2013 ATS 2.0T won't start

Re: ***2013 ATS 2.0T won't start***Help!!!!

Hey man, never had the problem, but I looked up your symptoms in my Chilton guide....here's what it says.

Automatic Transmission
Ignition ON.
Verify that no ignition, KR27 Starter Relay, brake pedal position sensor, immobilizer, or transmission DTCs are set that would cause the ECM to disable engine starting.
If DTCs are set
Refer to Diagnostic Trouble Code (DTC) List - Vehicle
If no DTCs are set
Verify the scan tool 5 V Ignition Switch parameter is Crank Request while attempting to start the vehicle.
If parameter does not display Crank Request
Refer to Vehicle Will Not Change Power Mode
If parameter displays Crank Request
Verify the scan tool TCM Internal Mode Switch parameter displays Park when in park.
If the TCM Internal Mode Switch parameter does not indicate Park.
Refer to Transmission Internal Mode Switch Logic
If the TCM Internal Mode Switch parameter displays Park
Verify the scan tool ECM Crankshaft Position Active Counter parameter is not incrementing.
If the counter increments
Replace the B26 Crankshaft Position Sensor.
If the counter does not increment
Verify the engine cranks in park or neutral.
If the KR27 Starter Relay does not click or the engine does not crank
Refer to Circuit/System Testing.
If the engine cranks
All OK

Obviously there are a few things it could be...but that might be a good place to start troubleshooting (assuming you are doing this on your own).

Re: ***2013 ATS 2.0T won't start***Help!!!!

The dash going dark when the starter tries to engage sounds very much like a bad battery; the CEL likely results from multiple communications errors as voltages of some modules fall below the critical level needed for operation. To successfully jump start a car with a battery which is nearly dead the jumper cables and connections must be exceptionally good and the assist battery needs to have a good charge. With a bad battery the assist battery is trying to supply the power needed to start while it is simultaneously being loaded by your nearly dead battery which is trying to recharge itself from the donor.

One of the basic cheap tools that everyone should own is a basic electrical test meter and you could get one at Harbor Freight for under $10; for typical household applications you don't need lab grade accuracy or a lot of functions. Set the meter to read DC voltage, 15 volt or higher range; put the positive probe on the positive battery terminal and the negative probe on the negative battery terminal. Note the reading, it should be somewhere between 12 and 12.8 volts. Have a friend try to start the car, I expect the reading for your battery will drop to a very low voltage. If the battery voltage does not appear to drop when attempting to start place the leads on the battery cable connections instead of the battery terminals, if it now shows a large drop you have a loose or bad connector.

Although engine faults can occur which prevent a restart most of those faults don't occur while the car is just sitting so a battery or battery connection problem is the high probability likelihood of your no start condition.

MyAtsIsSlow said:

Does our positive run through the jump wire in the engine bay to the fuse box? I'm sure there may be something loose there.

Click to expand...

It goes from jump post in engine bay to distribution panel that sits on top of battery. Then thru a mega fuse, short battery cable, then to battery + post. That short battery cable was cause of this guys intermittent no start:


Pic of panel on top of battery:



Can't hurt to check negative cable connections on both ends while you're in there.

A multimeter set to measure volts along with some load on the electrical system should help you troubleshoot this intermittent problem if it is a bad connection. The headlights provide a decent load so turn these on manually (with the engine NOT running) and then measure across suspected connections looking for an unusual voltage drop.

For example in angel71rs's photo above of the short positive cable, set your meter to a 25 to 50 volt scale if it isn't an autorange instrument and put one probe on the center of the positive battery terminal and the other probe on the center of the stud used to distribute power to the mega fuse and "semi-mega" fuses. Any significant reading here indicates a problem with the connection at either end of the cable or the cable itself.

To narrow further if a voltage drop is found, put one probe on the battery terminal post and the other probe on the cable connector that is on it to see if the voltage drop is occurring at that connector point. By systematically working your way through the system, you can identify any bad cable/connection by looking for a voltage drop which should show up in a bad connection even when the system is sort of cooperating (like warm weather). Also slightly move any suspect cable or connection while making the measurement to check for mechanical intermittent conditions which will also help find thermal mechanical intermittents.

Any time current flows across resistance (i.e. a bad connection), then there will be a voltage drop across the resistance and you are using your meter to measure this voltage drop. The resistance of these high current connections, even a not very good connection, is so low that a normal two wire meter cannot properly measure the resistance. .05 ohm (five hundredths of an ohm) will try to create a 15 volt drop at a 300 amp starter draw but you cannot reasonably measure anything lower than a couple of ohms with a normal DMM/multimeter thus the reason for this current draw/voltage trick.

I own a four wire meter that provides valid resistance measurement down to a few thousandths of an ohm but it is just doing conveniently in one box what the above test does using the car battery and headlights. My four wire meter provides its own current source and sink and then measures the voltage drop across it.

Because you are measuring voltage drop with you meter, you can extend the meter leads as necessary using very light gauge wire if you need to measure across two physically distant points. The input impedance of the measuring instrument will around 500K on a lower volt range with a classic analog VOM and 10 megs for a modern DMM so the resistance of the test probe extension wire is of zero concern. Just remember that you have the leads connected directly to 12 volts do be careful not to create a direct short to ground with any lead extension that you use which means to carefully insulate the connection between the extender and the existing lead.

Rodger

For future reference part number is 13293804