Car not starting, no crank. ABS Light and Engine Light On

[MaxwellSlides]

Hey everyone! I’m kinda new here so it’s awesome to be on the forum. I had a quick question.

So recently I changed my clutch out on my 2013 Scion FR-S and of course changed the gear oil. I used Royal Blue. I know some people have said that it’s crap but I read that after I threw it into the car. I think I might have overfilled it because my car is running a bit sluggish. Is that maybe the new clutch getting broken in or is that a common issue with too much oil? When I plugged it the car was still weeping a steady stream of oil, but I couldn’t feel a pool of oil when my finger went in so I assumed it was below the line. I’m a bit confused. This is my second clutch job, the first being on a manual Jeep, so any advice would be appreciated.

Also, my shifter falls into gear without needing the clutch. I’m assuming that means my clutch pedal needs adjusting, but any reassurance on that?
Thanks a bunch

[Ultramaroon]

Assuming the battery was disconnected, the ECU has to re-learn some parameters after having lost power. Give it a few cycles to sort out your throttle pedal and such.

You would have to try really hard to overfill the transmission. I'm sure it's fine.

Clutch mechanism is self-adjusting. It's possible to improperly adjust the pedal throw but the worst outcome is a slipping clutch. Did you adjust the pedal?

[MaxwellSlides]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

Assuming the battery was disconnected, the ECU has to re-learn some parameters after having lost power. Give it a few cycles to sort out your throttle pedal and such.

You would have to try really hard to overfill the transmission. I'm sure it's fine.

Clutch mechanism is self-adjusting. It's possible to improperly adjust the pedal throw but the worst outcome is a slipping clutch. Did you adjust the pedal?

I haven’t adjusted the pedal at all I just left it stock. I went ahead and drained the transmission even further and waited til it stopped weeping. But now the car won’t start. I took it to a dealership a while ago and they suspected a wiring issue but I’m not even sure where to start with that. I changed the throw out bearing because I thought it was getting stuck on the retainer cover (which ended up not even being that worn) but my bearing was pretty whooped so I made the change. Whenever it does this I pop the clutch in 1st while the car was rolling I managed to get it started.

Any idea? I might just post in another forum bc I feel this is a deeper issue.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by MaxwellSlides

I haven’t adjusted the pedal at all I just left it stock. I went ahead and drained the transmission even further and waited til it stopped weeping. But now the car won’t start. I took it to a dealership a while ago and they suspected a wiring issue but I’m not even sure where to start with that. I changed the throw out bearing because I thought it was getting stuck on the retainer cover (which ended up not even being that worn) but my bearing was pretty whooped so I made the change. Whenever it does this I pop the clutch in 1st while the car was rolling I managed to get it started.

Any idea? I might just post in another forum bc I feel this is a deeper issue.

Respect for bump starting old school. Not starting is a separate issue. I dunno. You could just edit the thread title. There are, like, 20 people who get into troubleshooting topics here. All the right folks will see this.

Does the starter motor even click when it quits working? Ever try tapping it? Worn motor brushes show up as dead spots in the motor's arcs of rotation. For a while, tapping the motor can get them to make contact enough to start.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by MaxwellSlides

I haven’t adjusted the pedal at all I just left it stock. I went ahead and drained the transmission even further and waited til it stopped weeping. But now the car won’t start. I took it to a dealership a while ago and they suspected a wiring issue but I’m not even sure where to start with that. I changed the throw out bearing because I thought it was getting stuck on the retainer cover (which ended up not even being that worn) but my bearing was pretty whooped so I made the change. Whenever it does this I pop the clutch in 1st while the car was rolling I managed to get it started.

Any idea? I might just post in another forum bc I feel this is a deeper issue.

Check that the ground strap to the bell housing is attached/clean/tight.

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

Respect for bump starting old school. Not starting is a separate issue. I dunno. You could just edit the thread title. There are, like, 20 people who get into troubleshooting topics here. All the right folks will see this.

Does the starter motor even click when it quits working? Ever try tapping it? Worn motor brushes show up as dead spots in the motor's arcs of rotation. For a while, tapping the motor can get them to make contact enough to start.

THAT is SOOOOO old school -

Fess up, Ultramaroon, you ARE related to Bubba -

[MaxwellSlides]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

Respect for bump starting old school. Not starting is a separate issue. I dunno. You could just edit the thread title. There are, like, 20 people who get into troubleshooting topics here. All the right folks will see this.

