Burnt electrical smell after starting car

RONISNYDER

MEMBER
2004 KIA OPTIMA
164,000 MILES

I got a burnt electrical smell after trying to start car. It wouldn't start until after a few tries. How can we tell if it's the starter solenoid?

Last couple of days when I'd turn the key nothing would happen. But it would star after a few tries. Then this afternoon, when I tried to start it, I heard something running under the hood but it wasn't the engine and I pulled the key out of the ignition to see if the noise stopped but something continued running, when it stopped there was an electrical burnt smell.

We pulled the battery and it tested good. When I turn the key there is a click sound but it won't start.

5 Replies

SATURNTECH9

MECHANIC
30,869 POSTS

So does the starter smell burnt?

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Wednesday, July 18th, 2012 AT 4:35 AM

RONISNYDER

MEMBER
3 POSTS

I'm not sure, were going to remove it and take it to autozone to be tested. I'm just hoping that's what it is. We couldn't pin point where the smell aw coming from.

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Wednesday, July 18th, 2012 AT 1:10 PM

SATURNTECH9

MECHANIC
30,869 POSTS

You could use a multimeter to see if the trigger wire on the starter has power in the start position if it does and then starter is inop and all battery cables and battery is good bad starter.

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Wednesday, July 18th, 2012 AT 5:56 PM

RONISNYDER

MEMBER
3 POSTS

Thank you. Turned out to be the starter. Then a few days after having th starter replaced, my car started over heating. It wasn't boiling over or steaming. The water level was perfect, but the gauge shows overheating. I would drive until the gauge pegged, pull over, turn the car off, then restart it and the gauge was normal temp. We flushed the radiator, new radiator cap, then the sending unit and last but not least the thermostat. Still overheating. I live in AZ. The summers are brutal definitely don't want to be stranded on the side of the freeway. It turned out to be electrical. The grounding wire, possibly from moving stuff around to get to the starter. It was cleaned off and checked, I'm back on the road.

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Tuesday, August 14th, 2012 AT 3:14 AM

SATURNTECH9