(Unable to find a reference to this problem in the “stickies” or in recent posts.) 96 I30t - 125K. Have experienced periodic problems with starting since purchasing the car nine months ago. It seems 90% of the time the car starts right up. The other 10% nothing happens when the key is turned – engine doesn’t turn, no noise whatsoever. The car has always eventually started…sometimes after only a couple of attempts, but on several occasions had to fiddle with the key for up to five minutes or so before it would turn over. The problem does not appear to be getting worse over time (which is a bit strange)

After starting, the car runs perfectly.

Could this be a starter issue or???

 

I have a 96 I30 with 150K and have had the same problem for the past year it seems. i am not sure what it could be and for now, I am just letting it ride. lol

If you find out what it is, I am interested to know as well.

Good luck.

 

Glad to hear you are having the same problem! Well, not really.

Imagine we may be able to get some answers if this was posted in the 4th generation Maxima forum but, according to the stickies, the post will be deleted because it doesn’t pertain to 4th generation Maxima’s.
That seems a bit nonsensical given the cars are practically identical and one would think the starting problem would pertain to both the Maxima and the I30.

Sooooo, are you going to give it a try????

 

Look a little deeper on these threads for our mutual starter issues. We've pretty much all had it happen to us (for those with 96 & 97 units).

If you have not replaced yours yet and are having problems, you're probably on borrowed time.

Good luck with that...

 

This may be a stupid question but, do you know of a way to search, say using keywords, instead of searching the subject lines page by page?
On a previous page by page search I did find a post relating to starter problems but, if I remember correctly, the starter still made a noise when the key was turned. In this case, there is no noise whatsoever (when it doesn’t start of course). Does that sound typical of previous posts regarding starter failure?

Thanks!

 

They will should not delete you in the 4th gen forum for that reason. If this is posted there you will be treated like a maxima as they know the car basically is a maxima.

The only way it could be deleted is if this question can be easily answered in the 4th gen stickies which it cannot, so you should be fine.

 

Yep. Searching methods by thread title I think changed on this site and it's not easy anymore. I looked up some previous discussions though...

Search by date and sort it by thread title (use starter) for at least the past year. You'll see the topic covered on 4/5, 7/9 and 1/6 of this year.

Go beyond this year and there's probably a lot more out there.

 

I would say that you need a new battery to start. Although you may have enough power for dome, head, and gauge lights, your battery may not have enough amps to for the starter at various times.

I had the exact same thing happen to me a month or so ago. I had all power to the vehicle, but when it came itme to crank the engine, nothing. I thought that the starter crapped out on me so I put in a new one of those and still nothing. Finally I knew it was either the battery or the ignition switch (highly unlikely) and so I replaced the battery first and that solved the problem.

 

Hey, thanks for the tip. Found the 3 posts you were referring to (one of them was actually and old one from me asking the same question!). Did the same "search" on the 4th generation max forum and found about 10 or so "starter" threads over the last 100 days, with maybe two that had similar problems. Still not sure of the source of the problem, but at least I have some ideas on what to look for including the wires leading to the positive post of the battery

 

No question, i30ds makes a good point about starting with the easiest thing.(battery) Make sure it's up to the job.

Based on what you know and the frequency of it happening and then potentially giving up on you, when it goes, it's gonna leave you stranded. I would go ahead and get one (after ruling out the battery as the actual problem) and have it on hand with the tools you'll need.

If it dies, you'll be moving again in a couple of hours tops and even if someone else does the work, you won't need to scramble for parts. Try an aftermarket place for the new one like Adv Aut, Auto Z or TrashAuto and ask if they price match too.

 

Have serious doubts that it is the battery as the problem has been occurring off and on since purchase about 9 months ago and the problem is not getting any worse. As a matter of fact, the starting problem has not occurred even once since I made the initial post on 11/21 (go figure).

I figure over the last 9 months the car has started up perfectly with just a normal turn of the key maybe 80-90% of the time. But, about 10% of the time it is necessary to turn the key “hard” for it to start. And maybe 5% or so of the time it does not start at all no matter how hard the key is turned. When this a happens, it may take anywhere from 2 to over 10 more attempts before it starts. (again, no noise whatsoever when it it doesn’t start. No clicking, engine does not attempt to turn over, etc).

 

well if it makes a diff on how he turns the key.. then it might me the ignition..? how about getting the dealer to check it out.. DONT DO WORK BY THEM cause my lord they charge and arm and a leg, sometimes even a second arm.... i know they charge for the checking.. but hey.. i think its better than going to the supermarket and then having to call a tow truck to take the groceries home...

but yea.. take the car to ur "guy" the workshop that you know wont try to hassle u into buying a battery and hae them check the battery .. see if its crappy.. or not.. then the dealer if thats not eht prob...

 

That sounds reasonable. At least letting them diagnose it will potentially prevent you from buying a starter you may never need.

