ramonroad

Hey y'all, I've looked at the old threads to try and find an answer, but haven't found one. I have a 95 Maxima that won't start. I turn the key and it just clicks, but won't turn over. I checked the 7.5a fuse, but still no start. The battery is new.

Leading up to this, it would groan before starting, but then start up. I installed two 10 guage wires from the negative battery posts. One to the starter and the other wire to the transmission bolt. It worked great for a while, but now is just not turning over. When it was starting, the starter sounded good.

Any ideas why this 95 will just click, but not turn over?

Thanks for all of your input. Y'all are great!!!!

ramonroad

Oh, I also changed out the ignition switch about 18 months ago. could it go out that soon?

Kevlo911

iTrader: (36)

I would assume your starter is bad now. If it clicks, try tapping the starter with a hammer or something of that matter and see if it starts.

97-4DSC

change the starter you can get one in good condition from a you pull it for like $20

MaximA StyLeZ

iTrader: (11)

yeah I would check out the starter.....very prone to going.. how many miles on the starter? Ever replaced it before ?

Thje groaning noise sounds similare to what mine was doing, and it would sometimes start.

Noel1030

I think u should definitely take the starter out and check it...autozone checks it for free
Might be just the solenoid too....

ramonroad

thanks for your help, all. I'll let y'all know what it was. I'm about to take the starter out and take it to autozone. The good news is that if the starter needs to be replaced, I get it at no cost. Autozone has a lifetime warranty on the one I purchased about two years ago.

They said to bring it in and they'll replace it at no cost. Yipee!!!

Feldman

iTrader: (1)

my money is on your alternator. sounds like you arent delivering enough power to the starter to get it to crank, and since your battery is new that probably means your alt isnt charging it.

i bet if you get a jump start it will fire up... take it to auto zone and have them test the charging system if you can get it started that is or better yet test it yourself with a mulitmeter. there are lots of writeups here on how to do it because driving whit a bad alt is no bueno for your car.

good luck!

whiteSE

iTrader: (2)

i had that problem too...turned out the connections were really dirty....clean the battery and the positive connnction and negative

ramonroad

The good news is that the starter has been replaced (at no cost, thanks autozone) and it turns over. The not so good news is that now the engine is not turning over. I just hear the starter turning, but nothing else.

Any ideas? Has anyone else run into this issue after replacing the starter?

ramonroad

One more thing.....as I prepare to get rid of the 95, is it better to sell it a part at a time or just take it to a junkyard and sell it to them. The car has aluminum wheels which still look pretty good. It has dings and stuff, but the body is still good. How much do you think is a good amount to sell this 95 Maxima? Oh it has 227,000 miles on it.

pmohr

iTrader: (26)

If you've got the space, tools, and time, you'll probably get more by parting it out then selling the chassis to a scrap yard.

If you're going to get rid of it, why fix it?

moonlitesounds

iTrader: (3)

Sounds to me like alternator problem.





And, I would say part it out.

*Personally I have a 95 as well and would no doubt be interested in certain parts. =p
Not only would you get more money, but you would feel good by helping out other Maxima owners in need via the .org!

JY05

had the same problem.. found out that the battery the previous owners had put into the car was the type that were meant for honda civics or smaller vehicles.. check if your battery is the right size.. hope this helps

guygti22

alternator does nothing for starting a vehicle. after vehicle is running then alternator charges battery bak up and all your accessories run on alternator when running. unhook starter and hook multimeter to the leads, see if it is getting power. and take starter to autozone for test. and it could even be teeth arent aligning up if they are broke on fly or something. but it cant be alternator. take starter out and put finger in tranny hole to see if you feel broken teeth on fly. my starter made some funky pinging noises when it was going out. but you can tell if it lags and stuff if it goes out. good luck

guygti22

and dont part it out. just sell whole car to me for a few hundred. lol
i need a rh fen so far. and spoiler.

SuperSam

I had the same problem went through batteries and starters until I read a post to clean the throttle body with a spray that cost about 8 bucks. Here is step by step instructions how to do it http://www.motorvate.ca/mvp.php/517 It seems a little difficult but just follow along. I have since had this problem.

ramonroad

thanks for all your input, guys. I've checked the flywheel and it looks good. It just seems as if the starter teeth are not making contact with the flywheel. The starter is a rebuilt one from autozone.

I'm out of ideas. You?

96gxe5spd

iTrader: (1)

IIRC, there were two different starters out there, with different numbers of teeth. I'm thinking like 9 and 13 teeth, but I could be wrong. They could have given you the wrong tooth count, or just the wrong starter.

Are you sure the starter is all the way in and you didn't pinch a wire or something in the hole?

Or you may have a mechanical failure in the lever that pushes the gear out from the solenoid, like somebody dropped it at autozone.


EDIT::WooHoo! Hundredth post! And it only took 5 years!! Kinda like my engineering degree!

ramonroad

Here's the latest. When the starter is installed, the gear is not pushed out from the solenoid. That's why the engine is not turning over. However, the starter was tested at Autozone and the gear was pushed out during the test.

Soooo, when the starter is installed, the solenoid is not being powered? or powered enough? I don't know. That's why I'm grateful for this forum.

Have any of y'all run into this problem?

pmohr

iTrader: (26)

Did you connect the signal wire to the starter? How's the connection between the solenoid and starter? I forget it the starter will even spin with a bad connection there.

ramonroad

Yep, I triple checked the connections and the fuses.

