HELP! Car will not start. Engine does not turn over

ritesh

I have a nissan almera 1998 1.4 si hatchback (5door). This morning i accidently tried to start the car whilst still in gear. Obviously the car jolted. I put into neutral and tried to start again but the engine did not turn over at all. Later in the evening i tried again and no joy. All the lights come on and you can hear a click (not clicking). I then tried to switch on again and hold the key in that position and after 5 seconds could see smoke coming out from bonnet, then obviously switched it off. Is this a starter motor issue?

bryanb

Sounds like starter motor or it's supply cable. Motor could be jammed, therefore heating up the windings.

Quentin

Try putting car in first gear (no ignition on) then rocking the car from the back.

This may free the starter motor if its jammed.

ritesh

Thanks bryanb.

Do you know if starter motor is easy to replace?

Quentin

It is usually a diy job, though time consuming (you may need to remove other items to get access to it).

If you are going to do it, a replacement from a scrap yard will be much cheaper than buying a new (exchange) one.

bryanb

Please remember to disconnect the battery if you DIY

whood

With a hammer tap the bottom of the starter motor to free it up as sometimes they tend to stick if all else fails buy a second hand one from scrapyard as they will work just as good as a new one and save you money.

BURY TRADE AUTOS

ritesh

Really useful responses.

Is there anything else I should look at such as solenoid etc?

vaio

Quentin wrote: »

Try putting car in first gear (no ignition on) then rocking the car from the back.

This may free the starter motor if its jammed.

That’s it, flat ground, handbrake & ignition off, first gear and rock the car backwards and forwards. You’ll need to do it quite forcibly (two people is easier than solo) but you’ll feel the difference when the starter un-jams itself.

Smoke from starters is not a good sign but they are quite tough so hopefully it’ll have survived.

ritesh

Thanks for the responses.

The car is on a drive way with a bit of a slope. So, with the car switched off and in 1st gear, I released the handbrake and clutch down. As the car moved a little bit I immediately let go of the clutch, hoping this will have the same effect as rocking. I then tried starting again. Nothing! Must be really jammed.

The car starts when I jump start it though, which is good news in itself.

I'll try and locate a second hand starter motor or refurbish the one I have.

Thanks to you all for your helpul friendly advice.

bryanb

When you say jump start it normally means with jump leads, is that what you mean? If so you don't need a new motor.

If you mean pushing it along the road and dropping the clutch, that's different. Then you may well need one