2000 SE with 166K. Battery is 2 years old. New plugs put in 3 years ago.

Please watch these videos in order. The starts get progressively worse. All are while the engine is hot. Also, I hear the fuel pump hum and when it drives I have NO hesitation or something that would imply fuel delivery issues. Could this be a ground issue? I honestly don't know where to start.

(side note, I've replaced the radiator, hoses, thermostat, belts, breaks struts by myself to keep it in good working order. However, this issue really has me stumped).

1st video is a quick start but you can hear a knock at the end of it. Strange.


2nd video is where it really struggles and clearly wont start.


3rd video is after I rolled it home or as close as I could get till a hill. It currently is on the side of a road. I open the door so you can hear it better (and finally stopped rattling my keys). Notice it really doesn't appear to be the battery as it goes on a run of cranks just fine.

 

You car is not cranking right - it's cranking slow. (I have the same car, so I speak from direct experience).

When cranking, verify that the battery voltage is the same as the voltage on the starter (yes, it takes a bit of effort to get to the starter, and you'll need a helper). With perfect wiring and ground, the two voltages should be the same. If not, there is an undesirable drop somewhere. A very simplified diagnosis:
Same (10V) = bad starter
Same (6V) = bad battery
Not same = bad wire or ground (voltage lost there).

Edit: Make sure the red security light is NOT on when you are cranking.

 

In the 2nd video, the starter sounds kind of loud as well as slower than normal. I think you have a bad starter where the gears inside it are binding.

In the 3rd video, the engine is barely cranking over like maxiiiboy said. I would get the battery checked also, it may be going bad as well. But overall, I think the starter is the main problem.

 

The battey is definitely weak, but it would still fire.

Start swapping crank/cam sensors.

 

Sounds like a starter to me.

Quick way to check if it's battery. Use another car to get a jump. If it fires up right away then that should tell u it's the battery

 

Well, I replaced the battery to eliminate that possibility. Nope, still no start; no crank either. I replaced the bat because even with a jump I got nothing and I worried a dead cell might be reducing flow to the system.

I suppose it's time to yank the starter and see if that was the issue. I sure wish there was a way to know if this is it, and not something electrical. Is there a way to confirm it is the starter without replacing it?

 

Yes, just re-read post #2!

 

When did it stop cranking...? Those are unrelated issues.

 

Here's an explanation on the various tests:
http://www.aa1car.com/library/voltage_drop_testing.htm

 

Well, folks, quick update. It indeed was my starter. Replaced it and the Maxima starts up on one or two cranks. Thanks for everyone's input.

 

That doesn't make any sense...

 

That makes a lot of sense. The starter was dragging, and getting worse until it seized up. Dennis was right on the money(post #3).

 

The speed that it was cranking in your videos was 5x as fast as needs to start it.

I can start all of my cars on a half dead battery where it just barely turns over a couple times (right before the solenoid starts clicking). That's why it doesn't make any sense to me.

 

Doesn't make sense to me either except it really has started every time just like it should since replacement. Keep in mind I also have a new battery as well. The two combined--dying starter and weak or damaged (dead cell(s)) in the battery) might made a perfect storm where voltage was just too low for ignition and the starter was draining too much to give too little crank. That's all I can think of. Both new it starts exactly like it should.