my friend just called me and asked me to post a question for him, hes at his friends house, and his car doesnt start, no indications that it would give him trouble, it whined for a few months, but hasnt whined in a month, i thought maybe it could be teh alternator that died, i thought it could be teh starter, so i told him to tap it with a wrench on the side to see if it cranks. what else should he check? it DOES NOT crank it doesnt do anything, everything lights up on the dash, appears that the battery is okay, thers no clicking sound when he tries to start the car, no noises at all. any input on what it could be?

 

Assuming the problem is simply not a bad battery (e.g. power windows work, etc.), you could try any of the following:
- no clicking sound could mean the starter solenoid is bad.
- starter circuit fuse blown
- A classic problem - this applies to AT - is the car is not in park (most cars disable the starter when they are not in park).
- bad starter
- bad wiring harness
- gremlins

Hope this helps.

 

Forgot to add that alarm systems can also be the culprit.