Sigh... You guys are my only hope

[kronickj]

Ok, i know that in order to get the best possible answer from you guys, i will need to explain my problem is great detail, so you know my situation exactly as it pertains to the problem, so here goes...

I purchased the car in March 2004, brand new 2005 chevy cobalt. it had 1 mile on it when i got into drive it home. i've kept up with all regular maintenace on the thing, i do my own oil changes every 3000 miles. the car now has 121k miles on it. i havent had any problems with it up to this point, absolutely none, and i thank god for that. lol.

Anyways, the other day, last tuesday, i was driving around all morning. came home from work around noon. parked the car in my driveway, it wasnt acting funny at all. ive had problems lately with the extremely cold weather, but i have attributed that to my old battery. the battery is about 3 years old and im surprised it has lasted this long, but after a quick jump, and a little driving around, the car will start with no problem. That day, around 6 pm, i went to take my car out, and it wasnt starting. it would crank and crank and crank, sounding like it was about to turn over, but it wasnt turning over. then it went dead, so i thought ok, ill just bite the bullet and replace the battery. i did that. went to fire up the car again, and it did the same thing, crank and crank but wouldnt fire. Ive never had a problem with the car starting like this. i had the problem with the battery, when i would try to start the car it would just making a clicking noise, but that isnt happening this time. it almost sounds like the engine isnt getting gas when i turn the key, but theres plenty of gas in the car. I talked to my buddy who works at Napa Auto, and he said some guy had come in the other day asking for a crank sensor for his 06 chevy cobalt, saying that he had talked to a dealer service dept and they explained a problem they've seen with a faulty crank sensor causing the car to make the sound it is making, where it sounds like its not getting enough gas, and how it will crank but not fire. so ive purchased a new crank sensor. this is where im at now.

i have the car all jacked up and sitting on jack stands at the moment. i have the crank sensor, ive disconnected the battery, and i need to put the new crank sensor in. Ive read that it is located behind the start, so i will need to remove the starter to put the new crank sensor in. My buddy came over to do this for me, since he's a little more privvy to the layout and procedure of working on the vehicle. When he got underneath the car, he removed one of the bolts holding the starter in place, but wasnt sure how to go about removing the rest of the bolts to the starter. i have a few questions:

1) How do we remove the starter? (ive ordered a repair manual but it wont be here for a couple days)

2) in the event that the crank sensor isnt the root of the problem, what else could we check?

3) has anyone else had/seen this problem before? where the engine cranks and cranks and cranks but doesnt fire up?

Any help you guys could give me would be greatly appreciated. ive had the car a long time, taken care of it, and i'd like to continue to be able to drive it. again, this is the first major problem i've had where the car wouldnt start, right now im without a vehicle and it sucks. please help!

Josh

 

[bbrewbaker]

Check to make sure the fuel pump is working.

 

[cobalt123]

or the starter hasnt gone bad

 

[bbrewbaker]

or the starter hasnt gone bad

If it's cranking it's not the starter. It's either not getting fuel or spark.

 

[Cobalt Tom]

starter may have bolts in from the other side, but there is only 2 or 3 if i remember right and it slides right out.
i would check coil pack to make sure your getting spark, fuel system to make sure your getting fuel, and tb to make sure its letting air through.

ONly time I have had this problem is when I put my fuel pump relay back in the wrong spot so no fuel was getting to the engine. If you turn your car to the on position without starting it, can you hear the fuel pump prime up and pressurize the line?

---------- Post added at 02:06 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:06 PM ----------

If it's cranking it's not the starter. It's either not getting fuel or spark.

or air

 

[Tuner923]

check for fouled plugs, then check coil packs.

---------- Post added at 09:40 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:34 PM ----------

also take pics of the plugs dont clean them and post them. keep them in order so I can see which cylinder it came from.

 

[kronickj]

update

As an update..

me and my friend just finished removing the starter motor and changing out the crank sensor.

we then reconnected evreything and bolted the starter motor back in place, etc. reconnected the battery and went to start the car with no luck. still doin the same thing.

the next thing im gonna do is check for fouled plugs like you said, but in order to get to the spark plugs i have to remove the air intake. I got the Haines manual for my chevy cobalt now, so i have all the instruction i need. i just dont know where the problem lies. still tryin to figure out the root of the problem.

Ill post back with pictures of the plugs once i take em out to check em.

thanks for the replies, ill keep you posted.

 

[gberland]

well first of all if u have acess to some type of scanner this may be useful and may give u hint in the right direction, if u have any engine lights on ? then throw a scanner on there and u may get a code or two that may get u in the right direction, besides that ya start with the easy stuff like everyone sez, fuel pressure, fuel filter, spark plugs, make sure your o2 sensors are in tact with no broken wires,

---------- Post added at 03:00 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:48 AM ----------

i kno I just got my CAT replaced under the Emissions warranty my car has 117KM on it , i just got the CAT replaced this last TUE and i never drove the car because i live close to work and i assumed that the TECHS have already test driven properly (any good tech would have) so anyways i went to take my car out for this friday bout 3 days after the repair, i went for a 3 hour drive and i parked it, worked great, but after bout an hour or two i started it again and after a few min it started doing the same concerns as yours, i looked under the hood and i could see the wire connector on my first O2 sensor is BURNT OFF!!! totally missing??!! WTF appears the TECH who did this re routed my first O2 sensor wire connector wrong cuz when the exhaust got hot it burnt the wire off, now the O2 sensor controller senses a LOW VOLTAGE which the module indicates as a LEAN condition , High Air Low FUEL !! however i doubt that this is your problem but i thought id share my experience,

---------- Post added at 03:02 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:00 AM ----------

i will be calling the Chevy dealership and getting a warranty repair On this!!! but first ill scann it myself just to make sure i get a some kind of CAT/ O2 sensor relating code

 

[cobalt123]

You dint need to remove the intake to get at spark plugs

 

[gberland]

You dint need to remove the intake to get at spark plugs

NO !! lol duh of course i didnt remove the intake too get at my spark plugs and if i said that i worded it wrong, i said i took out my spark plugs and looked at them , yes i did take off my intake but only to look for carbon depostits and oil clogging the throttle valves up and i didnt find any