Hyundai Repair: 2003 Hyundai Accent Intermittent Starting Problem, engine management system, engine cranks

Question
The engine cranks not slowly, normal, no clicking and no alarm.  (sorry)
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Followup To

Question -
My mother has a 2003 Hyundai Accent with 39K miles that has had all of it's required maintenance.  She has taken it to the dealer 8 times due to the intermittent starting problem and they can't find it because it's not occuring when she takes it there.  It happens when the car sits for several hours and not all the time. Once it stalled at a red light when she was stopped.  I have seen several questions about these cars having this problem and am wondering if there is an answer for what is "usually" the problem with this.  Thank you for any information you can give.

Answer -
Hi, Tracy.  I'll need to know more about the symptoms to give you a good answer as to the most likely causes.  But it's also probable that your mother's car has a more rare issue than the common problems.  If it were one of the frequent causes, chances are the dealer would have found it by now just by doing their normal diagnosis when she takes it in for this issue.

Here's what will help me narrow what may be going on with your mother's car:
1.  Does the starter run when the condition occurs (i.e. does the engine crank)?
2.  If not, do you hear any type of click or other noise (please describe)?
3.  If it does crank, does the engine crank normally, fast, or slow?
4.  Has any sort of alarm or security system been added to the vehicle?

As for the stall, it may not be related to the starting issue.  If the car is taken to the shop immediately after the stall, chances are good that a trouble code can be retrieved if any was stored.

Answer
The fact that the vehicle cranks normally pretty much rules out problems with the starter, battery, and alternator.  It sounds like some sort of problem with the engine management system or it's wiring.  The number one cause is probably the crank sensor, but the possible causes are many, from things as simple as a faulty fuel pump to things as complicated to find as poor contact in an electrical connector somewhere in the car.  Without any indication (such as a stored trouble code) as to what sort of problem is causing the no start and without being able to test the car while the problem is occurring, the possible causes become overwhelming to check.  Furthermore, it's entirely possible that the cause will never show up in tests unless the problem is occurring when the tests are made.

The best thing I can suggest is to keep a log of the circumstances when the condition occurs.  Include outside temperature, weather, how long it's been since the car was last driven, etc.  If you can develop a pattern to when the problem occurs, it's possible that will help the shop replicate the problem and thus find it.