Leo_Koneval

iTrader: (4)

Most likely causes would be a bad starter, alternator, or even spark plugs... would you believe I had a car with all three problems? I kept thinking it was the battery until we finally found out the problems... haha

96gxe5spd

iTrader: (1)

BTW +2 on this one. I've driven around with bad alternators quite often. They have NOTHING to do with starting.

For every post with good info, there's 3 or 4 folks who want to help by throwing out ideas that have already been shot down. Please read the thread to make sure your idea hasn't already been posted--this is not to you guy gti, it's for some of the others.

If the starter is spinning but the solenoid is not pushing out, your problem is mechanical. The "switch" that sends juice to the starter is tripped by the solenoid moving, so everything electrical is fine. What I'm pretty sure is going on is that the little lever that hooks into the end of the solenoid plunger on one side and to the gear carrier on the other is out of place. I recall fighting with this one myself on my old 2nd gen max because it's really tricky to get the lever lined up just right after removing the solenoid from the starter body. IDK if the AZ part is reman or not (this is not hating on reman parts), but if there's something that a reman shop might miss I'd think this would be it.

Carry the starter back to AZ, and have them give you another one. Maybe test this one on a bench so you can see what's going on. The plus side to all this mess is that you're getting lots of practice removing and installing your starter, maybe you'll catch up with me. I can have the starter out on the floor in under 5 minutes, after replacing 6 or 7 of them. Next time one goes out I'll get the lifetime warranty from autozone, GOOD MOVE!

DanGK

lol good post, me as well, under 15 minutes I can swap the starter

Try getting another starter from autozone. I got a reman starter from them, 3 days later it failed. And in fact, it passed one of the tests at autozone. So try swapping the starters again. They usually don't ask questions, just give you another starter (considering you got lifetime warranty on it)

jtmaxima

iTrader: (3)

Were there any shims on the old one? Sometimes if there are and you don't replace them it won't line up right causing it to bind up.

300zx32tt91

The same thing happened to me on my 95 Max and it was the starter. The wire running from the solenoid to the starter was frayed and would the car would not do a thing. About a year later the remanufactured one I replaced the OEM one with went out too and had to replace it but it has been running great ever since.

96gxe5spd

iTrader: (1)

I understood the OP to have said that the starter was spinning but not engaging, so I don't think the wire's a problem. Funny about the difference in quality on the reman vs OEM isn't it?

ramonroad: any luck? Haven't heard from you since Monday.

ramonroad

Hey Y'all,
Thanks for all of your responses. It's been a very busy week and I haven't had a chance to get to the car until today. I agree that now I'm very practiced in removing and installing starters. I remember the 1st time it took me 2 hours. Now I can do rem/ins in 1/2 hour.

Thanks for pointing out that it's probably a mechanical issue with the starter. I'm going to return it to AZ and ask them for another one.

More to follow.

God bless all of y'all

ramonroad

Alleluia, my 95 Max lives to run another day!!! It was the starter. Thanks 96gxe5spd for your input, especially. I returned the starter to AZ and they replaced it.

A note of caution, the 1st one AZ brought out, the gear did not pop out during the test. The 2nd starter they brought out did work properly. The caution is to not just pick up a starter without having them test it.

I look forward to helping since I received so much help on this one.

Blessings, y'all.

96gxe5spd

iTrader: (1)

Sweet.

1995maximayea

nice man! good job

Bobo

Why have you resurrected a thread that is over 2 years old? Talk about a waste of band width!

QUOTE=1995maximayea;7952289]nice man! good job[/QUOTE]

1995maximayea

because im having trouble with my car so i read threw this post. also i need more posts before i can put up my own cuz im having some problems i just cant figure out but. This seems to be the only forum out there for maximas that has active members.

Swazey

there are a ton of posts on no-starting problems. I've read just about every thread on this topic and i still find things. search is your friend

you need to be very specific about your problem to get the proper advice/help. search and trouble shoot on your own. then post and follow up

95max87

I'm having the same problem with my maxima, it wont even crank, i had the starter checked, had the battery replaced and the alternator checked...the starter and alternator checked fine at AZ but it still will not turn over, not even crank. I know this post is old but any help is appreciated. Thanks

maxfever1987

iTrader: (93)

this may be your ignition switch prob, they are common to give issues on 4th gen maximas,

BenL

Usually you'll have trouble starting the car just before the ignition switch fails. When in doubt grab a multimeter and test voltage throughput on the ignition circuit.

deejayquack

just had the trani rebuilt cuz 3rd gear went out and now the car starts up eventually, me and my mechanic think its the flywheel that is put on backwards...my question is can it be put on backwards and if so will it mess it up?

DBear

And while you're testing the ignition switch (which I assume means you'll have pulled it out of the column), try to start it with a screwdriver in the slot on the switch. If it starts consistently, you probably have the slop problem. That slot in the ignition switch fits into a little T shaped flanged in the steering column. As these cars get older, they develop a little slop between the flange and the ignition switch, and sometimes turning the key doesn't quiiiiite make the ignition switch go far enough over. I solved it by putting a tiny piece of electrical tape in the slot on the switch. But after a while I found that the tape would slip out of place, so I graduated to SlopFix 2.0. I cut a little piece out of a coke can and crazy glued it to the inside of the long edge of the slot. Someone else duck taped the **** out of it. You just need something to fill in that gap.