2000 z24 trouble starting

[patriot657]

I bought my daughter a 2000 z24 cavalier. I am not a mechanic. This car will die on the road. Then has a hard time restarting. When it does fire, it fires on the first crank. If it cranks over two times it is not going to start. So I return the key to off and try again and again. It will fire on the fifth or sixth try. There is a clicking or static noise coming from near the steering column right before the car dies on the road. My daughter refuses to drive this car now. I don't blame her. I have taken the car to our local dealer and they have not been able to fix the problem after replacing the ignition switch and some sensors. This car had a auto remote start added at Christmas 2004 and we thought that might be part of the problem so we disconnected it and the car still dies. Any suggestions would be welcomed

[Brandish]

Definitely sounds like a break in one of your main ignition wires somewhere. If the ignition switch is fine, then you have to trace the wires back to see where the problem is. If they pulled the remote starter, I'd check to make sure they've completely disconnected all the wiring for it as well, not just unplug the module and tape up all the harnesses. It's not difficult to get the steering column off. Hardest part is usually unscrewing the tilt lever if you have one. Three 9/32" bolts on the bottom of the column have to come out, and then the two halves will snap apart to reveal the ignition harness. Unplug the white and black connectors from the ignition switch by pressing on the tabs with a flat head screwdriver or something similar, and then you should be able to pull them out a little for inspection. First, check for black marks on the connector itself, and make sure none of the pins have been pulled out. If that's all fine, check you ignition wires. Normally remote starters are connected at this point, so you may see extra wires, t-tapped into your factory wiring, or they may just be taped off. I can't remember if a '00 Cavalier has two ignition wires or not... I don't think so, but in any case the main ignition wire is pink, and if there is a second one it will be white. Both of these should be in the white connector. If you're hearing that popping noise from within the steering column, then your problem should be right around that area. If there is tape on the wire, pull it off and make sure there are no breaks in the wire. If there are, you'll need to solder the wire back together properly and tape it up. If everything seems normal, then you'll need a digital voltmeter to test the wire at different spots to see where the break is. It's a shame that you've already spent money on a new ignition switch... I know those aren't cheap. Anyways, good luck, and let me know if there's anything else I can help with.