I drive an 06 Z with 25K KM on it.

Every time i go to start up the car it always takes me a few attempts to get it to start. The first few times I turn the key to the accessory position and all lights come on as normal. Then I turn the key to the start position and nothing happens. The engine does not even try to turn over and there are no other sounds, clicking, warning lights, nothing. After a few unsuccessful tries i finally get lucky turn the key and the engine will crank and start normally. Ive checked the fuses, battery connections, and my spare key with no luck.

Any ideas or suggestions?

Thanks everyone,
Steve

 

Possible bad/dead battery?

 

^+1 As soon as i read your post i thought the same thing as DB350. Take it to your local auto parts store so they can see if it a dead battery.

 

If it cranks normally after a couple of tries, seems the battery would be ok. Maybe something in the ignition switch itself?

 

Thanks for the ideas. Yeah could possibly be the ignition switch. Im also thinking it may be the clutch switch.

If i hold the key in the start position and pump the clutch eventually it will turn over.

I had the batt tested its fine.

 

You can check that easily enough. Just take the connector out of the back of the switch and jump the two pins together with a short piece of wire. If she starts up reliably like that then you need a new switch, or go without it or whatever you want to do.

 

I drive a 03' Enthusiast and it has the same exact problem... the clutch switch is 20 bucks at autozone so i might try and see if that works. I think it is the switch cause when it first started going bad i would push it with my finger and it would start. Its getting worse though let me know if you find a solution and ill let you know by the end of the weekend how mine troubleshooting goes...

 

I'm having the same problem. Where is the clutch switch located?

 

Just behind the clutch pedal. Get your head down there and you'll see a little black button where the clutch pedal lever depresses the switch when the pedal is down.

Pull the connector out of the back of the switch, take a short piece of copper wire and strip it at both ends and use it to jump the two pins on the connector, this will bypass the switch. If your starting problems go away then that is the problem. If they persist, it's time to check elsewhere.

 

Same problem here,

I just bought an '05 Enthusiast, was working fine one day, then earlier this morning it wouldnt start. Ive been working on cars for a while, and could immeadiatly tell by the symptoms that it was not a mechanical failure of the engine or related... so i stick my head under the dash, find the clutch interlock switch, ravaged it a bit (vigorous pushing of the button) ...turned the key, starts up fine now. it happened again while i was at home, repeated the process and it started again. I think i am going get a new switch from the dealer tomorrow or tonight.

since I litterally just bought the car (wednesday lol), does anyone have any suggestions for replacing procedure? Im thinking its just a few screws or plastic clip holding it in, but Im at work all day and cant really leave my cubicle to check it out

 

Well i found the problem and it was what we thought. Fortunately its only a 20 dollar fix and they do sell them at autozone. BTW i did bretts troubleshooting rig with a paperclip and worked great. You the man Brett

 

Is it too dangerous (mechanically/electronically) to just leave the switch jumped? I am the only driver, no kids around to accidentally start it or anything. Plus I already have a ocd habit of checking the position of the shifter before turning on the vehicle. I heard somewhere that the 350z acts weird if left jumped... is this true? or can i just leave it jumped and be done with it?

 

There won't be any ill effect mechanically or electronically by leaving it jumped. I've noticed that techs like to leave the car in gear, if you were to have your car worked on and it was the ONE time that you forgot to check...

 

Thanks for the info; I too have noticed that techs almost always leave the car in gear on my previous vehicles. I went ahead and jumped the switch... hope my ocd shifter habits dont fail me! haha Thanks again guys for the info! I have enjoyed other car forums in the past, but now that I bought my Z, I am glad to have found this site in particular.

 

The only trouble leaving it jumped is that it could ground out to something under the dash and blow a fuse somewhere, and you don't want that. Just bite the bullet on the switch or cut the connector out completely and solder the wires together.

 

Thanks for the heads up! You have a great point. I did a nice job jumping it and making it electrically isolated, but ill solder it when I get the next oppertunity, probably this weekend. ...or ill buy the switch this weekend lol

 

Alright so got it all figured out.

Sorry for the long delay...

As thought the culprit was the clutch switch. I disconnected the plug and jumped it with a piece of wire...started reliably.

Ordered a new switch from Nissan and put it in today. Problem solved.

Thx everyone for their input.

 

There was a time when cars didnt have electronic safety measures. I'm sure it'lll be fine.

 

Yup, I think the last Z car without a clutch switch was the 280zx, and those saw sales until I think 86.