weird summertime starter/a.c. problem

  • Thread starter Thread starter Art McGinn
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Art McGinn

our '97 960 wagon, with a strong battery, has started without a
hitch through all the winter months...but the air conditioner seems to
have a hex on the starter process. a day or two after the a-c has been
used, the car won't start. then, after 24 hours or so of just sitting
there, the car can be started right up as if nothing was ever wrong.
this problem is in its second year -- always in summer -- and has defied
diagnosis so far. is there anything an a-c can do which causes a starter
not to work? then permit it to work again after several hours? (the
battery does not seem to be dead during these non-starting periods --
lights work, seats can be moved back and forth off the battery, little
chimes work etc.) last summer, we noted a couple of times that a fan was
turning itself on somehow when nobody was in the car and running-down
the battery. we assume it was the a-c fan, not an engine fan, although
no air was blowing through the vents -- just a whirring noise from
behind the dashboard. in both cases, the car was able to start the
following day as if nothing had happened. if anybody has had a similar
gremlin, would appreciate any insights...and thanks!
 
don't know about your specific car, but I recall a few years ago I heard
about someone who was having a similar problem with his car not starting
after the AC had been running... turned out that in his case, water was
condensing on the AC tubing, and dripping onto a connector, shorting it out
until it could evaporate hours later. Sorry I can't be more specific, it was
a while back! You might try looking for any place that water could be
collecting or dripping onto the ignition or starter, or perhaps onto one of
the computer modules behind the dash...
 
Perry said:
don't know about your specific car, but I recall a few years ago I heard
about someone who was having a similar problem with his car not starting
after the AC had been running... turned out that in his case, water was
condensing on the AC tubing, and dripping onto a connector, shorting it out
until it could evaporate hours later. Sorry I can't be more specific, it was
a while back! You might try looking for any place that water could be
collecting or dripping onto the ignition or starter, or perhaps onto one of
the computer modules behind the dash...
Click to expand...

perry: thanks for your response. that was weird enough to fit my
situation. will check it out. art
 
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