Hello so my 2005 Hyundai Accent gls recently stopped starting one day after I drove it to work car ran perfect for 9 month prior with no issues. I had a few people come look at it due to me not able to bring it in to a shop cause it won’t start. Every person suggested something different. So I ended up fixing a bunch of crap I didn’t need. I replaced the following: spark plugs, coil pack, fuel pump, ecm, crankshaft & camshaft sensors. Vehicle cranks but will not turn over which is what it was doing defore I did all the work. I have run out of time and money and school starts for me next week. I just want to know what could be causing the vehicle to not start after replacing many parts. Also the car shows NO CHECK ENGINE CODES FOUND when you scan it now. While the car was running about 3 weeks ago I had it scanned at the auto store and I had 1 code for a catylic converter which doesn’t have anything to do with the car not starting. I just find it weird there’s no codes now when I didn’t fix it or get the codes clear. Can someone pleaseeee help.
We’re any of these people mechanics? Does this car have a timing belt? Was that checked ? Is there spark? Fuel? Is the fuel pump actually pumping? If it won’t start you can bet there IS a reason. Now you have to find it. Just throwing parts at it is the wrong approach, as you found out it can be expensive for getting no results. I would check the timing belt if there is one, and the fuel delivery. Other than that a tow to a shop for a real diagnosis would be money well spent.
This is what I was thinking also…the timining belt. Hyundai recommand having it replaced at every 60,000k miles. Engine will never turn over with a broken timing belt and can seriously damage the engine(interference engine).
The engine will “turn over” with a broken timing belt, that is, the starter will cause it to rotate, but it will not start.
I think you are using the term “turn over” incorrectly, sorry.
edit: an “interference” engine will not crank very far with a broken timing belt as the valves will jam into the top of the cylinder.
Yes all mechanics and they can’t seem to figure it out my dad mentioned the timing belt but he and a mechanic looked at it and they said the timing belt looked good… and yes I’m tired of spending money on it but if I bring it to the shop they charge just to look and they might not find the problem
You are not getting anywhere now so a shop with " real" mechanics is called for. I don’t think you can just look at a timing belt and say it is good. I think they looked at the serpentine belt.
You spent a bunch of money on parts you didn’t need. Paying for proper diagnosis would have been cheaper.
Are you sure they looked at the timing belt? It’s buried under a bunch of stuff in that car and can’t be seen until you do some pretty significant surgery. Were parts, including big plastic pieces and pulleys, scattered all over when they were looking at it? If not, then they didn’t look at the timing belt.
They pulled of the plastic cover and told me to turn the key
Have you checked for a spark on the plug? How about fuel, is fuel getting to the injectors and do the injectors work? You check the fuses?
With respect, seeking additional suggestions from the internet is more than likely to result in continuing to fix a bunch of stuff you don’t need. My suggestion is to have it towed to a reputable shop with a written list of everything that’s been done. A shop will have the diagnostic equipment and expertise to give you the correct answer.
Sorry, but in my opinion at this pointy you really need to “bite the bullet” and take it to a shop.
First you have no codes because you changed the ecm. Has the engine ever been run with the replacement ecm? If not, it won’t report any faults like converter issues.
Does the engine sound normal when cranking?
Simple divide and conquer approach- buy can aerosol starting fluid. Disconnect air intake to manifold and spray some in there. Now crank engine. Does it try to, or briefly, start?
This simple test could rule out a whole bunch of potential causes…
That’s not true.
A restricted catalytic converter can prevent an engine from starting.
If the engine can’t pump out exhaust, the engine can’t draw in air to start.
I’ve seen three vehicles not start because of a restricted catalytic converter.
http://www.misterfixit.com/cat.htm
Tester
I hadn’t changed the ecu yet, when the car showed no codes so that isn’t why
Automatic or manual transmission?
I’d try starting it in neutral, working the shifter several times or work the clutch a few times before trying to start it.
Could be a neutral safety switch, clutch switch, brake pedal switch…
How about a fuel pump relay/fuse? Have you tried seeing if the car has an identical relay in a non-critical position and swapping it with the fuel pump relay?
