Car wouldn't start.. Long story~

[moodangbulae]

Well, after a lovely Sunday afternoon havng lunch and watching Bulletproof Monk w/ my dad my car wouldn't start!
:banghead:

Since everyone in the parking lot was in too big of a hurry to catch the next flick NO ONE would give us a jump so I strut on over to SAMS across the street and buy a power starter for about $50. It's actually very nice and has a built in air compressor, expresso maker, and... anyway.

That was a moot trip because it would not take a jump! So I call my best friend, Laura, who takes us to my dad's house to get his car and tools and go back. He puts his battery in my car and still nothing. So I get it towed back to my place and I must say since I just washed and waxed it the day before it looked pretty darn good on that tow truck!

Well, I take the week off of work because, well, I had the vacation time and I don't like bugging my friends for rides. My dad takes the starter off and got it tested at Auto Zone and it tested fine. That was a bit upsetting because the handle to his Craftsman power jack had rolled down the driveway and into the storm drain the starter could have atleast been bad!
:doh:

He then figured it must be the ignition switch and said he would give me the money to take into the shop since he didn't want to mess w/ the stearing column incase something goes wrong and the airbag doesn't deploy when it should and all of that fatherly concern type stuff. A friend was in the parking lot when I got it towed back and told us he took his '95 in for a recall on the ignition switch but all the info I found was for the '96-'97's so if anyone else knows for sure let me know!

Soooo, after washing my she-pimp sheep skin seat covers yesterday, I thought, "What the heck, lemme try something," so I jiggle the key inside the ignition and the dayam thing starts right up!!
:wtf:

I'm still going to take into the shop to get it checked out but all of that friggin' trouble and it starts! I drove it around the block and let it sit turning the ignition on and off about 10 times and it started each time. Hopefully it'll last me this next week just going to and from work until I can take in.

Thanks for listening and if anyone knows for sure about that recall let me know. For some reason the Pontiac dealer won't return my calls! :tears:

[Travis99GT]

Yep, I've heard of some ignition switch recalls in certain years, hope ya get it fixed Soooosan :D

[Merlyn]

I hope that it doesn't cost you anything... that would really suck after putting over $600 in already...

[moodangbulae]

Yeah and don't forget the almost $400 for the water pump! :doh:

[jmnjit]

What years were recalled for the ignition switch? Where could I find out info about other recalls? Any help is welcome.

[LargeFish]

It's not the Ignition Switch itself, but the wiring IIRC. I think CARFAX and/or autocheck give info. on outstanding recalls when you put your VIN in. You can also call any dealer and have them look up your VIN to see if any recalls are outstanding.

[DominionTuner]

The starters where recalled for the 92-95 years not because of starting failure but because they were known to send to many ohms through the wiring harness and catching fire. This was also an issue on the 80's model firebirds/trans ams. I've heard from owners of their cars catching on fire because of this, but none from Grand Am owners. You should have gotten a recall notice about 2 years ago in the mail. That's when i recieved mine anyway. Did you check your battery terminals and cables? Remember you had this problem before last year and I told you the terminals and cables get dirty easy and you need to clean them so you have a good contact for power and ground.

[LargeFish]

AFAIK it was not the starters recalled, it was wiring. I had it done and I saw no sign of a new starter.

[DominionTuner]

I believe the starter was only replaced providing it was the defective, or faulty model. The recall was done to my GA i still have the reciept for it.

[LargeFish]

I have mine too somewhere, I think some wiring was listed as the parts used to perform the recall. Have to pull it back out and look at it again...

Originally posted by DominionTuner
I believe the starter was only replaced providing it was the defective, or faulty model. The recall was done to my GA i still have the reciept for it.

[DominionTuner]

Originally posted by LargeFish
I have mine too somewhere, I think some wiring was listed as the parts used to perform the recall. Have to pull it back out and look at it again...

Well now I am interested to see if the wiring was part of the issue or not, I think you are correct though. I am going to dig up my receipt, one day hehe.

[BRIAN Accardi]

Recall was to have starter relay installed because of the fire problem listed above. Also have not heard of this being a problem in grand am but they were recalled.

[moodangbulae]

Well, I checked the battery terminals and cleaned them off when I disconnected them a couple of weeks ago. I cleaned my K&N and since I was under the hood anyway I figured why not.

Well, the car will rough start now and again (she's a bit cranky in the mornings) but she's started every time since I last had it towed and it runs great while it's running.

Thanks for all of the advice folks and I'll be sure to ask y'all if anything else happens.