i have been having trouble with starting the camaro for some time now and have researched the forums for information pertaining to this problem, but none of the solutions suggested seemed to fit this very set of circumstances and trials and errors

p.s. give me a break im a chick not a mechanic.

being the type that i am... i acted on the impulse to trade my 1998 like new acura t.L. super dependable boring car (not to mention fuel-efficient!) for a 1994 z28 camaro (automatic). with a whole bag of issues. upon driving the v8 i could never drive the sheepish acura again. i have fixed many issues with the camaro already but it has not been anything serious or expensive. little annoying issues. seems it never fails. ive fixed nearly all the lights, did you know that a faulty relay on your blinkers will prevent you from using one of your blinkers, not both, but both the lights still light up for hazard lights? rewired fans to accessory to fix wiring/therm. whatever problem it was with the fans that was causing neither fan to come on no matter the temp. yet they worked when hot wired to battery. most recently, and the issue at hand is that the car will start one minute and not the next. it usually has no problem starting once it is hot, even repeatedly within minutes, yet will not start when it has been sitting up all night. usually have this problem every early morning or late night (after work). however, in every case, i can pop the hood, proceed to wiggle around some wires/cables, those that i can reach which includes alternator to battery at alternator, positive terminal, neg terminal, ground for something? cable coming from positive? and go try to start it and it will start right up with the right combination of wiggling which i have not determined yet? i did not mention, it does not even turn over when the starting problems occur. it is as if the battery is dead, and it is not i tested and all other accessories still work... alternator tested good and terminal at alternator is solid, terminal at positive is solid (though dont know how to check each of the cables leading to positive terminal for problems) know its not the battery because when this deadness occurs it cannot be jumped to start not even with a jump box until first tinkered with. ther was one instance when the keys were forced from the ignition while not engaged in park (E brake engaged...) and the key does have a chip, and a light that says SECURITY is lit up, HOWEVER!... if the problem was with the security system for ignition, would it still start sometimes after being tinkered with? help...

i it does not even turn over when the starting problems occur. it is as if the battery is dead, .........its not the battery because when this deadness occurs it cannot be jumped to start not even with a jump box until first tinkered with. ther was one instance when the keys were forced from the ignition while not engaged in park (E brake engaged...) and the key does have a chip, and a light that says SECURITY is lit up, HOWEVER!... if the problem was with the security system for ignition, would it still start sometimes after being tinkered with? help...

VATS. It's a system that reads the chip in the key. If the system doesn't read correctly, the security light will be on solid, and the car totally dead.

VATS. It's a system that reads the chip in the key. If the system doesn't read correctly, the security light will be on solid, and the car totally dead.
Jim, if the system was not functioning correctly, how could it still start sometimes, and how could i get it to start by tinkering with it as i do every day, and why does temperature affect it? the key is not locking up in ignition or anything how would VATS explain it? it starts like a minute later

Start with a new key & some contact cleaner in the ignition switch.

but obviously me moving around cables/wires/connections under the hood is what enables it to start every time, not jiggling the key/ ignition

Start with a new key & some contact cleaner in the ignition switch.
but obviously me moving around cables/wires/connections under the hood is what enables it to start every time, not jiggling the key/ ignition

Have you checked the starter relay? Is the starter in good working order? Is the park/neutral safety switch in good shape-or been replaced lately? Talk to the previous owner and see what has been repaired or replaced on the car when they had it. Next time when it wont start, wiggle one thing at a time. Wiggle one wire, then try to start, wiggle a different wire, then try to start, so on and so forth. Try to narrow it down. Let us know what is going on. :D
Hope you get it fixed! Good luck! Im glad you traded cars. Ill bet you will be to if you arent already. 3rd and 4th gen cars will be ALL THE RAVE in a few years...

kelly1212

Atta girl!: Take the initiative and figure it out or ask us here:thumbsup: The best way to learn.:hurray:
did you know that a faulty relay on your blinkers will prevent you from using one of your blinkers, not both, but both the lights still light up for hazard lights? There is also a separate flasher relay for the emergency blinkers. rewired fans to accessory to fix wiring/therm. whatever problem it was with the fans that was causing neither fan to come on no matter the temp. yet they worked when hot wired to battery. Not sure about your rewiring but this one sounds like the ground wire from the temp sensor is either off, open or the sensor is bad. most recently, and the issue at hand is that the car will start one minute and not the next. it usually has no problem starting once it is hot, even repeatedly within minutes, yet will not start when it has been sitting up all night. usually have this problem every early morning or late night (after work). however, in every case, i can pop the hood, proceed to wiggle around some wires/cables, those that i can reach which includes alternator to battery at alternator, positive terminal, neg terminal, ground for something? cable coming from positive? and go try to start it and it will start right up with the right combination of wiggling which i have not determined yet? Get a battery post and clamp cleaner and clean the posts and the cable terminals to the battery posts. About a $6.00 investment.
There was one instance when the keys were forced from the ignition while not engaged in park (E brake engaged...) and the key does have a chip, and a light that says SECURITY is lit up, HOWEVER!... if the problem was with the security system for ignition, would it still start sometimes after being tinkered with? help... Not sure about this one. Clean the battery posts and clamps. That is where I would start.

Kelly...
After cleaning the terminals, also check the ground cable on the engine. If you have jumpers handy clamp one end to the neg terminal and the other end to the engine and see if it starts. I think due to poor connection, the security info in the ECM is relearning every tine good contact is made by moving the wires to the battery.



