Kia Sedona Random No Crank No Start Problem by Larry Carley copyright May 2025 AA1Car.com This is a short case study of a 2012 Kia Sedona minivan with 141,000 chilometri that randomly won't crank or start. When it does start, the starter cranks normally and the engine instantly comes to life. But sometimes for no obvious reason the starter does nothing when the ignition key is turned to start. To find the fix for this problem you'll have to read the article because there can be various causes. By a process of elimination and what turned out to be some unnecessary repairs, I finally found and (hopefully) fixed it once and for all. There are many possible causes of a random no crank no start problem. The Story Begins…. The first time the no crank no start problem occurred, the vehicle was in the garage and had not been driven since the day before. The engine was cold and the weather was around 40 degrees F. When the key was turned to ON, the instrument panel lights came on as usual indicating the starting system had voltage (not a dead battery). Everything seemed normal, but when the key was twisted to the START position, nothing! No click, no hum, no buzz, no sound at all from the starter. Thinking there might be a problem with the Park-Neutral Safety Switch (which prevents the engine from being started in any gear other than Park or Neutral), I moved the shift lever on the console from Park to Neutral and tried again. This time the engine cranked and started normally. This seemed to indicate a problem with the Park-Neutral Safety Switch, which is located on top of the transaxle just under where the battery tray and battery are in the engine compartment. Was the no crank just a one-time freaky thing? Maybe. But a few days later it happened again, this time after stopping for gas on a road trip. I turned the key to start and nothing. Same as before. So once again I moved the gear shift lever from Park to Neutral and tried again. This time it didn't even crank in Neutral! Oh great. Now what? I'm stranded in a busy gas station with a van that won't start and is blocking the pumps. I removed the key from the ignition, put it back in and tried again. Nothing. I tried again and this time it started normally in Park. So I assumed it must be a problem with a worn Park-Neutral Safety Switch making intermittent contact. Researching Possible Causes of a Randon No Start Problem I always like to research things online so I was surprised to find quite a few posts about others having the same kind of no crank no start issues with their older high chilometroage Kia Sedona minivans. Sometimes the cause was a bad Park-Neutral Safety Switch, sometimes it was a bad Starter Relay or Worn Ignition Switch, or a bad Starter Solenoid or Starter motor. A few well-aimed blows with a soft hammer against the bottom of the knee bolster to the left of the steering column may work to "kick start" your Kia". I found posts blaming a bad relay inside the IPS module (Intelligent Power Switch as Kia calls it, which is the anti-theft module buried under the knee bolster near the steering column). Sometimes banging on the lower panel under and left of the steering column jarred the IPS module enough to allow the engine to crank and start. Crazy as this sounds, this trick apparently works if the problem is a bad IPS module. And I found posts complaining that they were unable to figure out what was causing their no crank no start problem. Back to my story. Since I had luck getting the engine to crank by moving the gear shift lever from Park to Neutral (and back and forth several times), I figured it must be a bad P-N switch. Replacing the Park-Neutral Safety Switch The P-N switch is fairly easy replace and costs about $45. It can be purchased online, at most auto parts stores or your local Kia dealer. To replace the P-N switch, you should disconnect and remove the battery and battery tray to make access easier. WARNING: Before you remove the battery, set the parking brake and block the wheels so the van won't roll if it is not parked on level ground. Turn the key on and move the gear shift to Neutral, then disconnect the battery. If you disconnect the battery before moving the gear shift to Neutral, the gear shift won't move and will be locked in Park. Unplug the electrical connector on the P-N switch, disconnect the shift cable from the arm on the P-N switch, then the shaft bolt on the P-N switch and two mounting bolts. Pull up on the P-N switch to slide it up and off the transaxle input shaft. The P-N switch is located under the battery tray on top of the transaxle. P-N switch mounts on the transaxle input control shaft and is attached to the gear shift cable with a moveable arm. The shift arm on the P-N switch has a small hole that is used to correctly position the new switch when you install it. Align the hole in the switch arm with a small hole in the transaxle housing. You can do this visually or by inserting a nail, pin or rod into the holes. This should correctly position