Intermittent starting '96 Achieva SC 3.1

Real crazy problem with my daughter's 96 Achieva SC 3.1L. 153,000 miles Problem began last week. Motor will crank but not start. I can hear what I would call backfiring under the hood. Usually after many tries it will start and run fine. Sometimes it will just start up fine, and other times it will have this problem.

Reading these forums, my head is spinning, Is it a crankshaft position sensor?, a throttle position sensor,?, a fuel relay, fuel pump, or a passkey problem? Maybe an electrical glitch????

My regular mechanic is at a loss. He had it for a week, and every time he tried to start it, it fired right up, so he thinks, well, no problem....

Long story short, it sits 5 hours in my driveway, and has the same no start problem!!!!! Then this morning, it starts right up???

Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated

Real crazy problem with my daughter's 96 Achieva SC 3.1L. 153,000 miles Problem began last week. Motor will crank but not start. I can hear what I would call backfiring under the hood. Usually after many tries it will start and run fine. Sometimes it will just start up fine, and other times it will have this problem.

Reading these forums, my head is spinning, Is it a crankshaft position sensor?, a throttle position sensor,?, a fuel relay, fuel pump, or a passkey problem? Maybe an electrical glitch????

My regular mechanic is at a loss. He had it for a week, and every time he tried to start it, it fired right up, so he thinks, well, no problem....

Long story short, it sits 5 hours in my driveway, and has the same no start problem!!!!! Then this morning, it starts right up???

Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated

More on this... I noticed that when you turn the key to the first click, and the dash lights DONT come on (Security, Oil Pressure, battery, etc...) then it will not start. Every time the lights come on, it starts up fine

I can't wait till you find out, my daughters car does the same thing. but you can try to just turn the key on and leave it and see if the idiot lights come on, it works for us. Sometimes it takes a couple of minutes.

Jeff,
I just had my son who works in a BMW dealership as a service tech borrowed a GM scan tool and our car kept coming up with codes P1629, P1573, P1641 which is a security system malfunction code. I am thinking about disabling the passlock II system and seeing what that does. I can also "force" the car to start by holding the pedal to the floor and cranking. The car starts, but the lights do not come on for a few seconds or even minutes. When I start it this way, the ETS switch doesn't work and the indicator lights for the shifter do not work either. Crazy, right?? I am ready to pack it in with this car. I cannot trust it with my daughter. If it was mine, I would just live with it...
I can't wait till you find out, my daughters car does the same thing. but you can try to just turn the key on and leave it and see if the idiot lights come on, it works for us. Sometimes it takes a couple of minutes.