No start, No crank. 2012 Sonic LTZ

[evanrly]

Hey everyone,

Giving a heads up about my 2012 Chevy Sonic LTZ 1.4 6spd. I installed a Rockford Fosgate pbr300x4 and a Lc6i LOC. Also 4awg power run from battery to trunk on drivers side, 8 14awg pairs ran to the trunk from head unit on passenger side for speaker runs. Fused at battery and in trunk.

Let me preface this with the fact I've been having occasional issues with it not starting as of this past week. When I turn the key the car will crank once, then shut off, and the security light will illuminate. If I remove the key and try to start again, usually, it will start however the security light will remain illuminated. It will take a third time of starting the car to remove the security light and for the car to run.

Was at Denny's the other morning and when I went out to start my car, no crank, no starter click, no nothing. Repeated attempts weren't helping, so I called GM roadside and they suggested I try a jump start first. That guy comes around, says the battery is charged up and there's nothing he can do.

I call back roadside and they send out a tow truck, it gets dropped off at the dealership Saturday.

I walk in the dealer this morning to explain to them my story, they take my info and send me on my way, said they'll call by 2pm letting me know if it's staying overnight. Just received a call at 1030am asking me about my aftermarket system and what it is, where it's running. They try to explain this may be the issue, and I really don't believe it to be but I'll keep my ears open. The sound systems was in the car for over a month before it started to develop these issues.


Sorry for the rant, I had to get this all down and hopefully someone can shed some light on my situation!


PS. I was just informed of a recall for my sonic, it was sent out Jan 27th according to my dealer. It deals with the front end suspension I believe, I'll get more details when I hear back...

 

[ThatTmoGuy]

I would check and make sure the Amp was installed correctly and that it shuts off when the ignition is shut off. I've seen people run 12V constant to the remote wire and it will drain your battery. Another good Idea is to use a capacitor to minimize the chance of collapsing a cell in your battery.

 

[sonic007]

Id say check your amp turn on wire. You cant just tap into any 12 ignition. They may have tapped into a data wire somewhere. Probably messing with your factory immobilizer so the cars security wont let the car start. Usually not even crank.

 

[evanrly]

I installed the amp and went through a lot of testing to make sure it wasn't a parasitic drain, that would have been my first thought . No drain is happening and the amp/LOC turn off within 10 seconds of car shutting off.

The Lc6i senses voltage and turns on, and it has a remote out that powers the amp. If headunit is off, the amp/lc6i aren't drawing power.

 

[sonic007]

I installed the amp and went through a lot of testing to make sure it wasn't a parasitic drain, that would have been my first thought . No drain is happening and the amp/LOC turn off within 10 seconds of car shutting off.

The Lc6i senses voltage and turns on, and it has a remote out that powers the amp. If headunit is off, the amp/lc6i aren't drawing power.

Yea i didnt think it was drawing anything. If its doing audio sense turn on, your constants run to the battery and your speakers were interfaced with properly, As long as nothings unplugged it shouldnt effect the car at all. Especially starting. Sounds like your key fob is losing programming or the factory immobilizer is goin.

 

[sonic hotness]

I had this same issue but I didn't get any crank at all.
Was a loose starter wire

 

[RS Turbo]

Did you use a schematic? What wire at what connector did ya tap into... Color? Pin location?

 

[sonic007]

I had this same issue but I didn't get any crank at all.
Was a loose starter wire

Could be that too. Or an ignition not getting power.

 

[evanrly]

Did you use a schematic? What wire at what connector did ya tap into... Color? Pin location?

Thanks for the replies everyone.

Just got off the phone with the dealer and they claim it was the LOC and amp that caused the battery to drain, so low that it wouldn't start. This also somehow caused all my key fobs to not work, the immobilizer to lose it's programming, and all the "modules"

They had to charge the battery,reprogram all the modules and immobilizer and key fobs. The reasoning for this is because the battery had too low of a voltage and every electronic piece lost it's memory. Now the car is starting after all of this.

Is this even possible? Why wouldn't this happen every time I disconnect the battery then??

edit: I tapped speaker leads at the harness, i forgot which colors but I pulled them off of here and cross referenced them to a GM schematic before I started.

 

[Maddog2020]

7 different solutions so far for this type of issue now!

