9 Reasons Your Car Refuses to Start: It is supposed to be a beautiful Monday morning, however it’s not looking so beautiful for you maybe because you are already running late. You grab your bag, rush outside, set your key into the ignition and voila, your car refuses to start. Oh no!

Or let’s say your car starts, you’re humming perfectly to the music playing from the radio set, You have checked your time and you most definitely will be at the office on time. Phew!

Suddenly you notice your car engine begin to go off, and your car decides it doesn’t want to take you to the office. It refuses to start anymore. That, unquestionably, is the last thing you want to happen to you on this bright Monday morning.

Now, this is the point you question yourself. What is wrong? What am I supposed to do?

Your Car Refuses to Start

There are several reasons why your car may refuse to start. However, some of these are more common than others, depending on what the symptoms are. Let’s take a look at the common factors that could hinder your vehicle from starting and thereby ruining your day. 

If You Have Tried to Turn the Key and the Engine Doesn’t Crank

It could be as a result of these:

Dead car battery

This is one of the commonest reasons why your car refuses to start. If you don’t see the dashboard light come on or hear the engine make an attempt to rescue you then it could be as a result of a faulty battery.

The quickest way to resolve this (only just temporarily) is to jumpstart your car. If it starts after that exercise, then you are dealing with a weak car battery.

Let it run for a few minutes to give the alternator time to recharge it. Endeavour to change your battery as soon as possible to avoid situations like these arising.

car refuses to start

Battery corrosion: 

The main common cause of a battery corrosion is When battery acid interacts chemically with the metal terminals. corrosion often appears as a flaky layer of brown, white, or green discolouration on your battery terminals.

While corrosion surrounding your battery terminals doesn’t necessarily indicate that it needs to be changed, it does indicate that there is likely significant resistance accumulating there.

This resistance can make it more difficult for your battery to receive and distribute power efficiently. It needs to be cleaned

Car Clicks but Won’t Start

Bad starter

The starter is an electrical motor connected to the battery. It is responsible for starting the engine when you insert the key or use the key fob (if your car has one).

How you know your starter is bad is when you hear a clicking sound when you try to turn the key but your car won’t start. If this is the issue, you’ll need a new one 

Faulty Ignition

When you have concluded that the battery may not be the problem, then the problem might be the ignition switch. Your car starts when you turn the key in the ignition, creating an electrical route.

If your ignition switch is broken, then your car’s gadgets could go off for a moment. These include your car’s interior lighting, dashboard lights etc. 

Some of the signs of a malfunctioning ignition switch are:

  • Your car stalls out as you’re moving. One of the initial symptoms is when a car abruptly stalls while the engine is running.
  • Vehicle starts, then abruptly stalls.
  • The car’s engine won’t turn on.
  • Difficulties turning on the accessories eg illumination
  • Problems with the key’s removal or turn

When Your Engine cranks but refuses to start

No Fuel

An empty gas tank is another simple reason why your car will crank but won’t start. Imagine yourself being low on food to provide energy for your body to carry out its daily activities.

That’s exactly what fuel does for a car to work. Don’t disregard the possibility that you’ll need to fill up your gas tank before leaving. And try to avoid letting your tank empty too frequently.

Failed fuel pump

A faulty fuel pump could overheat and provide insufficient gasoline to the engine, leading it to run hot and shut off while travelling.

In this case, after overheating and shutting down, your car can restart, only to repeat the process 30 minutes later. This situation is a typical indicator of a faulty fuel pump.

A clogged fuel filter

A fuel filter, which typically comes in cartridges with filter paper inside, is a filter in a fuel line that removes dirt and rust particles from the fuel. The majority of internal combustion engines contain them.

Low fuel pressure from a clogged fuel filter leads to a poor fuel condition and engine malfunction. This can result in Poor fuel mileage, difficult idling, and also cause the check engine light to turn on.

At this point you may need a replacement. To avoid this problem, try to change your fuel filter after every 20,000 to 30,000 kilometres.

car refuses to start

Bad timing belt:

A bad timing belt could be the reason your car refuses to start. A really simple fact is that your car cannot run without a timing belt. A timing belt or cambelt  makes sure that the movement of the camshaft or camshafts is synchronised with the movement of the crankshaft.

Worn out timing belts will affect the engine’s fire rate. For instance, the cylinder will open and close earlier than it should when the belt has come loose from the camshaft drive. As a result, the engine misfires.

There is a loud popping sound that occurs when an engine misfires. known simply as a backfire. Unburned fuel that is ejected from the cylinder during the exhaust stroke and ignites deeper into the system than it should cause backfiring.

Get your vehicle serviced as soon as possible if you find your car backfiring.

Other Reasons Your Car Refuses to Start

Bad Alternator

The alternator may be a problem if you can start the car, but it stalls, or if you have interior lights that brighten briefly before dimming. Due to the alternator’s use of belts, the battery symbol may also appear on the dashboard and you might even smell burning.

When the engine is operating, a defective alternator won’t adequately charge the battery, resulting in a quicker than usual discharge of the charge.

Jumpstarting the vehicle is one approach to determine if the problem is with the battery or alternator. If your car runs after being jumpstarted, your battery may need to be replaced shortly.

There is no quick fix, so you should have a professional look at it. If it’s bad, it could have harmed the battery as well.

If you have checked and there is nothing that seems fixable by you, please do well to call a technician to look into it for you.

Feel free to hire a professional mechanic from us