3rd & 4th Generation (1992–1996 & 1997–2001)Toyota Camry Discussion for years: 1992-1996 & 1997-2001
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1999 xle 4 cylinder, starting issue, intermittent and worsening.
The alternator and battery have been tested, and they both passed. The battery reads 13.4V after sitting all night. The alternator was capable of 60-70 amps during the test @ autozone, I don't recall the exact amperage. The starter isn't making any odd noises, nor does the engine need allot of time to start. Then engine will usually start in the first 1/2 a second or so ONCE the starter actually spins. The starter solenoid does not 'clickity clickity' to indicate poor voltage. (I'm used to this being an easy diagnosis of poor power wire/poor ground/poor battery etc)
And here is the problem:
Occasionally the starter would not spin, or click, or give any sign of life when the key was turned. At first I thought it was the battery/leads/alternator so I replaced the leads and it seemed to help. Fast forward two weeks and this morning (cold, damp) the starter would not spin at all until about 10-15 tries at the key.
Am I correct in assuming it's the ignition switch getting faulty ? Should I focus somewhere else ?
The only thing I haven't tried is running a heavy cable directly to the starter from the battery. Wanted to check with you guys it was safe on this model before I did.
I think that I would first run a light wire to the relay and see if the starter spun up. If it did this would exonerate the starter and shift your concern to the ignition system.
However, this certainly sounds like the contacts of the starter are wearing out. When it does this you tend to hear one faint click when you turn the key and that's it. You can pop the hood when it isn't working and tap the starter (a decent hit with a hammer or wrench but not enough to damage the case). If it starts working that indicates bad contacts.
When it isn't turning, hold the key for a little while and touch the starter (carefully, it can be very hot). If it is hot this is an indication that the windings have shorted out.
If running a heavy wire helps then the original wire itself is suspect. Of course, before you go to the trouble of running another wire it might be a good idea to check both ends of the hot wire and ground wire and the ignition wire (if you can). They should be clean and tight.
Actually, a loose connection at the battery is what I first suspected though I would hope who ever checked the battery and alternator would have done this automatically.
If none of this works then you are in for some ignition troubleshooting that will include the ECM and some sensors. But first check the easy stuff.
Kep
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Often, it's the loose screw between the steering wheel and the driver's seat that needs to be fixed first!
today i checked all the leads, they're good. took out the battery and the starter, took them to autozone for a test. (using another battery, the solenoid would click sometimes, but not always, and buzz) the battery failed, and dada- the starter did too.
$280 and 45 minutes later, the car starts fine again. i suppose the bad starter pulled the battery down and made it fail. i'm only hoping the alternator wasn't toasted also. we'll see. seems to be working well for now.
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