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96 Eagle Vision No Start.


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RoboDisko
User

Nov 4, 2013, 9:57 PM

Post #1 of 8 (2456 views)
  post locked   96 Eagle Vision No Start.  

1996 Eagle Vision ESi 3.5L about 140K
Ok. Car won't start. The starter isn't engaging. When the key is turned, 2 relays click (1 of them I know is the starter relay), but the starter don't react. Battery voltage is good. I don't know if the solenoid is supposed to make a noise, but I don't hear anything except the relays.

It has done this before twice. Both times it did the exact same thing for a few days, then magically started working again. I'm getting tired of, "Surprise! Your car isn't going to take you home today!" So a permanent fix would be nice.

What do you suggest attempting on this vehicle?


nickwarner
Veteran / Moderator
nickwarner profile image

Nov 5, 2013, 2:57 AM

Post #2 of 8 (2441 views)
  post locked   Re: 96 Eagle Vision No Start.  

Start with having your battery load tested so you know for sure it is good. They can read normal voltage when sitting and fail when loaded, so it needs to be tested. Most parts stores will do this for free. Before you pull that battery out, I want you to grab ahold of the cable ends bolted to the terminals and see if they are actually tight. A loose connection can do this to you. Also make sure they are clean to the point of shiny on the contact surfaces and the cables are in good shape. If you have green death in the wiring you'll never get this working right until that is fixed.

After you have done that, if the problem persists, get down to the starter itself and see if the cable end is corroded or loose there. Also make sure the small trigger wire is clean and tight.

If it has passed all those tests, hook either a 12v test light or a multimeter to the small trigger wire and have someone turn the key to the start position. See if you are getting 12v there. You should be when the key is in the start position. If you are getting the signal, and have verified that your battery and cables are all good, you are looking at a bad starter.


RoboDisko
User

Nov 9, 2013, 9:26 PM

Post #3 of 8 (2407 views)
  post locked   Re: 96 Eagle Vision No Start.  

Since the vehicle wasn't experiencing any significant voltage drops when attempting to start, I didn't bother to check the battery.

Under your advice, I pulled of the trigger wire and stuck a multimeter on it. It was around 12v. So I checked the solenoid input voltage when trying to start. It was 11.8V. Solenoid output was around 10.5V. I thought that might be an issue. At this point I was suspecting the starter might be bad. I wiggled the wire that came out of the solenoid and goes to the starter a good bit, and tried the voltage on the solenoid output again, but it started. So apparently the wire from the solenoid to the starter is loose. I'm going to leave it as-is unless we start having more frequent issues.

Thanks for the help! It really does help.


Hammer Time
Ultimate Carjunky / Moderator
Hammer Time profile image

Nov 10, 2013, 5:47 AM

Post #4 of 8 (2405 views)
  post locked   Re: 96 Eagle Vision No Start.  

Your tests are pointing toward a bad starter.



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We offer help in answering questions, clarifying things or giving advice but we are not a substitute for an on-site inspection by a professional.



RoboDisko
User

Nov 13, 2013, 4:45 PM

Post #5 of 8 (2389 views)
  post locked   Re: 96 Eagle Vision No Start.  

I'm pretty sure it's not a bad starter but a bad wire between the solenoid and the starter. Right now when it won't turn over I just open up the engine compartment and wiggle that wire a bit, and it usually works fine. However, I will probably take the time sometime to take the starter off and fix it right.


RoboDisko
User

Nov 28, 2013, 10:48 PM

Post #6 of 8 (2341 views)
  post locked   Re: 96 Eagle Vision No Start.  

I've managed to find the root issue. It starts just fine now, but this is what was wrong:

Recently the starting issue continued to degrade until it wouldn't start at all even after wiggling the wire to the starter. Took the starter off and it turns out the positive brushes in the starter were worn out. (the wire wiggling moved the brushes just enough to allow it to start) One could replace the whole starter for around $100, but I just bought some new brushes at about $10. After replacing the brushes in the starter, the vehicle no longer has the issue.

Thanks for the help everyone.


Hammer Time
Ultimate Carjunky / Moderator
Hammer Time profile image

Nov 29, 2013, 3:37 AM

Post #7 of 8 (2336 views)
  post locked   Re: 96 Eagle Vision No Start.  

That may be a temporary fix. I doubt the rest of that start has much life left. Changing the whole starter was the correct way to repair that.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We offer help in answering questions, clarifying things or giving advice but we are not a substitute for an on-site inspection by a professional.



Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky / Moderator
Tom Greenleaf profile image

Nov 29, 2013, 3:43 AM

Post #8 of 8 (2333 views)
  post locked   Re: 96 Eagle Vision No Start.  

Good that you found it and could do just brushes, many folks wont repair their own. Sounds like you are all set for a while. I'll close thread to keep spammer out and you can request it open again by any mod,

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