Does the starter motor even click when it quits working? Ever try tapping it? Worn motor brushes show up as dead spots in the motor's arcs of rotation. For a while, tapping the motor can get them to make contact enough to start.

The starter doesn’t even make a sound. I checked my battery and it reads 12.63 volts. Too a whack at the starter and solenoid and still nothing. I checked the ground bolted to the bell housing and it’s tight. Here are some photos. I saw that the solenoid was a bit scratched up so maybe it’s been banged on in the past. Oriellys will test it tomorrow once I’m home from school. To add, the ABS and Engine lights are on when I turn the key to power the car (not starting) but there are no codes so I’m guessing it’s like that before the car is running. I literally started it this morning after the clutch job, twice, and drove it around. Only when it sat did it not want to turn on. And that’s been the case for the last two months. Sometimes I used to (I know this is stupid but it wassss fun every now and then) rock the car while inside it and occasionally that would get it started. But eventually it stopped working.

I’m wondering, how to I test how much voltage is reaching the starter? Is it the little white wire going to the solenoid plus the ground, or the thick one next to that tiny one that’s bolted on + the ground?

[soundman98]

check your clutch switch, they're prone for going out, and will cause a no-start condition as well.

if you're not getting any click at all out of the starter/relay, i don't believe the starter is the problem

[NoHaveMSG]

Put a multimeter on the battery and check voltage while someone else cranks the car over and tell us what it reads.

[soundman98]

Originally Posted by NoHaveMSG

Put a multimeter on the battery and check voltage while someone else cranks the car over and tell us what it reads.

i bet it's 12.63v

[NoHaveMSG]

Originally Posted by soundman98

i bet it's 12.63v

If it’s the clutch switch.

[Ultramaroon]

The clutch switches tend to burn out with the keyless systems. With keyed ignition switches, one would have to be in the habit of letting go of the clutch before releasing the key to the "run" position. Nobody does that.


Get someone to (try to) crank the starter while you're testing voltage between chassis ground and the thin wire to the solenoid. If there's juice, everything inside the cabin is good. If not, it gets complicated.

[MaxwellSlides]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

The clutch switches tend to burn out with the keyless systems. With keyed ignition switches, one would have to be in the habit of letting go of the clutch before releasing the key to the "run" position. Nobody does that.


Get someone to (try to) crank the starter while you're testing voltage between chassis ground and the thin wire to the solenoid. If there's juice, everything inside the cabin is good. If not, it gets complicated.

Okay so did a thing. I tested the voltage of my battery again yet this time (about two hours later and using my light inside my car to crank while checking starter) it was 12.53v, and dropped to 12.34v when trying to start the car. Still nothing other than the typical humming, no sound coming from starter. I haven’t tested the little wire yet so I’m gonna do that tomorrow and get back to you guys. Would that indicate a wiring issue inside the car? Like to the radio or something? Because whenever I try to start it everything shuts off for a moment then turns back on but it’s been like that since I got it. Also, is the clutch switch for only the car starting? I live in LA and traffic can be buttcheeks, pushing the clutch in and out frequently. Maybe that could burn it out faster? And is the starter relay in ze box?

Really appreciate the help with diagnostics btw. Y’all are awesome and hella funny lol

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by MaxwellSlides

Okay so did a thing. I tested the voltage of my battery again yet this time (about two hours later and using my light inside my car to crank while checking starter) it was 12.53v, and dropped to 12.34v when trying to start the car. Still nothing other than the typical humming, no sound coming from starter. I haven’t tested the little wire yet so I’m gonna do that tomorrow and get back to you guys. Would that indicate a wiring issue inside the car? Like to the radio or something? Because whenever I try to start it everything shuts off for a moment then turns back on but it’s been like that since I got it. Also, is the clutch switch for only the car starting? I live in LA and traffic can be buttcheeks, pushing the clutch in and out frequently. Maybe that could burn it out faster? And is the starter relay in ze box?

Really appreciate the help with diagnostics btw. Y’all are awesome and hella funny lol

Take the battery in for a load test. Pretty much any larger parts store can do it. If it is dropping out then coming back on you may have a battery issue even though the voltage looks fine.

Nobody has asked yet but is the car all stock? No headlight, taillight, HU etc swaps?

The relay is #45 in the attached diagram. There are also a couple of fuses. #21 under hood and #14 under dash. If it is so intermittent it could be the relay.

https://www.autogenius.info/scion-fr...e-box-diagram/