Your car won't start. Now it's sitting in your driveway and you have no way to get it to the shop. Luckily, all you have to do is call a mobile mechanic and they'll come out to your location. When you're waiting for the mechanic to arrive, you can use this troubleshooting guide to help you isolate the problem.

When Your Car Makes a Clicking Noise

If you hear a clicking noise when you turn the key, you may have a dead battery. Try using jumper cables to jumpstart your car. If that doesn't solve the problem, you may have an issue with the wiring to or from your starter.

When Your Car Makes No Noise At All

If your car isn't making any noise at all when you turn the key, the solution may be as simple as cleaning the battery terminal connections. When terminals have corrosion on them, your battery can't make the proper connection to start your car.

Clean the terminals off and then try starting your car again. Here's all you need to do to clean your battery terminals.

Directions

1. Place a small amount of baking soda in a glass bowl.

2. Add enough water to form a light paste.

3. Place a generous amount of the paste on an old toothbrush and scrub the terminals.

4. Try to start the car.

When Your Car Cranks but Won't Start

If the car sounds like it's trying to turn over but can't, the first thing you should do is check your gas gauge. Once you've determined that there's plenty of gas to start your car, you may have a problem with your spark plugs. Worn-out spark plugs can prevent spark from getting to the engine, which can prevent your car from starting.

When Your Car Won't Start On Rainy Days

If your car won't start on rainy days, it's not temperamental. But, it may have a something wrong with the distributor cap. If you have moisture in the distributor cap, your car won't start. You might want to remove the cap and wipe it out before the mechanic arrives. If you do find moisture, you should have the cap replaced.

Car problems can be stressful. You can use this guide to narrow down the problems you may be facing. Once a repair service, like C L Enterprises, arrives, be sure to let them know what tests or maintenance you performed while you were waiting. This information will help your mechanic pinpoint the problem.