ok guys yesterday i turned my car off properly & all. it was running perfect. couldnt ask for anything better. so today i decide to leave to take care of some things before work. low & behold my rex doesnt wanna start. when i turn the key over all the lights on the guage cluster come on yet it doesnt wanna turn over. could this be the starter on it? right now im leaning to selling this baby. i love it dearly but two times in two months is enough for starting issues. -- thanks david

 

Um...engine flooded?

 

Could be your starter has failed or you have bad battery terminal connections or you simply have a bad battery. My money rests on the terminal connections. Good luck and pleeeze don't give up on the car!

 

im trying not to inittab. im gonna go get some new battery cable & replace those. that should help. but that should not keep it from turning over should it?

 

Yeah. If youre not sending power to the right places because of a bed cable, nothings gonna work . The lights on the dash come on from a different circuit, so the starter cables can still not work even when those lights do. I had a problem like this every now and then even after I replaced my cables, and had a brand new starter. The car just wouldnt turn over. Nothing dimmed, just nothing happened (in the past when it was bad battery cables, the lights dimmed like a bad battery). I crawled under the car looking for some loose wires or something, and the one small spade wire that triggers the solenoid was massivly loose. I just took it off the post, squished the female spade down tighter with some pliers, slid it on back on, and all my problems went away . But as said earlier, I would get new cables and terminal ends. I got my stuff at a regular old auto parts store, but I crimped my connectors on, then soldered with a torch just to be sure . Also, be sure and check that little "signal wire" (for lack of a better term). That could be part of your problem too. Hope that helps.

~T.J.

 

Before you go out and buy a new cable, check the connections on your battery. Take the positive and ground cables off and use a battery post cleaner to clean the terminals. Then use some light sand paper and sand the cable connections at the battery and down by the starter. This is what I'd do anyway. Also, verify that your battery IS good.

 

i picked up my new starter tonight. hopefully tomorrow it will be running. my heart is still there. im gonna check the battery cable tomorrow. damn shop guy didnt know what to use. arghhhh

 

EXACT same thing happend to me, in both of my rex's.
Wouldn't crank, but all lights ok.
Replace BOTH battery cables (42 inch on both, I think)
even though they looked fine. Cleaned everything, including the small wire w' spade lugs while I was under there. Starts every time now, lights brighter, windows go up faster, sun a little brighter, wife a little prettier......

 

You should have started with the connections or you're probably going to find that you spent $40 for nothing. Also, there's a quick connect on the solenoid itself that tends to get oil soaked or grimy and can prevent the weak signal there from getting to the solenoid telling it to close the circuit...also, if you go to replace cables, here's a link to a nice little mod I introduced a loonng time back...

Starter Ground Strap Mod/Trick...

 

hrmmm ill check the connections then. what should i clean them with? i can always return the starter too

 

Gumout Carb Cleaner is my favorite weapon...

 

could it be the carburator being clogged?

 

Is the engine physically turning over?

 

nothing is moving on it. no clicking or whatsoever. i pray the motor isnt blown i have carb cleaner but i havent used it yet.

 

Then start with cable connections...there's also an outside chance that the ignition switch in the column migh also be bad but you won't know until you get the cables all good and fresh first...

 

ok man. i just wanna get this bad boy back on the road. it shouldnt be blown right?

 

Hope not...here's the other problem it could be and what I had to do to fix it...

Starter Woes and Solution When It's NOT The Cables...

 

hrmm im gonna check it out tomorrow. hopefully it just connections. if so ill be ok.

 

if it was flooding or a clogged carb, the engine would turn over but not catch. You're describing an engine that doesn't even click, nevermind turn over. Mar3's suggestions for cheching connections are right on the money. Don't start swapping parts (starter, cables, etc) until you first know what's wrong.

 

yeah thats what im looking at. hopefully tomorrow morning it will be up & ill be spraying cleaner on it.

 

Gumout Carb Cleaner...

 

Good advice, Mario.
If there is no clicking noise, I might suggest that it could also be the solenoid itself.
I prefer brake cleaner for degreasing connectors that have plastic insulators, though.
And Berryman B-12 costs a bit more, but kicks Gumout's butt.

 

same thing happend to me i whent to start it up one day ... didnt wanna start... got unter the car and the starter had a connection that just likes to fall off, check that out i bet thats yer problem bro. its a thin black wire

 

yeah thats what im thinking after reading my haynes manual & asking the boards. is there anyway of locking this piece in place so it doesnt happen again

 

once again id like to thank the Mazda Gods that helped with this matter. the beast is back & running. damn corroded wire. now i gotta get new tires. arghhhhh