No crank No start single click 08 Malibu

I know this has to be a common question but I do not know anything about cars. My 08 Malibu isn’t starting and this has happen before then I repleaced my starter and it work fine. Then the issue happened again, so I replaced my battery, same issue. Single click.
08 Chevy Malibu LT 4 cyclinder
What else could it be? Any help would be appreciated

It sounds like you're fighting a starter motor voltage drop issue. The single click suggests that the solenoid circuit is good, and that there are no anti-theft issues at work.

Before we go too deep into testing, how did the battery cable ends look when you changed the battery? Many starting and charging system issues stem from poor battery connections, so have a good look at them and clean as needed. If this still uses a side post battery, pull the boots down the cables and look inside.

Next, some voltage measurements. You'll need a digital multimeter for this part - just about any will do. Connect the black lead to the battery negative post, and the other to the main battery cable post at the starter. If you connected it right, with the ignition key off, you should see around 12V. While observing the meter, turn the key to crank and hold it there. Let us know what you see, and we can go from there!

ScannerDanner just did an excellent video on this exact issue, definitely worth watching.

At your starter, you have 2 wires. A fat/heavy red wire/cable and a smaller purple wire. You should have batter voltage all the time on the big red wire/cable. When you turn the key to the "crank/start" position, you should have battery voltage on the smaller, purple wire, too. When you turn the key, and hold it, make sure you have battery voltage on BOTH wires. Make sure the voltage on the Big, red wire does not drop more than a volt, or two.

Good morning, Tyler. I didn't mean to step on your toes. I didn't see that you had, already, posted. :whistle:

pole71 wrote: Good morning, Tyler. I didn't mean to step on your toes. I didn't see that you had, already, posted. :whistle:

:lol: No worries, my toes are fine!