Immobiliser/wont start - issue....help?

[Stumpy Nugget]

Guys, Need some help trying to understand what the heck is going on with my car. its a 2001 S2 K series with original alarm and immobiliser fitted. Here is the problem; normally the car starts at first kick without failure. The last two weeks in a row I have parked in a certain place at the same time of day and when I go to start the car it wont start? It kicks as though it is going to go and then stops (best described as if there was a killswitch fitted and it had been pulled). I wait for a bit (15-20 mins) and the car starts fine.

This is doing my nut in to be honest as I cannot understand why it has only done this in this location at this time of day. I am driving the car almost every day these days and it has been fine other than these two incidents.

It is certainly something to do with the alarm as when it would not start I reset the alarm and tried to trip it and it wont go off.. plus the red light on the stack display is flashing as though there has been a trip ofthe alarm but nothing was done.

My main plan at this moment in time is to try the car again next week at the same time, same place to rule out simple coincidence. Then I need to start looking at things like bad connections etc.. There is also an old tracker fitted to the car that I think may be causing something to do with this...

You have to admit its a bit strange so far. Any advice on this one?

[steviej]

I had an Impreza a couple of years back, when I went for fuel at the petrol station beside our local hospital the car produced the same symptom as you describe, did it about 3 times in total, never did it anywhere else, didnt go back there for fuel and it never did it again, thought maybe it was something to do with hospital comms system interfering with the alarm signal ? not sure but it was a bit embarrassing in a busy petrol station !

[robin]

The won't start then will start later is classic of a cam position sensor, especially on an early S2 K series engine.

Cheers,
Robin

P.S. Try doing whatever it was to your alarm at any other time - does it do what you think, or does it behave the same way as when the car wasn't starting?

On the S2 the alarm/immob can prevent cranking/fuel pump priming but cannot prevent the engine from firing if you get fuel and crank (unlike S1 where you can hotwire the fuel pump and starter motor and it will seem to start, only to cut out, because the ECU also has an immobiliser function; not so on S2).