car won’t turn on after being turned on?
Posted by ih8tories@reddit | askcarguys | View on Reddit | 20 comments
Title sounds stupid but not sure how to explain it. i can turn the car on and it’ll run fine, but once turned off it will not turn back on unless i wait for like 10-20 mins.
One_Evil_Monkey@reddit
Need to be a little more specific.
Like: Car starts perfectly fine with the turn of the key when engine is cold but after driving it, the engine won't turn over at all and I get is a click until it's cooled down.
Or: Engine starts just fine when engine is cold but after driving all I get is an engine that turns over but will not start until it has cooled down.
Could be a few different things. Exhaust leak heating up the starter motor or the starter motor solenoid. Or a bad ground connect at the engine block.
A little more detail would help.
ih8tories@reddit (OP)
it’s more like the first one. it won’t even attempt to turn over when hot, but i don’t hear a click, just an electric buzz. (12 plate smart 451 passion)
One_Evil_Monkey@reddit
So it's a 2nd gen Smart 451?
IIRC those use a starter/alternator.
The battery causes it to spin, starting the engine, once the engine running the "starter" actually becomes the alternator to provide power to the electrical system and charge the battery.
Be be the first thing I'd check out. If it's getting hot and a bearing is going out of something to effect, it may ve just a case of replacing the starter/alternator.
ih8tories@reddit (OP)
i also have a broken exhaust and someone on the thread said that can overheat the starter, i think the starter is deffo the first thing to look at. thanks for the help!
One_Evil_Monkey@reddit
IIRC the starter/generator is up top, not exaxtly near the exhaust per se. Pretty sure they have bearing issues though.
If I'm not mistaken though, even though it's up top and visible, the rear bumper cover has to come off, rear bumper support structure has to come off, the 4 bolts that hold the rear engine cradle/sub-frame have to come out, and the sub-frame has to be lowered about 4 inches in order to get the starter/generator belt off and the starter/generator itself out.
Not technically hard with the right tools, but a little bit of a time consuming process.
Good luck.
YeahIGotNuthin@reddit
You have to be specific, because the phrase "turn on" can mean different things. (Hell, you used it to mean two different things in the same sentence.)
First of all, WHAT KIND OF CAR? Seriously, that's like saying "my pet is having trouble breathing." What the hell are we supposed to do, guess? "If it's a fish and it jumped out of the fishbowl, you had put it back in the water; if it's a gerbil that jumped into the fishbowl, you had better take it out of the water." The things you know because you can go sit in the car? WE DON'T KNOW ANY OF THOSE THINGS.
Second of all, you do a bunch of different things to get into a car and start it and drive it, and we need to know THE EXACT THING that happens wrong, and when it happens wrong.
Like, do you just get into your car with a key in your pocket, and the car knows the key is inside, and you just have to push a button on the dashboard to start the car, but sometimes pushing the button doesn't work? or do you have like a normal key you have to stick into a slot and turn it? Does it usually make a car-starting noise and then it starts, but other times it makes the car-starting noise but then FAILS to start? or does it just not make the car-starting noise at all? Do lights normally come on when you open the door? do they fail to come on and you think "welp, here we go, not gonna start again."
TunaSandwish01@reddit
All that energy just to say "be more specific" is kinda wild. Try being less condescending!
YeahIGotNuthin@reddit
OP needs to know what to "be more specific" ABOUT.
"It's blue, but kind of a silver metallic blue, not like a royal navy blue."
ih8tories@reddit (OP)
reddit wet wipe
YeahIGotNuthin@reddit
Good luck with the car.
KJClangeddin@reddit
Deep breath
OkKnee7580@reddit
Valid. At least give us a car model and a noise that it makes.
MisterBitterness42@reddit
Is it louder? Does it overheat? Does it bog down and choke if you press the accelerator more? If yes, my money is on the cat being bad/clogged
KJClangeddin@reddit
If it doesn't start and makes one big loud click, 95% chance it's your starter motor. Often the motor is fine and has a bad ground wire connection, which is exacerbated by the heat from running the vehicle, or the motor itself could be bad.
If the car is cranking over and just not starting you have a more complicated issue.
hashslinqinq@reddit
Could be the starter. Could be fuel injection if it tries to start but engine falls to kick over. Mine would fail to restart after running every now and again. I ran some injector cleaner and haven't had it happen again yet
doug-demuro-is-daddy@reddit
Could be your starter motor is getting too hot? Exhaust leak by the starter perhaps? Or a heat shield fell off?
ih8tories@reddit (OP)
exhaust is a shout actually. my cars a bit of a shit box and i’ve had a dodgy exhaust for a few weeks, thanks!
doug-demuro-is-daddy@reddit
I have a shitbox car that exhaust leaks on the starter which causes this, except instead of no start it’s just a slow and labored start
frikkinfai@reddit
I had a similar issue. Car started up no problem when cold, would go run an errand, park, and come back to the car to turn on with nothing. No crank, no start, just one click. Turned out to be a bad starter motor
Bulocoo@reddit
If the lights come on and you get a "click" when you try to start it could be as simple as a bad battery connection.
If you get the engine turning and it won't light it could be the fuel system.
More details would help.