{"id":878,"date":"2016-12-05T17:04:40","date_gmt":"2016-12-05T17:04:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dealerfireblog.com\/certifiedautoplex\/?p=878"},"modified":"2026-10-16T05:51:31","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T05:51:31","slug":"top-5-reasons-your-car-wont-start","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.certifiedautoplex.com\/blog\/top-5-reasons-your-car-wont-start\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 5 Reasons Your Car Won\u2019t Start"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>We\u2019ve all been there &#8211; the car\u2019s packed, and you\u2019re ready to hit the road. However, when you go to turn the key, nothing happens. Now you\u2019re left wondering what could possibly be wrong with it. Our team here at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.certifiedautoplex.com\/\">Certified Autoplex<\/a> is going to share the top five common reasons your car won\u2019t start, to give you a better idea of what the issue could be before you head to a mechanic.<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>Chances are there\u2019s something wrong with the vehicle that needs to be fixed. However, there is a slight chance that the issue is simply human error and can be fixed without going to the shop. It\u2019s always a good idea to go down the checklist and make sure it\u2019s not something you can fix on your own. Check out some common human errors below:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\">Be sure to fasten your seat belt; some new cars won\u2019t start until you\u2019re buckled up.<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\">Automatic vehicles must be in park to start, so adjust accordingly if needed.<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\">Manual drivers should make sure the clutch is pressed in far enough.<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\">Check your gas tank &#8211; low fuel levels could be causing issues.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Why won\u2019t my car start?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Dead Battery &#8211;<\/strong> If there is absolutely no reaction when you turn the key, there\u2019s a good chance the battery is dead. The battery is what supplies power to everything electrical, including lights, radio, heat, and headlights, and it could be dead from leaving one of these things on overnight. A quick jump-start should get you where you need to be in order to purchase and install a new battery.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bad Starter &#8211;<\/strong> Sometimes the issue lies in the starter, not the battery. This could be the case if you hear a clicking noise as the vehicle tries to turn over. It could be either a loose connection or a faulty starter altogether. A jump-start should still get the vehicle started temporarily until it can be fixed.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bad Ignition Switch &#8211;<\/strong> The ignition switch works by sending a signal to the battery to start the engine. If this part starts to fail, there won\u2019t be as good a connection, which can ultimately result in the vehicle not starting. Dashboard light issues could indicate a faulty ignition switch.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Fuel Pump Issues &#8211;<\/strong>\u00a0Low pressure in the fuel lines can prevent the fuel pump from delivering gas to the engine. This could be from regular wear and tear, blockage, or part failure. If you let your tank run empty, it could increase the risk of issues down the road.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Faulty Spark Plug &#8211;<\/strong> This would be the ideal situation because spark plugs are simple and cheap to replace. If the battery is working, the starter is good, and the fuel is flowing to the engine, then the spark plug may be the issue if your car still won&#8217;t start.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>If your vehicle isn\u2019t starting, it can be very frustrating. Any questions you may have regarding this blog can be directed to our team here at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.certifiedautoplex.com\/\">Certified Autoplex<\/a>. Drivers in the Dallas area are encouraged to visit our lot to browse our large selection of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.certifiedautoplex.com\/used-cars-dallas-tx\">pre-owned vehicles<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We\u2019ve all been there &#8211; the car\u2019s packed, and you\u2019re ready to hit the road. However, when you go to turn the key, nothing happens. Now you\u2019re left wondering what could possibly be wrong with it. Our team here at Certified Autoplex is going to share the top five common reasons your car won\u2019t start, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3544,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9,20],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v16.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Certified Autoplex is sharing the top five reasons that your car doesn&#039;t start in order to help drivers diagnose the problem.\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tt-blogs.dealerfire.com\/certifiedautoplex\/top-5-reasons-your-car-wont-start\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Top 5 Reasons Your Car Won\u2019t Start - Dallas, Texas\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Certified Autoplex is sharing the top five reasons that your car doesn&#039;t start in order to help drivers diagnose the problem.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/tt-blogs.dealerfire.com\/certifiedautoplex\/top-5-reasons-your-car-wont-start\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Certified Autoplex\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-12-05T17:04:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-10-16T05:51:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/cdn-ds.com\/blogs-media\/sites\/133\/2016\/12\/18121750\/Car_Hood_Open_A001_b.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1038\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"400\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\">\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\">\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.certifiedautoplex.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.certifiedautoplex.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Certified Autoplex\",\"description\":\"Official Blog\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":\"https:\/\/www.certifiedautoplex.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\",\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/tt-blogs.dealerfire.com\/certifiedautoplex\/top-5-reasons-your-car-wont-start\/#primaryimage\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cdn-ds.com\/blogs-media\/sites\/133\/2016\/12\/18121750\/Car_Hood_Open_A001_b.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/cdn-ds.com\/blogs-media\/sites\/133\/2016\/12\/18121750\/Car_Hood_Open_A001_b.jpg\",\"width\":1038,\"height\":400,\"caption\":\"woman standing with hood open\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/tt-blogs.dealerfire.com\/certifiedautoplex\/top-5-reasons-your-car-wont-start\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/tt-blogs.dealerfire.com\/certifiedautoplex\/top-5-reasons-your-car-wont-start\/\",\"name\":\"Top 5 Reasons Your Car Won\\u2019t Start - 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