Chrysler Repair: 99 LHS: No Motor Turnover, crank pulley, solenoid switch


Question
QUESTION: Hey Roland!
My car recently will not start up.
I thought it to be a starter problem so I removed it. I took it to the part store to get it tested & came out good, but I ended up buying a new one anyway. But when I installed it today it did the same thing it has been doing. Which is the starter is engaging but my motor is not turning over what so ever. What could be the issue on this

ANSWER: Hi Marvin,
It may be that the motor is mechanically bound up due to internal interference, for example if the timing belt broke. I would put a socket and breaker bar on the bolt that is on crank pulley and see if the engine crankshaft can be rotated or not. If not, then check to see if the timing belt is broken or not. If it moves normally, then could the battery be less than fully charged, or is the connection from the battery + post to the starter shiny and tight? Don't deal with that fat red wire unless you remove the - post clamp so you don't short the battery to ground. I assume that you are getting the  click sound of the starter solenoid switch being closed.
Roland

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QUESTION: I just checked these things out today and my motor does turn over when turning the crankshaft with a socket & my timing belt isn't broken. When I first attempted to turn the crankshaft with the socket it was kind of hard and was making a weird noise then it went away and became easier to turn. I do remember before this issue happened I removed one spark plug (the one closet to the front of the car on the passenger side) just to check the condition of it but it was fine then I reinstalled it. I want to add that I have been attempting to start the car while being jumped so a battery issue I would rule out. Also when I reinstalled the spark plug I did turn the car on then drove around the block then turned the car off (everything was fine until that point). Until I came back to start it again.

Answer
Hi Marvin,
The fact that you found it to be hard to turn over by ratchet and a noise still raises the issue of some sort of a mechanical problem with the motor. Try removing the spark plugs and see if it will crank smoothly and quietly. It should do so because there is no compression going on that way. Then you can also put a compression tester in each spark plug hole to test whether the compression is identical on each cylinder by a compression test which will tell you if you have a mechanical problem with the valve train.
Roland