kaija

Hi, hopefully this hasn't been solved before, my searches came up negative. (disclaimer: check engine light has been on for a couple of years with the error code indicating an O2 sensor issue.)

My 140k mile 1995 ES 300 was left in a driveway for about 5 months w/o being started. After trying to start it, and having no luck, I bought a new battery - that's where everything began to go downhill (the car had started fine previously since 2003):


Jumped start resulted in death after removing the positive cable from battery (alternator test recommended by a friend).

This lead me to get my alternator rebuilt. The guy installing it didn't disconnect the battery, and the alternator cable was swinging around creating sparks against nearby metal parts. After the alternator was installed, the car wouldn't start - so I checked the alternator fuse and of course, it had blown.

Replaced the alternator fuse, and the car started up. It ran for about 10 minutes then died; checked the alternator fuse to find it had blown again.

Had the ES towed to my long-time mechanic who advised me that the alternator belt was loose (it had about 3-4" of play). He explained that this could have caused the battery not to be recharged, resulting in the car dying 10 minutes after a start. I brought him a fresh alternator fuse and left the car in his hands.

One day later, he tells me that the dome light fuse keeps blowing every time he puts one in, and that with a tightened alternator belt/new alt fuse, the car turns over but never starts. He checks the plugs and says they're fine.

After searching these forums for the dome fuse issue, I decide to take a look at my aftermarket stereo/harness setup. I had unplugged the harness from the vehicle's male stereo connector before bringing it into the shop to avoid my possibly poor job at stereo installation from hindering his trouble-shooting. However, everything seemed to be in order, so i reconnected the stereo harness and antenna. (my wiring job had held up for years, someone had stolen my amplifier so those sections are taped off - but it's still wired for factory speaker sound).
So as of the moment: Engine cranks to infinity but never starts, dome light fuse intact and interior lights show no dimming.

After fixing the dome fuse problem, I speak with my mechanic and he's sure there's an electrical problem somewhere, and he doesn't get into extensive electrical work. On the way out of his shop, I call the most recommended auto electrical place in my area and explain the situation to the person who answers the phone.

"Oh we don't do that here", he says.

I tell him my mechanic is sure there's an electrical problem, and that he recommended I call.

"No, he's just trying to get you out of his garage. It doesn't sound like an electrical issue, more of an engine diagnostic problem."

So now I'm unsure what to do. I'd like to avoid a dealership at all costs. Any ideas appreciated!

mike96sc2

Not to sound like a jerk but I think you're best going back to whomever installed the alternator and getting your money back then punching them in the face.

Nobody should be so stupid to install an alternator with a bunch of slack and the sparks is just ridiculous. Did you watch the guy do this? A major concern is you say you had it rebuilt by this guy so I doubt he did it right.

Keep in mind too the car is a '95 with 140k miles, how much do you want to stick into the car? You've got money in for towing, alternator rebuilding, and whatever else right now. Again I don't mean to be a jerk but really think about what you're spending before you go out and do it.

You might be able to sell you car and cut your losses and put that towards one with more going for it right now.

SmoothV63

You say it turns over but not start. If I remember correctly the starter has a kick pin that popsout when it starts.if the pin does not pop out then it will just turn over. I may be wrong but I had a car it would not start but put on new starter all was fine. Good luck.

kaija

I'll leave that to my boyfriend when he gets back from his current deployment, that really burned him as well. Apparently he's asking around for advice (11C, not much experience under a hood), but no one in his motor pool can come up with any ideas so far.

When I get the vehicle back, I'll take a shot at that. A friend took it to a large auto-electric place who charges a flat $300 for a full diagnostic. Said friend offered to pay the fee if nothing comes up, but I can't let him do that.

Still hoping this is something cheap and simple, considering how well this vehicle has run for over a decade, and taken care of with regular tuneups. The chain of events leading up to my current situation just baffles me, and despite my efforts to find possible solutions on this site and others, I keep running into walls.

Thanks again for taking time out of your day to read and offer advice.

donbryce

I'm too short of time to do a how-to, but you should be able to find the directions for pulling the engine diagnostic codes on this forum. A pre-96 I believe is OBDI, so, IIRC, you'll need to rig up a couple of test leads, access the terminals in the fuse box area, and do a sequence of steps to count the blinking CEL. This should give you a starting point (error codes) to diagnose this. If you can get the codes, let us know and we can go from there.

kaija

*Update* for the benefit of the community.

I'd taken the vehicle to an auto electrical repair business, who charged a flat $300 for a full-diagnostic.

As it turns out, the igniter needed to be replaced. $200 for that.

Hopefully anyone reading this in the future can skip any major diagnostic work and check on the igniter first, to save some trouble.