My 1999 Regency (65000 Mi) 3.8L V6 has an occasional penchant for turning all of the warning lights on while traveling down the road at normal speed, and then the Speedometer goes from say 6O to pegging the needle at say, 120 mph, then, the lights will go out, and the speedometer will drop back the correct speed. When this happens the ACTUAL speed does not increase, (but it does make me look). I have written this off to GM engineering aberations so far, but yesterday, I needed to start the car in a parking garage, and when I turned the key, all the warning lights would come on, but the engine would not turn over. I shifted it in and out of gear, turned the key on and off, and waited a few minutes. On the fourth try the engine started normally. The car has a new battery, and the car has started 3 times since yesterday normally. I had a no start problem with a T-Bird which did not have the warning light, or increased speedometer issue, repaired by replacing the starter motor. What in your opinion is going on here, and should I replace the starter in this car, or have something else tested?

 

Well, the starter itself would have no effect on what the car does when you're going 60 down the highway, so I doubt you need a new starter although it may be bad and unrelated to the other problem. Best guess would be a bad connection somewhere in the charging and/or starting circuit. Might take a considerable amount of tracking down where the problem is by tracing the main power charging and distribution system. Start with the battery terminals and cables and the cables/wires that branch off. Should be able to find a diagram if needed on the Auto Zone site repair guides.

Is that one of the models with battery under the back seat?

 

Fortuneatly the battery is located in the engine compartment. My thought was that the problem might be a programming issue in the computer, and that that might have also affected whatever the chip has to do with the system to let the starter engage. Perhaps there is a trouble code stored somewhere?

 

Don't forget to check all ground straps. Best to remove, clean and replace..not just eyeball. Should be several between battery and engine, engine and body, body and dash (possibly).

 

Doesn't sound computer-related, but no harm doing a code read.

 

'I shifted it in and out of gear, turned the key on and off, and waited a few minutes'


If the two problems are unrelated and they might be, another possibility around the no starter activation situation could be a problem with the Neutral Safety Switch. When you moved the gear selector through the gears did you also try starting the engine in the neutral position rather than only Park for instance?

 

I did try to start it in the neutral position as well. If you guys don't think the electronics could effect it, it will probably come down to a 12 year old starter. I will check the grounds too.

 

If the car is VATS (Vehicle anti theft) equipped that would bear inspection...............Scan the BCM to see if any VATS codes are present