I had problems starting my 2001 C5 until I read a few posts. I wanted to share my thoughts for posterity's sake. Here are the symptoms of the problem:

1. A few days before the problem surfaced, I noticed that I had to click my alarm remote a few times before the driver side door would unlock. The passenger side had no problems. I would have to click my alarm remote at least three times to get the driver side door to unlock.

2. A cold front moved in and the weather changed from summer to winter overnight (for where I live).

3. I tried to start my vette and nothing happened. I turned the key two clicks andd I heard the fuel pump prime up. When I turned the key to "Start"...nothing!!! I can't tell you the sinking feeling when your vette goes dead and you know it's the electrical gremlins.

4. I immediately checked the DIC codes to see if there was a recognizable problem. Like an idiot, I cleared the codes without writing them down, all the while thinking this would allow the car to start up. BIG MISTAKE. NEVER CLEAR DIC CODES W/O WRITING THEM DOWN! To my credit, I have cleared codes before and everything worked fine afterwards (of course, I always wrote down the codes in the past). The DIC threw codes like BCM, PCM, LDCM, RDCM. When I saw that LDCM and RDCM were involved, I thought these were junk codes that wouldn't prevent the car from starting. I guess I was wrong and this was the sign of a bigger problems.

After I got the sinking feeling in my gut, I immediately started reading posts to see if the problem was anything obvious. I couldn't eliminate that this wasn't an starter problem, a VAX problem, or a BCM problem, but I was hoping it was something simple. Bill Curley (a.k.a. Electrical Genius/God Among Men) suggested in some of his posts that it would be wise to check and clean all the grounds. I didn't do this because I didn't have time until the upcoming weekend. Plus, I don't have proper facilities to jack the car and check all the grounds from underneath the car. I checked all the fuses, but they all checked out.

Elimination of the VAX system
When I put the key in, the car didn't start but I could hear the fuel pump prime and a contact switch in the BCM turn on. I tried my other key and remote and had little success. Plus, the security light didn't blink at all, so I was pretty sure it wasn't the VAX system. I also cleaned the chip on the key. I didn't check the resistance on the chip, so I couldn't entirely rule this out.

Elimination of the Battery
The battery was relatively new, it wasn't a junky Optima battery, and it read the same voltage as the DIC--approximately 11.7 volts. The car wouldn't start after trying a jump from my Toyota or a friend's Silverado. I didn't want to waste $100 bucks on a new battery.

Elimination of the Starter
As most of you know, the starter is not a fun thing to change because 1) you can botch an easy repair by messing up the wiring, and 2) you have to take off the passenger side exhaust manifold to get to it. Now, knowing that I haven't had ANY usual problems with my starter, i.e. clicking noises, I decided not to go after this. The fuse checked out okay and I had a strong start prior to my car going dead. Plus, I went throught the OEM troubleshooting guideline in the master service manual and everything checked out. I hoped it wasn't the solenoid.

Elimination of the BCM
I'm purely lucky that it wasn't a BCM, PCM, or data link problem because I don't like spending money, sending off parts to EBAY vendors for refurbishment, busting my knuckles in tight spaces, or stripping out special screws. Plus, I'm no Bill Curley (a.k.a. God Among Men). In case you're wondering by now, I really respect Bill after reading a handfull of his posts.

I really thought about the problem and realized that my vette was telling me something when she refused to unlock the driver side door. This seemed quite odd to me. That being said, the driver memory seat has sometimes required me to punch the memory button for the seat to move (maybe a problem with the RDCM or the data link) when I have the seat set to easy access mode (or whatever it's called). I read a post by Bill that said to jiggle the accordian type conduit on the door that connects the door controls to the body. I did this...and PRESTO CHANGO ! The darn thing fired up with no problems. That being said, my vert hasn't thrown any codes lately and I haven't had problems unlocking the door. I'm really grateful that I didn't buy a new BCM, battery, or starter. As an side note, the weather went back from winter to summer and my car fired right up. Also, I changed the type of gas my car runs the night before all the problems (as an engineer at a refinery, I really doubt that gasoline causes any problems).

Morals:
1) Listen to your vette. When something goes wrong, there were probably signs leading up to the problem.
2) Listen to Bill. He's da man!
3) Mustangs suck.
4) Thanks for reading. I could have gotten to the point much faster, but I know all of us who try the DIY path always struggle a little.

 

Nice write up. But Mustangs and Optimas do not suck, querky electrical gremlins do.

 

Hey my Mustang started like a beast yesterday and let my 'Vette sleep in,
The 'Vette has duty today, Oh thats right, it's going to Chevy today for more warranty work, ouch, SEVEN TIMES IN THREE MONTHS OF OWNERSHIP! Sure glad I have another car that doesn't live at the dealer's!

John

 

Good write up. Glad you got the car to work again.