Where is the 2015 CX-5 starter?

Hi,

My wife's 2015 CX-5 has a no start condition. I checked all the fuses, including the ones by the battery terminal, and swapped relays that I thought were for the ignition but the car will not start. Everything is normal except that the car does not start. That is, when I hit the brakes the push button switch turns green and when I hit the start button the car tries to start (dash lights up) but instead of the starter turning over all I get is a single click sound.

Any ides what I should be looking for? Can someone please tell me where the starter is and what needs to come out to get to the starter? Should I work from the top of the engine or from below.? Etc..

Thank you,
Jomo
 
Last edited:
I forgot to mention that I charged the battery just to be sure that it was not a battery problem. The car still does not start.
 
Upvote 0
If you don't own a tester most auto parts stores will be happy to check your battery for you. It's common for a battery with a cell going bad to appear as if it's taking a charge but then falls flat on it's face when a load is applied.

I'm curious, are we talking about the oem battery that came with the vehicle? If so, you've gotten more than your money's worth from it.
 
Upvote 0
I forgot to mention that I charged the battery just to be sure that it was not a battery problem. The car still does not start.
As others have stated, the battery may be junk - they don’t last for years anymore. Modern vehicles have so many computers controlling everything that a slight undervolt reading will fail to start. Charging a bad battery does not fix anything, and checking it with a VOM means nothing. Any large auto parts store line Autozone will load test the battery for free - be sure to get the actual printout.

It could be a bad starter, but check the battery first - a much easier and cheaper solution.
 
Upvote 0
The battery was changed by the previous owner.
I have a big size charger that charges the battery and also jump starts the car. I heard the same clicking sound before charging the battery, after charging he battery and while using the charger as a jump starter.
Is that enough for me to conclude that the battery is not the problem. You guys are the expert and if you think that I should have the battery tested I'll do that.
 
Upvote 0
I have a big size charger that charges the battery and also jump starts the car. I heard the same clicking sound before charging the battery, after charging he battery and while using the charger as a jump starter.

Still sounds like a battery with a bad cell. Chase this down before going after the starter.
 
Upvote 0
Also could be bad (corroded) connections/cables from the battery to the starter and to the body ground. That's normally the FIRST place you should check before buying/installing parts (been there done that - when young I learned that the hard way).

Make sure the dull gray color (film) of the battery posts and cable terminal clamps are cleaned/wire-brushed to bright silver color and inspect/clean the cable wires just past the terminals under the insulation as corrosion can build up along the cables to the starter and body ground.

Corrosion causes resistance to current flow and you might have enough voltage to click the starter solenoid but not enough current (amps) making it to the starter motor to crank the engine fast enough to start.

Edited - Also could be the Bendix gear/actuating lever between the solenoid to starter is hung up a bit causing the solenoid to click and not start.

If you locate the starter and get a wooden stick (preferred as to not short something out) on it to tap it with a hammer/mallet on the starter body, it might free it up and allow you to start up the car. If so, it could be dry grease or a bad bearing inside the starter binding it up.
(Best to have someone in the car turning the key or hitting the start button while you tap on the starter.)

-Extremely Rare case - Worked on an old Ford Pinto and replaced just about everything - it turned out the crankshaft had a high spot binding the engine.

Had to put a wrench on the crankshaft pulley bolt to manually rotate it just past that high point and it would start right up.
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0
The battery was changed by the previous owner.
I have a big size charger that charges the battery and also jump starts the car. I heard the same clicking sound before charging the battery, after charging he battery and while using the charger as a jump starter.
Is that enough for me to conclude that the battery is not the problem. You guys are the expert and if you think that I should have the battery tested I'll do that.
I have a strong charger which has capability of “starting assist”. But it has never worked if the battery is dead.

If I were you, I just have another car jump start the CX-5. Make sure to open up the protection cap on positive terminal making sure there’s no corrosion. And make sure to connect to the proper ground point on the body near driver side front strut tower of your CX-5 with your jump cable. With the other car’s engine running, if you can start the CX-5 like ceric mentioned above, you need a new battery.
 
Upvote 0
I still lean towards the battery, if it was dead it can take a very long time on the charger to get enough charge. Also there are smart chargers that won’t charge the battery if it is too low or has a bad cell. The easiest way to confirm if the battery is the culprit is to jumpstart the car. If you try to jumpstart the car and it doesn’t work then it is likely something else


That being said It might be a little issue with the transmission not recognizing it is in park. I had that problem with my mazda 3. It isn’t a pust to start but basically if the transmission isn’t in park then the car won’t start, and the problem was with the gear selector component getting stuck and not recognizing it was in park.

I don’t know in the cx-5 if you would you get a warning on the dash if the car isn’t in park ? If yes then this scenario is easy to confirm or not. (Just check to make sure there are no warnings). If not then Try changing gears or wiggling the gear selector and try to start and see if this will trigger the sensor and allow you car to start.
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0
Let's try another question, do you have any idea how old the battery is? Does it look original? If it's over 4 years old or it's the original battery then it's time for a new one. Almost all electrical problem diagnosing starts with a strong battery.
 
Upvote 0
Let's try another question, do you have any idea how old the battery is? Does it look original? If it's over 4 years old or it's the original battery then it's time for a new one. Almost all electrical problem diagnosing starts with a strong battery.
See post #10. But even if the previous owner replaced it 6 months ago it could still be bad. The OP needs to have it load tested, just charging it is worthless.
 
Upvote 0
⋯ The OP needs to have it load tested, just charging it is worthless.
That’s assuming the OP is willing to remove the battery and take it to an auto parts store for a load test. But there’re some don’t want or don’t know how to remove the heavy battery. A simple jump start will tell us many stories.
 
Upvote 0
That’s assuming the OP is willing to remove the battery and take it to an auto parts store for a load test. But there’re some don’t want or don’t know how to remove the heavy battery. A simple jump start will tell us many stories.
a load test can be done in the car, I do it regularly in hot weather on my older batteries
 
Upvote 0
That’s assuming the OP is willing to remove the battery and take it to an auto parts store for a load test. But there’re some don’t want or don’t know how to remove the heavy battery.
I agree, some owners don’t like wrenching on cars, but the op’s first post was like “Just tell me where the starter is and I’ll get after it.”
Not a job for the faint of heart, to say the least.
 
Upvote 0
a load test can be done in the car, I do it regularly in hot weather on my older batteries
Yes, but OP’s car is dead, and the battery has to be removed and take it to the auto parts store for a load test. That’s why he should just try to jump start the car and give us more clues.
 
Upvote 0
Back