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Starting Question: What is this?
Posted: Sun Sep 15, 2013 10:08 pm
by KenB
From time to time, my car scares me by doing the following:
Turn the key to start. Hold it. Nothing...nothing...nothing...(up to 6-7 seconds)...START UP!
Typically, I then drive it to wherever I'm going and it starts right up again when I get back in. And everything may be fine again for weeks or months. And then it happens again.
So, what *is* that??
I ask because it happened to me today far, far from home at what would have been a very inconvenient time. Needless to say, those were an agonizing 6 seconds. :/
KenB
Posted: Sun Sep 15, 2013 11:05 pm
by Mike W.
I, who some people think know everything, (but I don't) don't know. But... I did have a parts car one time that was kind of like that. Turn the key, it made kind of a whirring noise for a second or two, then it would hit. It wasn't the starter as it was a rebuilt one I took off and put on a E28 I proceeded to put 155K on which never did that. So, it was the car. An auto, is yours? Neutral safety switch? Bad ignition switch? As it was a parts car I never got into troubleshooting.
Posted: Mon Sep 16, 2013 1:11 pm
by KenB
Mine is a manual. I have heard the barely audible whirring during that interval--sometimes. It almost sounds as if current is "gathering" and then all of a sudden bursts forth.
My thought is it's got to be either a starter motor quirk or an ignition quirk. It's a strange and disconcerting thing.
Let's solve this one issue, though, so that Mike W. will then truly know every last thing about e12s.
KenB
Posted: Wed Sep 18, 2013 2:01 am
by DMS
It's got to be either a bad contact or the starter motor that has a bad sliding axle. It's inconvient that this only happens once in a while but when it does and you can measure the current to the starter you would know more.
Do you hear it click immediatelly or after six seconds when it happens?
Posted: Wed Sep 18, 2013 10:23 am
by Eddie in TO
Mine had the same symptoms a few years ago and I had the starter rebuilt. Problem fixed.
In my opinion, if it was a contact issue, it would occur more frequently.
Posted: Tue Oct 29, 2013 8:59 pm
by Mesrine
Had the same issue a few weeks ago, freaked out at first hearing that whirring noise and didn't keep trying more than a few secs, so not sure if it would have started. I also realized the battery was low at the time, so it might be related? I just put a spare battery in and it started right away.