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If Your Engine Won't Start
Diagnosing why your engine won't
start falls into two areas, depending
on what you hear when you turn the
key to Start (III):
You hear nothing, or almost noth-
ing. The engine's starter motor
does not operate at all, or operates
very slowly.
You can hear the starter motor
operating normally, but the engine
does not start up and run.
Taking Care of the Unexpected
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Nothing Happens or the Starter
Motor Operates Very Slowly
When you turn the ignition switch to
Start (III), you do not hear the
normal noise of the engine trying to
start. You may hear a clicking sound
or series of clicks, or nothing at all.
Check these things:
Check the transmission interlock.
If you have a 5-speed, the clutch
pedal must be pushed all the way to
the floor or the starter will not
operate. With an automatic trans-
mission, it must be in Park or
Neutral.
Turn the ignition switch to On (II).
Turn on the headlights and check
their brightness. If the headlights
are very dim or don't light at all, the
battery is discharged. See Jump
Starting on page 203.
Turn the ignition switch to START
(III). If the headlights do not dim,
check the condition of the fuses. If
the fuses are OK, there is probably
something wrong with the electri-
cal circuit for the ignition switch or
starter motor. You will need a
qualified technician to determine
the problem, (see Towing on page
213).
If the headlights dim noticea-
bly or go out when y o u try to start
the engine, either the battery is dis-
charged or the connections are
corroded. Check the condition of
the battery and terminal connec-
tions (see page 164). You can then
try jump starting the car from a
booster battery (see page 203).
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