've never had an issue. Not even so much as a hesitation.
 

bagoon316

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clicking is usually the starter, happened in my cb, replaced it, worked like a charm. this was after i got annoyed of beating it with a hammer every now and then.
 
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