some problem Options

[celicaGT96]

every now and then when i try try to start my car, ill turn the key all the way but it doesent even crank
it does nothing or no noise. Ill try and try but it wont work until i put the key back to the off position and try again, and then it will start but everything resets. All my radio settings my clock and all that resets, and its getting pretty annoying...any ideas of what it might be??

i have a new yellow top optima battery btw

[rjbibeau]

my car does the same thing after the new engine. i dunno what it is.

[lilsteeg]

hmm try tightening the battery cables

[rjbibeau]

they are tight on mine.

[hitcachi]

make sure all battery cables are tight and also look for a lose ground wire. THere are going to be more then one. Might be 2 or 3. Check around. The fact that everything is resetting is definatly a battery connection. If it wasnt resetting then u would be haveing a starter problem. To find out if its a starter problem, when it wont start, tap the starter yourself, while u have someone occasionaly try to turn the key. Then listen for a grinding noise when the engine cranks and starts. Should be the solenoid making the noise. Good luck.

[celicaGT96]

thanks alot for the info, but if anyone has any other ideas then please let me know

[rjbibeau]

how do yo go about tapping the starter?

[hitcachi]

wrench or ball peen hammer.

[bindertch]

I had this problem with a different vehicle of mine. It was deffinately a power issue. Unfortunately like Hitcachi said you will have to check all of the electrical connections. It tok me the better half of a day to find that I had a wire that was separating from it's connector inside the engine bay. Good luck

[zachattack15]

Um i think i had the same problem. If i remember correctly it was the ignition coil.

[lagos]

i had this problem on my swap. i would turn the key, and get no starter or anything, then next thing i know it would fire right up . later on, the car started stalling out at random. turned out that the harness plug that goes to the ignitor was not making good contact with the pins of the ignitor. it was a strange issue and very hard to track down, but seems common for us, since another member on here ended up having the same problem as well on his 5sfe that he just installed.

[lilsteeg]

I had this problem with a different vehicle of mine. It was deffinately a power issue. Unfortunately like Hitcachi said you will have to check all of the electrical connections. It tok me the better half of a day to find that I had a wire that was separating from it's connector inside the engine bay. Good luck

i know i had that same thing on my old firebird, a first year old pontiac is never gonna be a well built car