Hello all maybe someone could offer some advice on this one as I’m beating my head against the wall.

2013 Hyundai Elantra. The problem started off as a no crank no start well sorta…initially when you turned the key it would make a click but not like a dead battery click it was more like it was about to try and crank but would immediately stop. I used a jump box and it started right up.

The following morning it wouldn’t start again…again I hit it with the jump box and it started. Had to do that 3 times throughout the day. That night I put a new battery in it as the one that was in there was over 5 years old already. With the new battery it started right up. The next morning … Had to use the jump box again! What the heck!! But after using the box in the morning it started fine all throughout the day probably 3 or so times without the box.

It worked fine for a couple of days but then one morning it just wouldn’t start with or without the jump box. Now it just cranks but doesn’t start.

-I cleaned the positive and negative battery cable terminals. -I cleaned 3 different ground cables.

  • I pulled the starter and checked it on the old battery and when power is applied it turns on. Additionally, while spinning I (probably idiotic but I didn’t know how else to test) tried retracting the gear to confirm the little internal lever that engages the starter gear wasn’t snapped. Put the starter back in the car.
  • I pulled the crank position sensor which is sending an AC current when I wave a wrench in front of it I pulled the spark plugs which were dark but otherwise pretty unremarkable looking.(not really sure what I was looking for but was hoping something would jump out at me) additionally they smelled like fuel which to me indicated that the injectors were working but I realize that may not necessarily be true.
  • checked all the fuses and swapped the starter relay with another similar relay in case it was acting up. -Ive tried starting the vehicle in park and neutral as well as trying to start while pressing the accelerator pedal a bit.

I’m going crazy trying to figure this thing out and just don’t really know where to turn next. Its my wife’s car so I need to get it fixed for her and we have no money for a shop right now.

Does anyone have any suggestions or see anything obvious I may have overlooked?

  • firstcallautomotive@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Sounds like 2 separate (but maybe related) issues. First is a parasitic draw that’s killing your battery, second is the crank no start.

    The first step is always scanning for codes (if the battery is dead, connect jump pack or cables and try to start the with jump pack or cables still connected check for codes… You’re looking to see if something like a cam or crank sensor code pops up. If the battery dies the codes erase.

    If the code scan doesn’t give any clues the you are going to need to verify that you have spark. Several ways to do that, just check out a YouTube vid or 2 if you need a walkthrough.

    If your plugs were wet and smelled like gas I’m assuming you’ve got no spark. If that’s the case determining why, will take a bit more diagnosing.