I have a '97 SE with 115k miles that is having starting problems. A few weeks ago it was cranking and cranking but not starting. It would only do this occasionally; not all the time. Before that time, it would start immediately.
Finally got in one day and I turned the key and it did nothing. The starter was dead. Had that replaced and the mechanic who replaced it said the first time he tried starting it with the new starter it didn't catch either, so there's something else going on. But he couldn't repeat it to try and isolate the problems. It started everytime.
So now, over a week after the new starter, I've had no problems.... until this morning where it didn't start until the third try. I'm trying not to crank it for more than 2 - 3 seconds as I probably burned out the old starter by turning it for too long.
The mechanic told me you need electrical, spark and fuel to start a car. My electrical is fine, so that leaves spark and fuel. But since the car only has problems starting *sometimes*, taking it in for a diagnoses may do no good because it might not do it for them.
So my question is: if the problem is spark or fuel, what should I do to try and fix this? I know very little about engines, so I'm flying blind here. Should I just replace the spark plugs to see if that helps, or does "spark" refer to more than just plugs? And how could I check on whether it's getting fuel or not?
Background on the car: it's been great to me so far. I had a 90k mile maintenance done on it and had new plugs put in and the fuel injectors cleaned. And this morning when it wasn't starting I smelled gas after I finally got it running.
Need some help. Does anyone have any ideas? Thanks.
Tyler