Last night, when I left work about 9 PM, my car started up just fine. It has done so ever since I got a new battery a couple months ago. No apparent problems with the battery or the starter. This morning, I turned my key and although the starter responded with a whirring sound, it did NOT initiate the engine (it refused to even begin turning over).
I know there is gas in the tank, I just put a half-tank in last night (even if gas was low or empty, I would think the engine would still turn over, if nothing else were wrong).
Also, I can't imagine it being gear teeth missing .... I have had absolutely NO problems with the starter, this is something that literally happened "overnight", with NO previous occurrences that would indicate missing teeth on the flywheel, starter, etc.
The local Ford service manager said that there was a CHANCE that a battery that was just a tiny bit low might fail to operate the bendix on the starter correctly. So, I tried jumping it ..... the starter itself again seemed to respond fine, but would not "connect" with the engine and turn it over. Interior lights are *bright*, the radio comes on, etc. etc. .... no apparent indication of a low battery .... and as I said, the battery is only a couple months or so old and is high-quality.
Am I necessarily doomed to replacing the starter ? Towing is not cheap, and I do not own any diagnostic equipment to check electrical things, etc. on my own. Any ideas ? Thanks in advance ....
