There is nothing worse than when your car won’t start. It can make you late to work and ruin your day. It is especially frustrating if you have a Honda Accord, as they are supposed to be reliable. If your Accord won’t start, there are a few things you can do to diagnose it and get it up and running.
⚠️ If It's Broken, Don't Fix It - Get Paid Cash for Your Vehicle ⚠️
There are a couple of ways a vehicle might fail to start. The car may simply not turn over. The engine will just not do anything when you turn the key. Your Accord’s engine may turn when you engage the starter, but it won’t fire and run by itself. When the engine simply won’t start, it is easier to diagnose than when it is cranking but not firing.
Reasons your Honda Won’t Crank
Your Accord may not start for many reasons. There are several issues that may make a vehicle not crank.
Bad Battery Cables
The battery cables are not the most likely suspect when a vehicle won’t start. However, they are simple to diagnose and easy to cross off the list of potential problems.
You can find battery poles where the cables attach. If it looks like it has green or white corrosion around it, it may help to clean them to get your car running again.
Battery Charge
Your car may not start because the battery is not functioning. A charged battery is required to turn your charger. When a battery gets older, the “cranking amps” decrease, and it will not start the vehicle very well.
You may hear the vehicle make a slow cranking noise, but it will not start.
There are a few places that can test your battery for you. You can go to Walmart, a machine shop, or even a hardware store,
If the battery is dead, but it tests as working, you may want to inspect the battery terminals. You can also have the alternator tested to find out if it charges the battery enough.
If the battery is charged, you should still take a look at the battery cables. You want to examine them for rust or damage. You can also examine the starter itself.
If you have a bad alternator, your battery may lose so much charge that your car won’t start. You may be able to drive the car home. However, you will not be able to start the car. The battery must have stored energy to start.
A Bad Starter
When your Accord won’t start, the problem might be the starter. If the starter is malfunctioning, you will not be able to start it unless you have a manual transmission.
If your battery is charged and the cables are in good shape, you may need a new starter. When a starter fails, you may be stranded. You can try pounding on the starter with a hammer. You may be able to start it one last time and drive home.
When the Engine Will Crank, but Won’t Start
Many issues may cause an Accord to crank, and then not start. In order to run n engine needs fuel, air, and a spark. There is a good chance that a car will generate an OBDII code if it will crank but not start.
You can use an OBDII scanner to check and see if the engine has given off any trouble codes. an OBDII scanner is a diagnostic tool that can be found in every car made after 1996. It is employed to analyze problems in the engine. It also scans other vehicle systems.
The scanner is very likely to display a code in this situation. These codes correspond to certain problems that the car’s computer monitors.
When you get the code you can Google it. This will pull up exactly what the code means. When you fix the problem that corresponds to your code, The car should start again.
Ignition Issues
One of the biggest problems that can cause a vehicle to crank but not start is a bad ignition. If there is no spark, the engine will not start. The car will misfire and you will see a code indicating that.
Issues such as bad coil packs, bad plug wires, computer issues, and bad spark plugs may cause ignition problems.
Fuel Issues
When an Accord can’t get a sufficient amount of fuel, or any, it may have bad fuel injectors, a bad pump, or worn out filters. The proper amount of fuel must be received in the combustion chamber or the Honda Accord will crank, but will not start.
Engine Timing
Good timing is important to an engine. Timing refers to the ability of the engine to fire the spark plug at the right time. If the plugs do not fire when they should, or something causes the camshaft to lose sync with the crankshaft, the car won’t start. If the crankshaft sensor goes bad, you will not be able to start the Accord.
Security
The average modern vehicle has smart keys that have built-in electronic protection. A thief used to be able to steal a car in 60 seconds, but these keys make the process much harder. In some cases, the security system may work too well, or it may malfunction. A security warning will display when this happens.
There are many components and problems that can cause a car not to start. Check everything and if you find a problem that you cannot fix or if you can’t figure out the problem, at all, you should take your car to a mechanic.
How much will it cost?
There are so many problems that can cause a Honda Accord not to start that it would be impossible to pinpoint an exact cost.
If the car needs a new battery, it will be in the neighborhood of $50 to $120. If the ignition system is the problem, you may pay between $164 and $202. If the starter needs to be replaced it will cost between $424 and $721. New injectors for an Accord will cost between $140 and $176.
Taking Your Car to The Dealership
If you take your car to the dealership, you will end up paying much more than you would if you took it to an auto body shop. However, the dealership will be able to rent you a car, while your car is being worked on. They will bill you by the job and not the hour so You will know the exact cost in advance.
A mechanic at a dealership will be certified in Honda Accords. That very important when you're trying to figure out exactly why your Honda won't start. A dealership mechanic will know exactly where to look for the problem. An auto body shop mechanic will charge by the hour and if he doesn't know what he's doing, this may end up costing you more in the long run.
A dealership may have more of the parts on hand for your particular make and model of car, so you will not have to wait as long for repairs.
Taking Your Car to an Auto Body Shop
Going to the auto body shop is the most economical way to get work done on your car. The vast majority of auto body shops in the country are part of a chain and they offer discounts and programs for loyal customers.
AAA maintains a list of approved mechanics in all states that drivers can reference when they are looking to have work done on their vehicle. When you select a mechanic from this list, you should also go to the Better Business Bureau website to make sure that they do not have any open complaints.
be sure to get an estimate of the repairs in writing and ask the mechanic if they are certified in Hondas.
If the starter doesn’t work, it may fixable, or it may be time for a new car. If you are in the market for a new Accord, you will have several options as to what to do with the old one.
Sell Your Car Online
When you Google, “sell my car online” you will get a lot of results. These websites will charge you a monthly fee to list your car. You will have a lot of competition if you go this route and you may have to have your listing up for several months before you even get one call.
Once you do get a prospective buyer, you will have to take the time to show them the car. You may have to do this a few times before actually making a sale. If your accord is not running at all, you should know that people who are in the market for junk cars are mechanics and they may only be interested in a part or two rather than the car. You may end up with a parted out car on your property that you will have to have towed.
Selling your car online can be dangerous. Murderers, thieves, and sexual assailants have found victims online using electronic billboards such as Craigslist.
Donate Your Car
Some charities may take your car as a donation. They will normally sell the car to a junkyard and keep the proceeds. They will give you a receipt for your taxes and you will be able to write off a portion of the value of the car.
This is fine if you want to donate the entire value of the car to the charity. Remember that you may have to wait a long time for that tax write-off.
It may be a better idea to sell the car to a junkyard yourself. When you have the money you can give some of it to the charity and keep some of it or give it all to one charity. You can even divvy up the money up between several charities.
Trade-In Your Car
If you are going to buy a new car, the salesperson at the dealership will be able to give you a trade-in allowance for your old ride. They are likely to offer you far less than they ought to. They think you will take the deal because you want to get the transaction over with.
A salesperson may give you what seems to be a good price for your old automobile. If they do this, remember to read your final offer very carefully. Make sure they have not put the trade-in amount that they gave you right back on to the final price of your new car.
When you go into the dealership, do not mention that you have a car to trade-in. Get them to give you a final price in writing and then tell them about your old car. That way, they can't try to take advantage of you.
Sell Your Car to Us
Selling your car to us is easy as can be. All you have to do is fill out our form and wait for our call.
We will ask for your name, email address, and phone number. It also asks for the year, make, model, mileage, and VIN number of your car. We tend to be partial to cars manufactured after the year 2000.
Once we get the form, we will call you back and make you an offer. If you accept the offer, we will make an appointment to come to get the vehicle. Our team member will perform a brief inspection, pay you in cash, and tow the car away for free.