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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 press
the ENGINE START button.
You hear nothing, or almost
nothing. The engine's starter
motor does not operate at all, or
operates very slowly.
You can hear the starter motor
operating normally, or the starter
motor sounds like it is spinning
faster than normal, but the engine
does not start up and run.
Taking Care of the Unexpected
Nothing Happens or the Starter
Motor Operates Very Slowly
When you press the ENGINE
START button, 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:
Your car has the Immobilizer
System. You should use a
properly-coded master or valet key
to start the engine (see page 59).
A key that is not properly coded
will cause the immobilizer system
indicator in the dash panel to blink
rapidly.
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 222.
Press the ENGINE START button,
then release it. If the headlights do
not dim, check the condition of the
fuses. If the fuses are OK, there is
probably something wrong with
the electrical circuit for the
ignition switch or starter motor.
You will need a qualified
technician to determine the
problem. (See Emergency
Towing on page 241.)
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