Why My Car Won’t Start?

You never really realize how important something is until it’s gone… and this is especially true for your car. You use it for driving your kids to school, driving to work, getting groceries, travelling across the city, and even more. So when it stops working all of a sudden, it’s a huge pain.

There are a lot of reasons why your car won’t start, but some are more common than others. Below are 7 common reasons why your car won’t start and some advice to ensure your car stays in its top shape!

Dead battery

How to tell if it’s the battery?

If the cranking of the engine is sluggish, like your vehicle is harder to start on cold mornings, it starts inconsistently, or there’s no sound and interior lights when you try to start, suspect a failing battery, a loose or corroded connection or electrical draw. A low battery that has visible corrosion on the terminals is probably damaged.

If jumpstarting works, then you know you’ve got a battery problem. But you also need to figure out whether it’s simply at the end of its life or there are underlying issues. A dead or low battery can be caused by a failing alternator. It can also result from additional draw from auxiliary lights, fuses, sound systems, alarms and such.

Defective ignition switch

If you know your battery is working properly, but your car doesn’t turn over on the first few tries, you might have a problem with the ignition switch. You can try to narrow down the cause of your issue by turning on your headlights. This is because your car’s battery controls your headlights and dashboard, and if it’s the case that they turn on your engine isn’t able to start start, then a bad ignition switch is the likely culprit.

Bad starter motor

The starter motor is responsible for physically turning the engine over and getting the engine to fire. If this is the issue, you’ll need a new one installed.

Broken or cracked distributor cap

The distribution cap routes voltage from the engine’s ignition coil to the spark plugs. If moisture gets under the cap, it can cause problems for your car. Wipe it out with a clean, dry cloth before reinstalling. Be sure to replace a damaged cap.

Clogged fuel filter

If your fuel filter is clogged, the gasoline won’t be able to reach the engine. This makes it difficult for your car to burn the fuel it needs to get going. Fuel filters should be changed every 15,000 to 20,000 kilometres, so consider swapping fuel filters next time you get your car serviced.

Empty gas tank

You might feel a bit silly if this is the reason why your car isn’t starting, but it happens more often than you may think! When driving around all the time, it’s sometimes easy to forget that your gas tank need to be refilled. The solution here is simple… get more gas!

Bad ignition coil

 The ignition coil transforms a battery’s voltage into an electric spark. A damaged ignition coil means there’s not enough juice to do that. You’ll need a multimeter (a tool designed to measure electrical current, voltage and resistance) to test the strength of the current running through the coil.

Hopefully you never experience the scenario where your car doesn’t start, but If you can’t fix the problem yourself (or don’t feel comfortable diving under the hood), get in touch with a trustworthy auto mechanic.