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My 2003 Pontiac Vibe GT has about 130,000 miles. I’ve only owned it about two months now. Battery was very old and I could charge it but it would go down if the car sat for a week or so. So, today I replaced the battery. Got back in car and no crank/no start. Checked new battery – it’s fine. Still nothing. Checked terminals and wires coming to terminals – seem fine. Decided to put in old battery. Still no crank/no start. Headlights come on bright. I can hear the fuel pump come on. The clutch safety switch clicks (so it’s working) but no crank. Car seems to have a security system but I’ve never seen it even blink. I presume it’s something with the wiring near the battery OR it’s something with the security system (just guessing on that). I do not have electrical test equipment (other than battery tester) so it’s probably going to be towed to a shop I like BUT I’d love to try to figure it our WITHOUT taking it to the shop. Thought maybe someone reading this post would have an idea of exactly what it could be. I’m willing to try to do more but I need guidance. Thanks!
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I’m old school on this stuff but I do not hear the click of a solenoid if that still applies to newer cars.
Do you have a meter or test light? If so check and make sure you are getting your battery voltage down there. And also check into voltage drop. Sounds like the possibility of a bad starter to me. Find something to tap on the starter solenoid with. And see if she’ll turn over.
No theft light flashing while trying to crank?
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Is it the ETEC engine? I believe it might be. If so, then the starter motor is on the rear of the engine accessible from underneath the car.
There are two cables on the plus battery terminal. one goes to the starter and the other to all other electronics. Battery from the ignition is applied to the small wire on the starter from the ignition system and the starter solenoid engages the starter into the flywheel and applies power to the starter motor.
If the solenoid is working it will make a clicking sound and that would mean all the wiring is good including the ignition wiring. If it clicks and the starter motor does not run then the starter is most likely bad. Sometimes banging on the solenoid while the key is in the start position will cause the contact in the solenoid to make connection and apply power to the starter motor.The security system is most likely just reading the security key and will not prevent the car from cranking but may keep it from running.
I’m going to try to get a meter on the cables tomorrow. Hard to reach where the car is parked. Theft light is on when I lock the car but unlocked it never comes on or flashes. I figure it’s a wire (or a fuse).
No clicking noise from solenoid. So I figure wire or fuse. Car is park on a side-slope (level as far as rolling). Makes it a pain to jack or move. This type of electrical is my weak-point as far as working on car. I have volt/ohm but deciding where to hook it up has me confused.
You will use your meter in this case as if it were a test light. Set the meter selector for 20VDC or 50VDC, connect the black lead (plugged into common -) on the meter to the negative battery terminal or a metal part of the engine or chassis. Touch the plus (red) meter lead to the plus terminal of the battery and you should see a little over 12 VDC if the battery is fully charged. Now connect the plus meter lead to the small wire on the starter and turn the ignition key to the start position. You should see 12 VDC if the ignition switch and associated wiring is OK. Also read the voltage on the large wire of the starter it should be 12 VDC. If you see 12VDC on the little wire and big wire of the solenoid then the starter solenoid is bad.
If the ignition wire on the solenoid is not getting voltage look for a fuse blown or perhaps wire damage.
It’s not always easy to remove a starter, but you can and take it in to a parts store to be bench tested for free.
There is a clutch switch? If so that could be a thing.
Many alarms have a starter disable built in. There may be a reset switch, really small and likely hid far up under the dash or in the kick panel.Be careful on that incline if you raise the car please.
I recently went through this on my new Acura Vigor. I started at the solenoid wire to see if I had power to it when I turned the key. I didn’t. I then powered up the solenoid and the starter cranked. I had confirmed the issue had to be something in the solenoid circuit. Following the diagram, I was able to trace the problem back to bad clutch switch. More info here.
http://www.ericthecarguy.com/faq/solving-automotive-no-start-problems
Please keep us updated on your progress.
Clutch switch is clicking and was working prior to changing battery. Since problem happened when I changed the battery (the old battery would still crank the car slowly – in other words, it was not dead). I have visually checked wiring around battery and even moved wires around while friend tried to start the car (yes, this was done carefully using insulated pliers) but no change. Tomorrow I can get car on a lift and, with help from a pro, will figure this out. I’ll post outcome. Thanks for input.
This may sound dumb but rereading your first post have you checked all your fuses? You say before the battery replacement it the starter spun the car over just fine yes?
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SOLVED! Had current to starter! It was the starter! Replaced starter and all is well. And yes, I got help replacing the starter to be sure it was done right 🙂
I think it’s somewhat ironic that the way to see if it’s actually the starter is to bang on the starter and see if it cranks. And it did, but it didn’t sound pretty at all. So it was replaced. 🙂
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