Ok, so i've had a squeel from what i thought was a loose power steering belt and i went through what i thought was the process of tightening it and all went ok but now when i put the battery back in, it doesn't turn over. All the electrical works but when i turn the key it clicks once and does no more.

This is my daily driver and i need it to get to work in the morning so please get back to me soon.

 

Check your battery contacts/grounds. Tap the starter with a hammer.

 

try jump starting it, sounds like the battery is weak

 

yea, what they said, bad battery connection and or weak battery. check the connections first. because if it is a weak connection, its going to start when you jump it and then when you try to start it later on, it may not start.

 

Tried jumping it with no luck. I'll try tapping the starter with a hammer. Thanks and keep the suggestions coming.

 

try turning on your headlights, interior lights, etc and see if they work, if not it's your battery, or the connections.

 

well all my lights turn on fine. my CD player works, GPS works, etc.. (yes i shut it all off while trying to start it), but when i turn my key it clicks once and doesn't make anymore noise.

I think my starter is bad. I tapped it with a ratchet since it was what i had handy and tried turning it over again and got the same thing. Just a click and nothing more. Jumping it did nothing.

Thanks everyone for your help.

 

check the connections on the starter. basically see if they are at all loose by giving them a very slight tug. if they are tighten em up.

 

how loose are the battery terminal connections? can u wiggle it around? i would clean the INSIDE of the terminal where it makes contact with the battery and the battery terminal itself. I'm willing to bet that is your problem. happened to my neighbor

 

X2 on the battery conection. Pull the connections off and sand the inside with sand paper or a file. Put back on and tighten.

 

I scrubbed them inside and out with a hard wire brush and they're almost shiny now and still nothing. I have a feeling it's the starter, i called my mechanic to come take a look as soon as he's available. He said either late tonight or tomorrow.

cars are one of the few things i'm not good with. lol

 

Check your battery voltage. If it's over 12v, try a jumper from the battery terminal on the starter to the starter solenoid terminal (the smaller wire) and see if it'll spin. If it does, may be a problem with the relay. If it doesn't, check your wiring again... or could be the starter "coincidentally" decided to blow at the same time.
If the battery voltage is below 12v... well maybe the squeal was from the alternator going out.

 

Well when i turn the key the battery voltage on the gauge reads 3/4ths of the gauge and that's pretty normal. I'll do some research and figure out how to run jumpers to the starter sometime today or tomorrow. Thankfully my girlfriend is letting me borrow her corolla to get me to work today and i have the day off tomorrow.

 

Sounds like it could be the contacts?

 

If it is the starter, don't replace it. You can get contacts to rebuild it for pretty cheap. Cheap considering how much a new Denso starter is....

 

Yeah, i found one at the wrecking yard for 50 bucks but am having a hell of a time getting mine out so i can test it at auto zone. I can't get those top and bottom bolts out to save my life. They're stuck in there too tight and i'm just a little too weak.

lol, you need small skinny arms to get into the spot but they're no help when it comes to doing actual work.

 

universal joints or wobble extensions

 

extensions were a no go. Couldn't find any joints in our shop so i'm going to have to pay someone to do it.

 

Some removal tips below:
- http://www.4crawler.com/4x4/CheapTri...rter.shtml#Fix

 

thanks. I had a link to this and had printed it for help while doing the removal but more information never hurts.