osiris79

I've owned a bunch of vehicles and have never had this happen.

About two weeks ago my '03 Z wouldn't start. Push started it and was able to get to the parts store. Tested the battery and found it needed replacing. I put a new one in and all was fine. Then, about a week ago it decided not to start again. I'd get a little click and that was it. The fuel pump turned on and the lights weren't dimming, so I figured it was the starter. Unfortunately it snowed that night and now its finally melted down to where I could get to the underside of the vehicle.

Here's the strange part. For poo and giggles I thought I'd try starting it and it started right up. No hesitation, no clicking, just a strong, perfect start.

Any idea whats going on? I'd rather not build up a false sense of security and get stranded somewhere.

winchman

Starter is probably on the way out. When the brushes start to wear out, they don't always make good contact with the commutator.

The single click is probably the solenoid, so that rules out the clutch switch or AT neutral/park switch as the problem.

osiris79

Awesome. Thanks for your help!

ARCGuy

I'm just gonna second that real quick. About two months ago, just before the snow started here in CT (Thank the good Lord for that small blessing) my Camaro started acting kind of funny. Sometimes I'd turn the key and it'd start right up, other times it'd just act kind of funny and not want to start. I wans't sure what the issue was. Wound up replacing the battery for no good reason before yanking off the starter. Had it checked out, and, yep, that was the problem. I guess they start to develop "flat spots" when they're wearing out where sometimes they'll work and the car will start right up, and others you'll turn the ignition and get nothing. And then they fail completely. A new starter and I'm having no problems.