turned the key over, took 9 times to start...

[Green Machine 95]

I was at work (delievering) and I went to start my car and the first 8 times I tried I didnt get anything, the lights and radio came on but the car didnt turn on. I thought maybe it was the key being dirty so I tried my spare and it still didnt start. After about 8-9 times it came on. I hope my starter isn't going bad.

[RoraStar96]

Did the car struggle to start? Or didnt the car turn over at all?

[Isnibs]

If it was a dirty key you would get a wait three minutes message on the DIC
You said ' the lights and radio came on but the car didn't turn on '
Do you mean the warning lights at the top of the dash? If so
First I would check the Ignition Switch.
Then you can check the Neutral Safety Switch, the Starter Solenoid, the Starter Relay and the starter motor.

[Green Machine 95]

what would I need to look for in all these?

[Green Machine 95]

hmm last night while it happened again, the security light was on, I never noticed it before, but maybe it was on everytime this happened, when the light went off it started. But the weird thing is, is why am I missing the start, my buddy said it might be a loose wire for the starter

[hnavarre]

Originally Posted by Green Machine 95

hmm last night while it happened again, the security light was on, I never noticed it before, but maybe it was on everytime this happened, when the light went off it started. But the weird thing is, is why am I missing the start, my buddy said it might be a loose wire for the starter

If the security light is coming on, try hitting the unlock button and try it again.

[ghutchin]

Hitting the lock button won't do anything. You have to wait 3 minutes no matter what. And during this time the starter will not turn over. The security system disables it so you can't steal the car.

[Green Machine 95]

hmm...today i was thinking, maybe ill just turn the key over lightly, and so far today nothing has happened, its weird...

[hairybear]

Same thing happened to me, had to take it to g.m.dealer and replaced the ing. cylinder, now it is o.k. cost $250.00.

[Green Machine 95]

would that be on the steering colum, because I have an extra full steering colum 8)

[kobalt]

Here is a copy/paste from my eariler post that ming be of help:

This procedure builds up pressure in the fuel rail and worked on a 96 tbird with startup problems.

If the engine cranks hard, turn your ignition from the off position to where all accesories come on (do not crank the engine) back and forth 4 or 5 times with perhaps 1 second intervals. Then crank the motor it just might start with no problem.

[Green Machine 95]

security light comes on after 1 bad start (no hard cranks, no sound at all).....4-5 min later, goes off, car starts, weird

[dsatt12]

Do 95s actually tell you 'clean key and wait 3 minutes' in the DIC? I thought I heard somewhere that was introduced in later models.

I had exactly one incident like what is being described with my car not wanting to turn over at all. It never said anything to be sure. I checked all my fuses and battery voltage, put everything back together, and the car started not on the first try, but the second (about 5 seconds later). I'm just keeping my finger crossed.

[Whisper783]

K...... Take it to a shop and ask them if the alternator is bad.. I was having the same problem. thought either my starter or fuel pump were going out, or both..then oneday it wouldnt start at all.. thought my battery died.. jumped it then when i turned it off 2 hours later and came back the next day.. it wouldnt start again.. took it to the shop, the said battery, fuel pump and starter were fine but the alternator was bad. Paying 90 something after core charge at auto zone for a new one

[ghutchin]

Is anyone actually reading his post. This is insane.

Lets go through a few things. Our cars have a passive security system called passkey. Do you see the little black think on our keys. Well that is a resistor. When you put the key in the ignition and turn it a sensor reads the value of the resistor if it is correct then the car turns over and starts. If the value is incorrect then the car disables the starter and turns on the security light on the dash. At this point not matter what you do you have to wait atleast 3 minutes to try again. If you actually leave the key in the run position after a couple of seconds the DIC should read "Clean key - wait 3 minutes"

This whole process of reading the resister and decieding wether or not to start the car happens as you are turning the key to start the car and unless aware of it the driver doesn't even know its happeing.

So whats the problem. Well the car thinks you are using the wrong key simply because the resistance it is measuring is incorrect. But the resistance can be incorrect for a numebr of reasons. One reason might be a dirty key.

However if it is happening regularly its a sign that either the key or the sensor in the ignition cylinder have worn out. You see the resistor has metal on it and the sensor that it plugs into has metal on it and over the years of putting the key in and taking it out things wear out. The key stops making "good electrical" contact with the sensor and the sensor is then unable to read the resistance of the key correctly and disables the started because it thinks the wrong key is being used. But this can happen intermitantly and so sometime it is fine and other times the car won't start. But if the car won't start due to this problem then the dash security light will always come on.

Next time you try to start it, put it in the run posistion and crank, if it doesn't crank dont' turn the key back, just leave it in the run position like you wanted to listen to the radio with out starting the car. Anyways the DIC should display the message.