I picked up a 2g a while ago with a no start issue. I decided to tackle it for the last few days. I had no power to the starter. I replaced the starter relay. And now I have power to the starter. I hear whining from the starter whines when I turn the key. I went and bought a brand new starter, thinking I could use a new one anyway. Who knows when the old one was changed. so I just went ahead and replaced it. The new one is whining too. So it's got to be and electrical issue.

I took a picture of the wiring mess that came along with buying this car. It seems like many plugs aren't plugged in and I'm suspecting maybe it has something to do with the anti theft..?

Any guidance is GREATLY appreciated.

Attached a picture of the mess..

Grab a mirror and look at the flywheel teeth with the starter removed. You may be able to see bad, ground down teeth on it if a new starter is doing the same thing.

the mass of wires in your picture looks to be the wiring to an aftermarket alarm/anti-theft system.

they are easy to remove. there is usually only 1 wire that is cut and needs to be reconnected. The rest are just tapped into other wires like:

Thanks 1990, I suspect that is it now. I bypassed the anti theft with the starter relay trick and I'm getting a strong whine. I'm going to take it back off and inspect the flywheel teeth. Who knows , maybe I got ripped off and bought the car with no flywheel. Even worse. A spent transmission.. The motor oil looks clean, so I'm hoping it just will need a new flywheel.

Define "whine". Is the engine turning over or is it just an electrical noise?