[DeTomaso] intermittent non-starting car NPC

[Larry - Ohio Time Corp]

Hi Jim,

The next time the car does not start have him check a few things.

Turn on the interior lights (headlight work better for this but hard to see
when alone). Are they the normal brightness? When he turns the key to start,
do the lights dim a lot, go out, or stay bright?

If the lights go dim or out you most likely have bad connections supplying
battery power. Check all cables and grounds. Then the starter.

If the lights stay the normal brightness. Check the key switch, neutral
safety switch (put trans in neutral to see if it starts). You can also jump
the solenoid (when it will not turn over) to see if it turns over then. 

I would bet it is a bad power or ground connection. But Toyota starters of
the mid 90's have been known to do this too.

Let me know if I can help.

Larry (95 Geo) - Cleveland


-----Original Message-----
From: detomaso-bounces at realbig.com [mailto:detomaso-bounces at realbig.com] On
Behalf Of pantdino at aol.com
Sent: Thursday, March 25, 2010 11:12 PM
To: detomaso at realbig.com
Subject: [DeTomaso] intermittent non-starting car NPC



I'm hoping you guys can give some more ideas.
My son's 1995 Lexus ES300 (fancy Camry 6 cyl, 219K miles) refuses to start
sometimes.  About a year ago it was obviously a battery power problem, as
the headlights would come on very dimly.  Turned out to be a corroded
negative ground cable and replacing it solved the problem (also put in new
battery).

But lately it sounds to me like the ignition switch or starter relay. My son
reports that --occasionally-- turning the key to start mode causes NOTHING
to happen-- no clicking, no turning over, nothing.
I have not been present at these times.  Once I arrived some hours after the
car refused to start and the headlights were bright and turning the key
caused the engine to turn over very briskly and start immediately.  I have
tried wriggling the ignition key and the battery terminals to see if I could
see the circuit cut out and they didn't 

My son usually gets a jump, which works, but I don't think the battery is
the problem so I think it's just chance that the circuit is completed that
time.

Anyone know if 1995 Japanese cars had starter solenoids (I mean separate,
like the old Mustangs), and if they can fail intermittently?  

As I write this I realize I need to quiz him if the failures only occur when
the car is hot, as I have heard of electrical components that fail when hot
and are OK again once they cool off. So by the time the friend arrives to
give him a jump or I get home it has cooled off.   I'm thinking maybe just
replace the starter motor / solenoid unit as the most likely cause?

I have a workshop manual on CD for the car but it's crappy.

Thanks

Jim



_______________________________________________

Detomaso Forum Managed by POCA

Archive Search Engine Now Available at http://www.realbig.com/detomaso/

DeTomaso mailing list
DeTomaso at list.realbig.com
http://list.realbig.com/mailman/listinfo/detomaso