Just thinking if the service history has been not thorough, the spray bar (iirc) can seize. Whether that would stop it from starting or not I don't know tho.
Mar '99 1.9TD / 31,500 miles
Current Status: Running Well
hi,
well by the sounds of it , it could be the starter motor died, as for price don't have a clue but i,m sure you could pick one up from a breaker.
one thing you could try is give the starter a gentle tap with a hammer.
The clicking will be the solenoid not being able to send a high enough current to the starter, but I wouldn't go banging it !!
Banging a starter motor is meant to dislodge any dirt obstructing the contacts.
If your solenoid is clicking, it's either a dead or very low battery, or it could be a dodgy connection (corroded cables ?) between the solenoid & starter motor. Check all power cabling between the battery and solenoid and starter for integrity and corrosion.
I'd also say low battery. I had the clicking with 2000 brava after 3 months I bought the car, the battery wasn't original (seems like the seller had swapped it to some crappy to keep the good one). I just carried used Vectra battery and starter cables in the trunk and used them to start the car until I got new battery.
The Vectra battery was too big to fit on brava AND it was removed from the Vectra for same reason, but had enough power to start the brava for about 12 times (and propably more if I had used it) ;p
DO the lights on the dash go out when you turn the key and get the clicking noise?
If so then there is a high resistance connection somewhere. Could be at the battery or on the starter motor. Can be fixed by undoing the connections, cleaning them back to bright metal and remaking.
Did it just decide to not start all of a sudden, or has it been intermittent, or have you had some work done on it recently?