I have a 1994 honda civic 5-speed that had been having trouble starting. It won't turn over at all. It will start fine 97% of the time but every once in a while it will fail to turn over. If I leave it sitting for a day or so it will start fine then.

The lights in the interior as well as the radio works fine. The starter does not even click. I test to see if any juice is getting to the starter and it is not. The problem is before the starter and it is not the neutral safety switch. The neutral safety switch is not getting any juice either. So it has to be before that.

Any ideas?

 

When you try to start, do the lights stay on? If not, you're losing power from the battery, usually bad connections at the battery. You can have enough power flowing to light a few lights and radio, but not for the starter.

If the rest of the car always has power, consider the key switch next? Can you make it crank by jumping battery + to the small wire on the starter? That will bypass all the switches in the car. If it still won't crank, could be the starter itself. They are often intermittent just before they quit completely.

 

The lights stay on and I have connected a light that connects from the -ve to the starter that shows if it is getting any juice and it is not. If the battery just doesn't have enough power shouldn't the light be coming on that is connected to the -ve to the starter?

 

Big wire on the starter comes straight from battery + so it should be live all the time. Measure voltage from the big wire terminal to starter ground, should be battery voltage and it should stay up when the key is turned to start.

 

I checked to see if the starter is getting power and it is. It was getting 12 amps. Even when the key is turned over when it is supposed to be starting the car it is still no change(12 amps). What do you think the issue is then?

 

12 volts you mean. That is good, you should next see if 12 volts comes from the car to the small wire on the starter when the key is turned. If it does, the starter is getting everything it needs, so if it won't turn it is bad.

 

I tested to see if the small wire is getting anything while the key is turned over but it is not. I also bypassed everything and went from the + to the big inlet on the starter. I thought it was the starter right after I did this but now that I see it is not getting any power when the key is turned over I don't know. Any ideas??

 

The most common reason for a manual to do that is that the rubber pad which presses the switch activated by the clutch pedal has broken and fell out.

 

I have bypassed what i was calling the neutral safety switch. I'm not sure if thats what it is called or not but it is the rubber pad you are talking about. Still nothing. A mechanic told me he could fix it for $700. I told him no thanks. I think I'm going to replace the starter and if that doesn't fix it then I am going to install a push button starter switch. I was just wondering do i need to go from + to push button to the smaller or larger wires on the starter? Do I need a fuse in there somewhere?

 

have you had the alternator checked