Hint: Cars with intermittent problems can be a real pain, even for the best mechanics. Dead cars that were running when parked and are now just large paper-weights ordinarily shouldn’t be difficult to diagnose for any mechanic worth his/her weight in salt.
The only things that should be “guessed” before taking the car to a trusted mechanic are things that can be tried for free.
CSA
I’m presuming your problem is cranks ok, you hear that rrr rrr rrr sound with the key in start, but won’t catch and run". This is important to clarify b/c the solution to a “no-crank” problem is entirely different. So assuming it is cranks but won’t start … hmmm …
Well, let’s start with the basics. First things first. For any engine to start under cranking it requires
- gas being injected into the cylinder
- a spark at the spark plugs
- good compression
- no obstructions preventing the escape of the exhaust gasses
Most likely the problem is just one of these. Without any codes, you’ve got to make an educated guess which one of those it is, and test that guess to see if it is true or not. Go through those four possibilities one by one. I’d probably start with an aspect of compression, as it is easy to check. Often you can remove the oil cap and peek into the valve area with a flashlight, maybe an inspection mirror, to see if the camshaft is rotating along with the engine as you crank it. If it is, leave the rest of compression checks until later, and move on to spark. Read up on how to test for spark. I use a spare spark plug myself. Do you see a healthy spark? If so, then fuel is next. You’ll have to measure the fuel pressure, so tool up for doing that test. Fuel pressure ok too? Well, you get the idea, you can either do a complete compression test, or temporarily disconnect the cat to see if you’ve got an exhaust restriction.
Generally not a good idea to replace car parts beyond what you’d do for routine maintenance anyway (spark plugs, air filter, fuel filter, etc) unless you have a test result pointing to that part being the problem. It used to work w/cars of even the early 80’s where you could venture a guess, replace some parts, and usually get it working again. Once electronic fuel injection technology took hold in the mid 80’s, that method no longer works. You’ll run out of money before you run out of guesses. Much better method when you run out of simple to do ideas is to tow the vehicle to a well recommended inde shop and have them do a professional diagnosis. If you then want to fix it yourself, you can tow it back home and complete the repair job yourself. Most diy’ers can at least check that the camshafts are turning, and there’s a spark at the spark plugs before going that route.
Best of luck. It’s probably something simple. Be aware however that the parts you’ve replaced may be faulty; i.e. you’ve inadvertently replaced a good part with a bad part. Don’t assume they are all working, b/c there’s currently no proof those replacement parts do in fact work.
What should have been done before spending a dime is…
Verify spark at the plugs.
Verify fuel pressure.
Verify the injectors are pulsing.
If all is ok in those areas you check the timing belt.
Odds are this is going to be one of those things where you slap yourself in the face and wonder why it was never thought of to begin with. One blown fuse could cause a no-start condition.
A tow to a shop for a diagnosis would have been cheaper than buying all those parts you didn’t need.
Spray some starting fluid into the intake, If it starts and runs briefly, you have a fuel problem. If not, probably spark but could be timing. Pull a spark plug or take one from a lawnmower, put a spark and hold the side of the metal nut against a metal part of the engine with something insulated like a wooden clothespin and have someone crank the engine. If no spark, then you have to find out why. If you remove the oil filler cap can you see part of a camshaft? If you can, have someone crank the engine again and if the camshaft is not turning you have a broken timing belt or chain.
I worked with a really strange man many years ago. He had an old car, something like a Rambler that his daughter drove. She called him and told him she was stranded and it wouldn’t start.
He had it towed to a mechanic who told him it was the timing belt/chain whatever, and offered him a handful of peanuts if he wanted to sell it, so to speak. He said no and had it towed home, and was going to replace the timing belt. As he started to work on it, he had a thought. He pulled the distributor off and asked his wife to hit the starter. The rotor turned, which meant the timing belt was not broken.
He checked some more and found it was out of gas, and the gauge did not work. 
If there is a technical error here, it is my memory. Sorry.
I’ll bet there’s a lot of cases where mechanics or diyer’s spent hours on a no-start problem which was due to the gas tank being empty. I can’t say I’ve ever done that, but one of my relatives spent some cash on tow truck for a no-start when the problem was they hadn’t switched the gas tank selection switch on the dash to run on the other tank, which was full … lol …