Need Help; '02 4cyl Camry will not start - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

backwoodsman · 10-09-2011, 01:03 PM

I drove my '02 Camry last night to a restaurant and when I came out it would not start.
I have never had any problems with my Camry. I have a new strong battery. All the lights, bells, radio, a/c, door locks, dash lights came on and work fine. There was no clicking sound of the starter. It would not turn over at all. NO SOUND AT ALL. I did move the shifter handle several times thinking it may have been the kill switch on the shifter.

Any suggestions?

Thanks,

Backwoodsman

p.s. I'm brand new to the fourm....I hope I'm posting in the right place.

***g60txstyle*** · 10-09-2011, 01:15 PM

Im new to toyota also but have you tried another key. maybe the key went bad kind of like gm and bmw stuff it the key is bad the car wont start. Just an idea...

backwoodsman · 10-09-2011, 02:42 PM

it's the starter. I gently taped it with a hammer and it cranked right up.
Now I need to find out why.
Bad starter?

|Virus| · 10-09-2011, 02:53 PM

Could be. Do you still have the car or it is elsewhere?

Sometimes the wires just become lose, try re-adjusting and start again.

my_blue223 · 10-09-2011, 05:35 PM

[COLOR="rgb(65, 105, 225)"]If you tapped it and it started again that most likely means the starter did go bad. Whenever you tap the starter it's only good for one start. I had the same issues 2 years back, went to a junk yard, and pulled out a starter for $75. Brand new they go for $230. I made sure the junk yard warrantied it for at least a month and I took it over to Auto Zone and tested my starter and the one I bought. After installing the "new" starter you might notice that the car doesn't take as long to crank. Good indication that it was time for the old one to go.[/COLOR]

backwoodsman · 10-09-2011, 08:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by |Virus|

Could be. Do you still have the car or it is elsewhere?

Sometimes the wires just become lose, try re-adjusting and start again.

I had left it at the restaurant over night when it wouldn't crank. I went back today and that was when I taped the starter and after it cranked I drove it home. Once I got home I killed it and thought I should see if it would start again and it did. Cranked right up. I did wiggle the wires on the starter some with my fingers when I taped it with the hammer, maybe there is a loose connection. It has never done this before or gave me any reason to think that the starter was going bad.