the P-N switch in the Neutral position. Reconnect the shift cable, install the large nut on the transaxle input shaft and the two mounting bolts on the P-N switch. The holes in the P-N switch for the two mounting bolts are oblong to allow a little room for adjusting the position of the P-N switch. Position the P-N switch so the two bolts are about midway in their respective holes, then tighten the bolts Reconnect the electrical wiring harness to the P-N switch, then reinstall the battery tray and battery. Make sure the both battery terminals and cables are clean and tight, and that the ground battery cable has a clean and tight connection to the inner fender panel. The engine should now crank and start normally assuming the only problem was a bad P-N switch. Okay, so I did all of this and figured the problem was solved. It was for awhile, but a few weeks later the van again failed to crank when I tried to start it. Well, maybe it wasn't a bad P-N Safety Switch after all. Replace the Starter Relay The next least expensive item to replace that might have been causing the problem was the Starter Relay. The relay is located in the black plastic Fuse & Relay Block (fuse box) in the engine compartment. The relay costs about $20 and has four prongs on the bottom that plug into the fuse & relay block. Replacing it is as simple as pulling out the old one and plugging in the new one. You don't have to disconnect the battery or do anything else. The Starter Relay is located inside the Fuse & Relay Block in the engine compartment. The Starter Relay has four prongs on the bottom. So I replaced the relay and hoped the repair would eliminate the random no start. It did, for awhile. Then a few days later it happened again. Damn! Replace the Ignition Switch Next item on the list of possible causes was the Ignition Switch. Worn or corroded contacts inside the switch can certainly be a cause of a random no start, or even loss of ignition while driving. Replacing the Ignition Switch is not a simple job as it is buried under the knee bolster panel and is attached on the backside of the Ignition Switch Assembly (which includes the key tumbler, key sensor for the anti-theft system, and the steering wheel interlock). You don't have to replace the entire ignition switch assembly, just the small white plastic electrical part at the back of the assembly. The electrical part of the Ignition switch can be purchased online, at most auto parts stores or your local Kia dealer for around $25 to $40. This is the electrical part of the ignition switch. This is the entire ignition switch assembly. You only need to replace the electrical part, not the whole assembly. Do NOT attempt to replace the ignition switch until the battery has been disconnected. You don't want to accidentally short out any wiring while working under the dash. I replaced the ignition switch. And just as before, the no crank no start problem reappeared after a few days. WTF????? Apparently the problem was not the P-N Safety Switch, the Starter Relay or the Ignition Switch. Must be the starter or starter solenoid. Replace the Starter Solenoid or Starter or Both? The last thing I wanted to replace was the Starter. Why? Because a rebuilt starter may cost $100 to $200, while a new one sells for over $400. It's a bitch to get at, and apparently you have to buy the complete assembly (starter motor and solenoid) because the solenoid by itself is not available for the Kia Sedona, and the Kia dealer wants over $400 just for the solenoid! So the only option is to replace both as a complete assembly. The starter is on the bottom of the engine up above the exhaust pipes. Access requires removing a heat shield and a motor mount to get it out. NOTE:KIA also uses TWO different starters on the Sedona. The 2008 to 2011 model year Sedonas use a starter with 8 teeth on the drive gear. Kia changed to a starter with 10 teeth in late 2011 so some early 2012 models may have either starter, while later ones all use the starter with 10 teeth. Don't assume the parts store application listings are correct because some are not. My advice is don't buy a replacement starter until you remove the old one and count the teeth. Make sure to get the right one because the 8-tooth and 10-tooth starters are NOT interchangeable. The wrong number of teeth will not engage the flywheel properly and may damage the flywheel or starter teeth or both. This exploded view of a starter motor for a Kia Sedona shows the internal components. The solenoid (which is labeled "Magnetic Switch Assembly" in this image) is a seperate item that may or may not be included with a new or remanufactured starter. By this point, I had run out of ideas and was ready to replace the starter when a strange thing happened. I experienced another random no crank no start, but this time the Check Engine light came on. Was this a possible clue as to what was going on? When the Check Engine light came on, I found this code….

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