Kev

Alot of good suggestions here. VATS is the key to the problem, not the key in your hand, no pun intended. also, clean the connections on the starter solenoid teminal, the one the positive battery cable is bolted to as there are fusible links, being power distribution wires to the rest of the car attached there also plus the big red wire from the alternator to recharge the battery. And as said, do both ends of every power cable.

A VATS equipped car has a socket in the key tumbler to read the key chip resistance and the VATS module compares the key value to module value. If there is a match, the no-start relay closes so the engine can be started, life is good.

One troubleshooting method is, according to the Owner's Manual, attempt to start the engine, no start/click, turn off and remove the key. Wait 3-4 minutes and attempt again with same key, it will start. If this event happens three times, then I would suggest getting a new tumbler for the steering column as the tumbler, the key socket, holds the electrical socket for the chip reader. Your ownership paper(s) and any GM dealer will sell you a tumbler with new key and have them install it if you chose. The steering wheel has to come off and the column has to be opened up to run the new wires.

You can also do a search, here on this site and on www to use a replacement/substitute resistor, but you lose VATS function.

Good luck and good to read of the ambition. Nothing compares to the sound of an American V8.

in every case, i can pop the hood, proceed to wiggle around some wires/cables, those that i can reach which includes alternator to battery at alternator, positive terminal, neg terminal, ground for something? cable coming from positive? and go try to start it and it will start right up with the right combination of wiggling which i have not determined yet? i did not mention, it does not even turn over when the starting problems occur. it is as if the battery is dead, and it is not i tested and all other accessories still work... alternator tested good and terminal at alternator is solid, terminal at positive is solid (though dont know how to check each of the cables leading to positive terminal for problems)...



plus the big red wire from the alternator to recharge the battery. And as said, do both ends of every power cable.



..........had the same issue on an '87 Chevrolet 1/2 ton P/U. Turn the key.......nothing......wiggle some wires and the battery cables...engine would start. My problem was the wire from the alternator to the battery was broken and movement from driving would cause the "break" in the wire to open and break the circuit. In my case it was the battery cable.

Just curious, at the times it does not start, is the dash lit up & everything else working inside the car? Does everything work except for power to the starter? This should help lead you to either the VATS, starter, or some type of cable/ground connection as many posted above. Let us know if you figure it out. I know a few good shops in town if you cant figure it out.
Scott

my 95Z/28 would intermittently flash the scurity light and not start ...
After sitting for awhile, ythe system would reset and I could start the car... is the VAT and key are the problem, do what I did ... I went under the dash and plugged a set of resistors to match the chip vaute ...

This site gives some info on how to do that ... go to the how-to section
and look st the VATS entries

http://shbox.com/1/4th_gen_tech1.html

One more thing ...
This how-to talks about "cutting" the wires; however, I elected to unplug the connector and integrate my resistor-jumper into the plug-end instead ...
If you do this, make sure that your contacts are solid ...

I would have a good look at the starter solenoid.I have seen my share of loose connections that weld the loose cable to the stud and then crack and go open again until manipulated once more.Check this.
i doubt this is your issue right now..but do not be suprised down the road that the vats will fail.By rotating the lock cyl on start up,you flex the orange wires inside the steering column and they break about 1 inch behind the cyl.By far..the leading cause of vats failure.

The key to this is the solid security light.
Vats is not happy.

I've heard that cleaning the button on the key with rubbing alcohol does wonders in some cases. The grime that accumulates on that key over time can cause vats to not work correctly. Vats can be disabled with a laptop and some tuning hardware. I'm more familiar with LS1 based software, but I would think it could be disabled with LT1 edit.

has the engine been out of the car?? ck the ground wires at the back of the heads..or at bellhousing...seems like the vats working intermittently...we had a 90 camaro rs drove us nuts trying to find the problem...ran trouble charts till blue in the face...
my tech working for me finally found the wires had been loose at bellhousing causing intermittent start...everything else came on ...

It sounds like your security is messed up causing VAT problems but before you really start getting into this you want to check other causes out.

When you turn the key inside the car when it doesn't start does anything register on your dash like volts or if the car was warm before does the temp sensor come up?

I would look at all connections to battery, alternator, and starter it sounds like a loose ground to me. The car isn't grounded to the engine right because really messing with an alternator wire shouldn't affect anything unless the car is running and the alternator is bad. The ground terminals could be corroded. Check the junction where the grounds meet and then go to their individual places since that is right off the battery. Follow the ground wire to a little black cap and clean those and make sure that connection is good do the same for the red cap which is the junction for most positive terminals.

Also I dont know if any of you guys ran into this but I have known electrical problems to screw with the security system and make it go whack especially if an electrical problem lies in the system. If the system looses power on and off pretty quickly while trying to start it I am not sure it will let it start. I doubt it has anything to do with the temperature because that wouldn't be electrical related.

My blinkers are completely out.... I flash them myself, where are these relays u talk about. One used to flash 1/2 of the time but now it doesnt at all my flashers work though.

Good for you, life is too short to drive a Honda!:D

These 93-97 cars are very, very susceptible to battery and cable problems. The positive cable can look perfect but please remove it and clean between the cable and side post with a good stiff wire brush before you spend any money. Then check the voltage on your battery. If the battery is down as little as 1/2 a volt it can cause problems. There are many cases of this type of problem documented over on camaroz28.com. Take a look over there for the next step if it isn't your cable or battery:

http://www.camaroz28.com/forums/showthread.php?t=447876