sometimes trying to start the car turning key I'll get nothing at all. Next turn, car will start. Any ideas? 94 es300 150K miles...

 

It can be a faulty ignition switch.

 

I agree.^ That is what I would check. If it's not that, then I would check the grounds.

 

Thanks, I'll check the switch out

 

In the beginning it would happen once in a great while. Now it's once a day. Pretty soon completely done. I've cleaned battery connections. Where would I find the ignition switch and is it a DIY? 94 es300..

 

Back in the day, a common cause of that problem was overloaded keychains, and mainly w/women, who were known to have everything but the kitchen sink hanging from their keychains. All the weight, swinging back and forth with the key in the ignition, cause wear on the switch.

Walt

 

Are you sure you are getting absolutely nothing? The contacts in the starters are a known issue in some models -- but you normally hear a click or even a clunk.

 

Sure, nothing, no clicks,bells, power to radio or antenna, or panel lights...,, 1 or 2 try's starts up and runs great.. can happen on cold start in morning or mid day warm... interstate battery 1 yr old.. ????

 

Except for the fact that you state that your interior lights also don't come on I would have said that it could be a faulty , or out of adjutment neutral switch. But try the following anyways. Next time it happens, try starting the car in Neutral,. Also try to jiggle the shifter a bit.

Phil

 

I'll give it a try.... Couple things, do you think it will completely fail in time or can it be intermittent for ever? Where are the ignition switch and neutral switch located and are they a DIY to replace?

Thanks

 

I don't see any reference to interior lights not working?


First ....you do need to determine if it is a problem with power to everything.

When this happens do the interior lights work? -- if you turn on the headlights do they work? This way you can determine if power is getting from the battery. If it is not then it is not the ignition switch.


Then you have the different switch positions -- is the first switch position working and then not the next two ?? This way you can determine if power is getting to the ignition switch. Since the radio is not working -- looks like this is not the case

The neutral safety switch makes sure that the car is not in drive or reverse - it locks out the starter -- but the rest of the switched electrics will still work -- ACC fan -- dash lights etc. --- it does not sound like this part is your problem.

I'm not sure if the ignition switch is available separately and just attaches behind the lock cylinder on this model -- you have to look into this and see how expensive it is. This will not get better - one day you will be without a car -- do yourself a favor and get this fixed.

Intermittent problems can be difficult to diagnose and sometimes you need to replace the most logical part. I had a recent problem on my Nissan ....do I take it in for service and pay someone $100.00 to tell me what is wrong or do I replace the two most likely parts for $70 ..... I replaced the two parts.

Get an estimate on the switch replacement -- someone who knows what they are doing needs to checkout the feed to the switch and the relays. The way to check this is to remove the panel under the key/ lock cylinder and use a multitester when the problem pops up -- this will tell you what wires have and don't have power. Good luck

 

Thanks for your in depth and thoughtful reply. Can the problem be diagnosed if it's not acting up? If not, I would need to be lucky for it to act up while in the shop. Do I have it right?

 

This starting problem is very similar to the problems we had with our 94 ES a couple of years ago. It also had about 150,000 miles on it at that time.

I started with the usual culprits, battery and cables,etc. The battery did have one weak cell, and I replaced it. Problems continued. I cleaned the connectors and tightened them. Problems continued. Changed out the starter relay. Problems continued.

Next was a starter replacement, and this solved the problems. The starter on this engine is very accessible and is reasonably priced. (I also owned a 93 LS 400, and starter replacement on this engine is a costly nightmare.)

 

Yes - it needs to be doing it in order for someone to be absolutely sure of the problem -- but many things do not allow for this because you can't wait for the part to fail?

Pay particularly close attention to what is happening the next time the car has a problem -- and get the logical part fixed.