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Help! Our car won't start...

C

cpals

Diamond Member
We got home this morning in our car and I parked the car and turned it off. I opened the door and noticed the radio was still on, which sometimes happens for whatever reason. Our radio stays on until I open the driver door. So to fix this I usually just turn the car back on and off and the radio turns off.

This time however, the car made a noise and now when I turn the key in the ignition the anti-theft light just comes on and the car does nothing else. Doesn't try and turn the ignition or anything. After I take the key out the car makes a weird noise and the gas/speedometer arrow move back to 0.

Can I just let it sit and it'll reset or something?

Car: 2001 Cavalier 4-Door Sedan

Thanks!
 
Sounds like your car is confused with the key. Does the key have a chip in it to protect against theft? There is a reset procedure for things like this, but I don't know what it is on a Cavalier.
 
Okay, so it looks like something may have happened to the battery? When I leave the key in the on position, the check engine light just stays on... I did get the car to start by jumping it so I'm not sure what that means. I'm going to the auto-part store to have them check the battery or alternator.
 
Sounds like the core problem may be in the ignition switch. The ignition switch is thinking that the key is still in the ignition and letting the radio continue to run, which is running down the battery. Even if the radio gets turned off, it's probably still sending current to some other electronics and draining the battery.

ZV
 
We got it to a Advanced Auto Parts and they tested the battery and alternator... both were bad so my wife's dad helped me replace it. Fixed it ourselves! Everything seems to be working good now. Not sure if I should have the ignition switch looked at also or just leave it.
 
Originally posted by: cpals
We got it to a Advanced Auto Parts and they tested the battery and alternator... both were bad so my wife's dad helped me replace it. Fixed it ourselves! Everything seems to be working good now. Not sure if I should have the ignition switch looked at also or just leave it.
Click to expand...

Nice work Cpals. Feels good when you fix your car yourself don't it? Helped my buddy do his brake pads on his Honda a couple weeks ago and he was amazed how easy it was. Probably saved him a hundred bucks.
 
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