1) New keys and theft-deterrent module
2) If the key is not in the fully locked position and the head is angled down, the vehicle may not start.
3) MM FOUND ALL FIVE GROUND WIRES CORRODED WITH GLUE. HAD TO CUT 4 INCHES OUT OF ALL WIRES AND REPLACE
4) The under hood fuse block relay center was replaced
5) The cable connected to the starter was loose
6) The LOC and amp that caused the battery to drain, so low that it wouldn't start. This also somehow caused all my key fobs to not work, the immobilizer to lose it's programming, and all the "modules". Charge battery and reprogram all the modules and immobilizer and key fobs.
7) The no crank condition may be caused by the ECM receiving an intermittent exhaust camshaft position sensor signal as soon as the ignition is turned On. As a result, the ECM does not send a crank request signal because it has determined that the engine is already running. Replace the exhaust camshaft position sensor according to the Service Information procedures.

Number 5 was Sonic Hotness as they indicated.

 

[sonic007]

Wow well that stinks. Hate to be the guy that had to fix all of that.

 

[Graham]

Mine was one of the ones that couldn't get fixed from dealership for months.. glad to report they fixed it for good. It was the wire going to the starter that caused it. Now its all good.

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk 2

 

[omniman]

It dosn't happen when you disconnect the battery because the key is off. When you crank the vehical the computers are looking for at least 10 volts. Less then that and you can have multiple problems if you have a multimeter you can hook it to the battery and push min max and crank the car over and see how low the battery gets when cranking. Iv seen cars with electric steering have tight steering when first started also multiple low voltage codes in the cars computers.Also seen computers lock up and not comunicate at all. Hopefully it was just a low battery and its fixed.

 

[Papasonic]

6 different solutions so far for this type of issue now!

1) New keys and theft-deterrent module
2) If the key is not in the fully locked position and the head is angled down, the vehicle may not start.
3) MM FOUND ALL FIVE GROUND WIRES CORRODED WITH GLUE. HAD TO CUT 4 INCHES OUT OF ALL WIRES AND REPLACE
4) The under hood fuse block relay center was replaced
5) The cable connected to the starter was loose
6) The LOC and amp that caused the battery to drain, so low that it wouldn't start. This also somehow caused all my key fobs to not work, the immobilizer to lose it's programming, and all the "modules". Charge battery and reprogram all the modules and immobilizer and key fobs.

Number 5 was Sonic Hotness as they indicated.

Intermittent Exhaust Camshaft Position Sensor Signal --- Click link at left

Here is another possible #7 solution to the above mentioned no crank issues.

 

[Maddog2020]

Intermittent Exhaust Camshaft Position Sensor Signal --- Click link at left

Here is another possible #7 solution to the above mentioned no crank issues.

Good catch Papasonic! I added this to the list.

 

[Chevrolet Customer Care]

Hey everyone,

Giving a heads up about my 2012 Chevy Sonic LTZ 1.4 6spd. I installed a Rockford Fosgate pbr300x4 and a Lc6i LOC. Also 4awg power run from battery to trunk on drivers side, 8 14awg pairs ran to the trunk from head unit on passenger side for speaker runs. Fused at battery and in trunk.

Let me preface this with the fact I've been having occasional issues with it not starting as of this past week. When I turn the key the car will crank once, then shut off, and the security light will illuminate. If I remove the key and try to start again, usually, it will start however the security light will remain illuminated. It will take a third time of starting the car to remove the security light and for the car to run.

Was at Denny's the other morning and when I went out to start my car, no crank, no starter click, no nothing. Repeated attempts weren't helping, so I called GM roadside and they suggested I try a jump start first. That guy comes around, says the battery is charged up and there's nothing he can do.

I call back roadside and they send out a tow truck, it gets dropped off at the dealership Saturday.

I walk in the dealer this morning to explain to them my story, they take my info and send me on my way, said they'll call by 2pm letting me know if it's staying overnight. Just received a call at 1030am asking me about my aftermarket system and what it is, where it's running. They try to explain this may be the issue, and I really don't believe it to be but I'll keep my ears open. The sound systems was in the car for over a month before it started to develop these issues.


Sorry for the rant, I had to get this all down and hopefully someone can shed some light on my situation!


PS. I was just informed of a recall for my sonic, it was sent out Jan 27th according to my dealer. It deals with the front end suspension I believe, I'll get more details when I hear back...

Evanrly, Sorry to hear about these issues you're having. If you would like for me to provide additional information on the recall, please private message me your first and last name, the last 8 digits of your VIN. Keep us posted on what else the dealer finds.

Vanessa
GM Customer Service

 

[sonic2013ltz]

I have had this problem of intermitted no crank,,, sometimes 6 months in between... ended up the starter relay