Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Do I need a new starter?

Maybe someone can help me out. Sometimes, when i turn the ignition, the car struggles to turn on. And other times it will start normal. A couple months back, my car died, the battery had no power. I bought a new battery and when i first started the car, it started like it was brand new. it's been 3 months and i'm getting the same symptoms. the last couple of times, the car has started fine, but the other day, it took like 2 seconds for the car to start as i was turning the ignition. It could be the solenoid going to the starter that has gone bad or an electrical problem, fuses. What i don't understand is that if it was the starter or the alternator, wouldn't i get the same symptoms everytime i start the car and not just once in awhile? Please help me out.
Thanx

First check your battery, wouldn't be first time cell has gone bad in a new one. Car off, check no load volts across battery (approx 12.5), turn on headlights and see if voltage holds or drops.

well, i checked the battery 2 days ago and it was at full power

Well since bat checks OK, alternator isn't the problem. Since it starts OK sometimes, fuses aren't the problem either.

When you say struggles, or 2 seconds, do you mean the starter is turning motor over but engine is slow to fire up? Or is it a delay to starter engaging, at which time engine fires up?

If the latter the solenoid/starter is likely culprit.

well could it be my main relay or something electrical cause the dinging noise in my car, the lights are still on ding, doesn't work anymore and the lights that light up the floor by the pedals don't work either. could it be a fuse or something? please get bak as soon as possible

Might sound stupid, but when is the last time you cleaned your battery terminals? I had that problem once, car would not start right, and lights were dim and the ding was slooow. I got a ride to Autozone, they said the battery was fine, I bought a battery brush because the terminals were nasty, cleaned them, and haven't had a problem since. Not sure if that's what your problem is, but now I clean them often(I also sand the rings for the smaller wires connected to the terminals) because I believe the audio system causes the terminals to corrode prematurely. Either way, good luck and let us know what the problem is!

The lights-on chime comes from timer module located on the interior fuse panel, sounds like it might be faulty but that shouldn't affect starting. Is your dome light working? Do you get chime with engine off, key in ignition and driver's door open? Are your intermittent wipers working?

The central timer controls quite abit of the cars electronics. I wouldn't automaticly rule it out.