I'm weary though of a dealership or other mech. (knowing that these models are frequently affected by the original starter failing at about 100K miles or so) if they would not really do the investigative work to figure out if it was in fact the ignition switch or something else besides the starter.

Is there any way to find out if the original starter is still on the car or if it had ever been replaced?

Still...if the starter and oil prerssure sending unit leaking is the only thing gone wrong on this thing, I'm a happy individual.

 

This discription changes things. At first I thought that you would turn the key and get no cranking at all, just nothing. So, that is why I thought that it is your battery.

However, if this was a different car, I would still not rule out the battery. But since I have the EXACT same problem (except I never have to try more than twice to start) I know that it is NOT the battery as I have replaced mine with an optima red. Also, in an effort to solve this problem, I replaced the starter motor as well. Although the spindle on the motor was worn and in need of replacement, it did NOT solve the problem.

My friend owns a 96 I30, and he has the exact same thing as well. This leads me to think that the problem is wide spread. Since it is not battery or starter, it could be some of the coil packs or fuel injectors not working correctly at start up. Other than that, my only other guess would be the ignition switch or fuel pump.

 

You said: "At first I thought that you would turn the key and get no cranking at all, just nothing."

That is correct!

I will try to put it another way:

Most of the time it starts normally

5-10% of the time it is necessary to turn the key harder than normal before anything happens, but once it engages, it starts right up.

5% (or less) of the time "absolutely" nothing happens when the key is turned no matter how much pressure it applied (no noise, no crank, no clicking, etc). Then, after releasing the key and trying the second time it may start normally, or I may need to repeat the process multiple times. On at least one occasion I thought it was a gonner...but after 10 minutes (and 20 + attempts) it started right up.

A side note: The problem has not occurred a single time since 11/21..or over 30+ starts. About a week ago (based on advice/instructions from another post and not necessarily related to this problem) I did take off the vacuum hose leading to the master cylinder, and allowed the vaccum to suck up about 6 oz or so of Sea Foam, let the car sit for about an hour, before starting. If I go another several weeks w/o the problem occurring I may begin to think the seamfoam trick may have resolved the problem.

 

I was thinking that you were trying to say that it took more time cranking the engine than ususal before it would fire. This is what is happening to me, and so we are infact on seperate issues.

I would think that if you are having a difficulty actually turning the key and various levels of force are needed, the actual ignition cylider in the steering column might be worn out.

 

do you hear your fuel system pressurize if you go to the "ON" position b4 start and leave it there for a sec...?? try going to the "on" position everytime you start your car and leave it there for a second b4 going to start....it's most likely a fuel issue then...this happens on my car...think it might be the fuel pump or FPR...but it never happens since I go to the "on" position first and leave it there for a second b4 starting (btw, I have a new battery, new ignition switch, and recently rebuilt starter)...so it's definitely not those...

Mr bill....do you have the link to that post that told you about the master cylinder vacuum hose/seafoam thing? what did you search for or what was the thread title or user name that it was started by?

 

Will try to listen and pay attention to what happens when the key is turned to the on position before starting…Thanks. .

Regarding Seafoam, NAPA has carried it for some time..up to $6 a can. Autozone recently started carrying it at around $5 a can.

I don’t have the link, but I did previously cut and paste the post, but evidently didn’t get the name of the person who posted it. I’m far from being skilled in the mechanical area, but this was very, very easy to do.

Here is a piece of the post……


Well I found some stuff called Sea Foam for $6 and used it. It is supposed to "Clean carbon build up, Clean intake valves and pistons, Give smoother idle, Clean catalytic converter odors , Cure hesitations and pings, and Restore power and pickup"

How to use it
1. Run car to normal operating temp.
2. Disconnect brake booster vacuum line (big hose that connects to brake master cylinder)
3. Pour liquid into a paper cup (makes it easier to handle)
4. Start car
5. Dip vacuum line into cup of fluid (do not just stick it in and leave it, it will kill the car. dip it it for a few seconds until you hear the car about to die then take it out. repeat this until you are done. i used the suggested amount which is 1/3 of the bottle)
6. Turn off the car
7. Let sit for five minutes (the liquid will eat away at all the dirt and carbon in the intake manifold, cylinders, valves, etc)
8. Reconnect brake booster vacuum line
9. Start car (you will see ALOT of white smoke coming out of the exhaust, that is all that nasty cr@p coming out. mine had 88K miles worth of nasty cr@p!!!)
10. let car run at about 3K RMPs for a few minutes to get everything out.

My opinion -

AMAZING. Throttle response is quicker then it ever was (car had 50K miles on it when I bought it) Start up is quicker and smoother. Idle is more smooth and quiet. Drives like a new car. I wish I could see the inside so I could see how clean it was.

I recommend that everyone do this. If you have any questions let me know.