If The Engine Won’t Crank and Nothing Happens: The following might just be the case

1) Dead or Weak Battery
Your car battery might have drained unexpectedly probably because you may have unknowingly left a power consuming gadget ON, which drained the battery all night, such as the headlights, car radio, inner light, trunk/boot light after shutting off the engine. Although in newer car, mere turning off the engine and ignition automatically turns off all above mentioned gadgets with no effect on the battery until they ignition or car engine is turned on again. Also, the battery may have become too weak, dirty or corroded that electrical energy has become poor or inadequate the fire the alternator of the car.
The solution for an weak or expired battery is replacement. Will replacing your car battery, ensure that you purchase the right battery for your car based on the AmpHour (AH) rating as recommended in your instruction manual. Not doing so will result in the battery being faulty or weakening in no distant time. The solution for drained battery is recharging. Engage a local Battery Charger to assist you do so. A six hour minimum charging can salvage the situation. The solution for a corroded battery is careful and thorough cleaning by experts who have been trained to do so.

2) Defective Starter Or Solenoid.
Certain noises coming from your car can indicate to you what the possible issue is. A click sound, or a series of click sounds could mean the car starter is actuating but not engaging with the flywheel.
Usually, a bad starter may give the illusion that your batter is weak if it draws more current than the battery is able to supply. The spinning will be slow and will draw excessive power, making a sound similar to a weak battery situation. It behoves on you to carefully assess the situation to identify what the issue is or possibly engage the service of a professional.

3) Faulty Ignition
When you turn the key in the ignition to AC or START, you create an electrical pathway that gets your car running. If that pathway is truncated due to an ignition switch failure, the car will crank but never start, that is, if it will allow the key to even turn. The entire key system will have to be removed and repaired by an expert.

4) Bad Alternator
The alternator is a device that generates electricity used to power all electrical gadgets/devices in your call. For redundancy sake, the alternator also charges your car battery to retain enough energy necessary for the smooth running of your car systems and powering of gadgets. If you continue to need a jumpstart it may be because your alternator is not restoring your batteries power and it is time for a new one.

Cranks, Doesn’t Run
Where the starter cranks the engine normally, but the engine refuses to run is an indication that your car electrical system (i.e. the battery, starter and alternator) is functioning as expected. Something else could probably be responsible for the inability to start the car.

Where the Engine Cranks, But The Car Won’t Start

5) Fuel Tank is Empty
Where your fuel indicator isn’t functioning, there is a possibility that your car has ran out of gas hence the refusal of the engine to start. Even if your gas tank isn’t showing that the tank is empty, lack of fuel could still be the issue. Poorly calibrated fuel gauge could create a false sense of fuel tank being full, which could lead to running on near empty tank and as a result, not being able to start your car.

6) Malfunctioning Fuel Pump
A fuel pump is responsible for sucking fuel from the fuel tank, delivering it all the way to the fuel injector heads in the engine. A broken or faulty fuel pump won’t supply enough fuel towards the injectors, causing the engine to crank and as such, not able to start. Poor fuel quality is one of the reasons why fuel pumps get damaged as well as constantly running your car with a low tank level below the threshold recommended by the manufacturer. It is important therefore to ensure that high quality fuel pump is installed while replacing faulty ones as well as always going for quality PMS/petrol from reliable sources, which will assure the durability of the fuel pump.

7) Blocked Fuel Filter
The major function of fuel filter is to clean out debris or dirt from the fuel that would otherwise reach the head of fuel injectors, thereby damaging them. A clogged or blocked fuel filter prevents clean fuel from reaching the engine for the smooth running of the car. As such, it is important as part of routine maintenance culture to ensure that the fuel filter is cleaned as at when due in order not to let them shutdown out-rightly, thereby crippling the entire system.

8 ) ECU/PCM Failure
The function of Electronic Control Unit/Power Control Module is to regulates air and fuel intake according to data fed to the sensors all around the vehicle. It also helps in the adjustment of the voltage generated by the alternator as well as provides HUD data for the driver, which include mileage, speed, Odometer, etc.
A failed ECU will shutdown your car out-rightly, as neither electric power nor fuel will be delivered to the engine.

9) Spark Plugs
If you have trouble starting your vehicle, it could be a sign your spark plugs are worn out or dirty.
Bad Spark plugs or ignition coil may need to be replaced before your engine can turn over. More so, sparks need to happen at the appropriate time and with adequate voltage to start the car. Poor engine performance such as poor fuel economy (fuel consumption), engine misfiring and slow acceleration are symptoms of bad spark plug or ignition timing issue. To fix this, routinely check your spark plugs and clean or change them as appropriate to keep your car up and running.

10)Timing Belt or Tensioner Failure
It is recommended to change your vehicle’s timing belt approximately each 40,000 to 60,000 miles to avoid abrupt failure given that they could have grown weaker by then. This could cause high level of internal engine damage such as damage to the cylinder head hardware (rocker arms, push rods or valves) in the event that the timing belt cuts. Ensure to engagement services of an expert for fixing your timing belt as any mistake will result in your car not starting until the system is gotten right.

11) Malfunctioning Distributor or Coil Pack
Failing distributors or coil packs are common issue that resulting in cars not starting situations. What usually happens is that the distributor or the coil pack doesn’t deliver electrical charges towards the spark plugs. When this happens, fuel inside the cylinder heads doesn’t get ignited and as such, leading to a crank sound and the engine not starting.

12) Defective Sensors
More recent vehicles come with lots of sensors measuring almost every variable parameter within the vehicle. In some cases, the electronic control unit of the vehicle won’t allow the engine to be started as a safety measure.