96 no crank/no start

[syn-]

hey everyone, just got done putting in my trans/back in the truck and seem to be having a really bad day with my truck. It has sat for about a month not being turned over (it ran and drove before taking it apart). Though now that I have it all back together I cannot get it to crank or hear it crank. I have done the following: (the battery is a optima yellow top)

- Hooked up jumper cables to the truck and seen 11.8 readout on my capacitor that I have in the trunk area. Though I did not let it get any higher than this and I am unsure if my battery is so dead that it needs to be charged more than that to start.
- Noticed that after I remove the jumper cables the charge starts to fall off and when I look at my capacitor it reads 8.0
- Checked the starter with a test light and there is power to the starter.
- I have also armed and the disarmed my alarm before turning it over.
- I have checked the 50amp fuse in the fender well and it looks good.
- I have tapped/little whack to the starter and no change.

I did use parts cleaner to spray off the ton of build up that happened from the years of being on the truck. the starter does also seem to be the OEM from 96. Any thoughts? I did have a new ignition key cut (as mine was lost by someone other than me). though I was assured by the locksmith I do not have PATS.

 

[syn-]

Alright so since no one has chimed in quite yet, I thought I would update with news that the starter does work, as I used the relay to test. I pulled the cap off the lower post and when it completed the circuit with the key in run the truck kicked over and started. so at this point there can only be a few options:

a. bad relay
b. bad wiring to the starter solenoid
- to include 14g wire that runs down to starter from relay

I don't believe its going to be the battery cables as once bridged the circuit is completed and the truck starts. so relay or the 14g power wire that goes to the starter solenoid are my gremlins. When I have a helper I plan on trying to read the relay with a voltmeter to see if the relay is putting out power when the key is being turned.

 

[johnnytulips]

replace the relay its cheap and easy to replace. if you jump it and it has good voltage to the small wire its the relay

 

[syn-]

It was not the relay, nor the starter. there is a blue ended connector on the trans, it was not fully connected. I have fixed that, truck started and then shut off pretty abruptly (shortly after I removed jumper cables). now it won't start and has a slow crank (when connected to another car via jumper cables), reading the relay I am getting about 8-9v to the relay during crank. I have also tried to jump the vehicle using a screw driver and it does not seem to work. Also my cylinder feels super loose, though I do not believe the ignition switch is faulty because the door dings are not intermittent.

 

[syn-]

Ok everyone seems the shifter/neutral safety switch is blame. put it in neutral (which is actually reverse on the indicator and it fires up no hesitation. my question is I have re-routed/re-sat through the C fitting. The issue I have now is when I put in Reverse on the indicator its in neutral and park is actually Reverse now. If I go under the truck I can click back to park and crank. though the shifter linkage should slide it into park. Now when we dropped the trans we had in neutral and when it was put back it was in Park. What can be done to correct this issue?

 

[syn-]

Luckily there was an explorer a couple houses down and I was able to get a visual on the shifter cable to allow it do its job. Seems there are tabs that must grab hold of at the shifter bracket. Once I put it in reverse on the trans, then went to line up the cable I used a set of channel locks to push the cable into the bracket using the y-pipe on the exhaust as leverage. after that indicator and trans lined up and truck started. To anyone who stumbles across this thread, take pictures before you take things apart. You'll save yourself alot of time and frustration. As for my problem with no crank, then no start. Here are the links I used to understand things.

Trouble shooting shift lever/identified gear selector w/ pictures:
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=198087

Starter No Crank Procedure:
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=264733

Diagnosing a No Start/Slow Start:
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=146784

If you find my thread and need help, shoot me a PM. I'll do the best to help you out.

 

[97_xlt]

You still owe me $1000 douchbag

 

[MikeyV89]

just had this problem, took my truck to ford and it was a bad ground strap on my tranny that messed up the whole car. $97 fix with new terminals too.

CHECK YOUR GROUNDS!!!