Random starting

Joined
Feb 16, 2005
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910
Location
Scituate MA
Previously posted this issue here. Ended up with both new battery and new alternator. Car worked fine for past two weeks. Then had it out yesterday drove around
went to a store came out a few mins later and wouldn't start...lots of click...click...click and would almost start or would start then die. After 5 or 6 attempts...I revved her really high while starting and then it caught and started.

I think or thought the previous issue was a drain...and I unplugged the kids bluetooth radio connection to cig lighter and thought I solved it. Cause every time they plugged it in it would have trouble starting. But yesterday it did it again with nothing plugged in...no accessories.

Any ideas now?
 
So, to be clear, it sometimes will not engage the starter but for a click?

AND when it does finally crank it also struggles to fire and run on its own? How does it crank when it does crank? Slowly? Healthy?

I ask because these would typically be two separate issues
 
I always start with sparkplugs, points, condenser, rotor and cap. Possibly new spark plug wires too.

Maybe re-clean the battery terminals and cables?
 
08 Camry.

Cranks great but the idle drops, I wait a min then crank..and it won't turn over...just kind of random. Then I will try to time it and old school rev it to see if it catches...doesn't really work but got it to start...just lucky.
 
What do you mean by “turn over”? To me, turn over means, starter engages, engines turns. It’s turning over. AKA cranks.

Starting is when the engine starts to run on its own, fuel being burned.

So, it turns over, but doesn’t start?
 
If just clicking and not engaging connect a jumper from the negative battery post and then to a solid ground on the engine. If it cranks over fine then you have a bad ground. This can also be done on the positive side to the starter relay or solenoid. It may reveal a bad cable but doesn’t elimate the possibility of bad starter relay or solenoid.
 
Sorry...my fault on turning over explanation...I was thinking turn over was start.

Yes turns over...click click click but doesn't start.
 
Sorry...my fault on turning over explanation...I was thinking turn over was start.

Yes turns over...click click click but doesn't start.
Ok so for you "clicking" is the starter cranking?

Then this is less electrical and more engine management. Soooo....could be a lot of things. Flakey fp relay? Cam or crank sensor? TPS or IAC

Does it ever do this after sitting for extended periods? Or does it always start fine cold and only do this after you've run into a store for a couple minutes and try to restart?
 
Shoot, thinking further on the OP's description of a click, are we looking at a starter just not engaging the flexplate?

The semantics really cloud the issue here
 
Sorry...my fault on turning over explanation...I was thinking turn over was start.

Yes turns over...click click click but doesn't start.
Okay, so it's not turning over then, it's just clicking, turning over means it's cranking; starter solenoid maybe?
 
When I think “click click click” I think of a low battery when the starter just makes clicking sounds so I’m a bit confused with this thread.

Turning over would be the engine cranking but not starting (crank no start). Starting would be when the engine is running on its own.

At first I was going to suggest making sure battery negative to body ground cable was good. That seems to be a common problem on older Kia Souls, the ground cable at the body gets corroded. And sometimes the positive cable gets corroded at the starter too. But now I’m not sure what to say. 😫
 
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If the engine is actually turning over (spinning) then it doesn't sound like "click". It sounds like "wromp . wromp . wromp". If it goes "click ... click ... click" then it means the engine is not spinning. That's usually a problem with the starter, solenoid, etc. I've sometimes heard that sound from the starter when the battery is too weak to turn over the engine.
 
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