New here, first post. NEED HELP PLEASE

[Jagator]

Hi,

I just registered to this forum and currently own and 2004 Ford Explorer XLT. It has been a great truck thus far however I am not having a problem that requires immediate attention.

I see you have to be considered an Elite Explorer in order to post in the 911 forum so I will post my problem I am having here.

My truck was fine yesterday as I crank it, seemed to hesitate a little, and drove to the gas station to fill up. After the gas station I went to crank it again and it wouldn't start. The first 2 tries it actually did turn over a few times but wouldn't catch fire. I took the key out and back in and tried again, then and every time since it won't even try to turn over. Everything is getting power inside the truck and the headlights stay on when I try to turn it over but nothing else happens, not even a click on the starter. I had a buddy come up to the gas station and we tried to jump it, nothing. We cleaned the battery terminal connections because they were a little corroded but still nothing with the jump. My buddy towed it to my house for me, thank god we were only 2 miles from it.

It is very strange what it is doing, I have never had a car do this before. It acts like it is in gear, that is the best way I can explain it. Everything inside gets power and looks fine but when I turn the key nothing happens like I have it in Reverse or Drive. I tried shifting to neutral and cranking and still nothing happens, I even went through all of the gears and back to Park and still the same thing. It just doesn't even try to start. I tried the trick of climbing under neath the truck and hitting the side of the starter a couple times, still nothing, not even a click or attempt.

I have also looked at the positive connections going to the starter and there is no corrosion and it "looks" fine but I haven't checked anything beyond visually.

Any ideas? My truck is dead outside right now and I am stranded.

Thanks ahead of time for everyone's help!

This is the first problem I have ever had with this truck since I purchased it.

 

[BrooklynBay]

Welcome to this forum! Do you have an anti theft light flashing? If so, then it cut the power to the starter.

 

[Jagator]

The anti-theft light flashes when the the ignition is not ON. When I turn the ignition ON the light turns solid and when I try to start it the light remains solid.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Jagator]

I'm going to hook a voltmeter up to the solenoid and test it to see if it could be a bad circuit or a bad solenoid/starter assembly.

I will post back up here with what I find out.

 

[BrooklynBay]

Did you try to jump the starter relay to see if it will crank?

 

[Sams01XplrSprt]

welcome jagator

 

[Jagator]

I tested the Solenoid and there is power going to the Solenoid. I tried jump starting the starter and couldn't get anything, just the same result as if I were to turn the key.

I am leaning towards a bad starter here. Is that what you would think also?

 

[Sams01XplrSprt]

probably might be a starter issue if not take it to ford

 

[BrooklynBay]

If you are getting power at the starter, and it's not cranking, then it has to be the starter. Connect a test light onto the starter, go into the vehicle, and crank it. The light should go on. If it does, then the starter is no good.

 

[Jagator]

Is there anything else I can try before spending the $$ on a new starter? I want to make sure I exhaust all possibilities to avoid spending $$ I don't have to.

I am new at all of this so I am thinking I could have done something wrong. To jump the starter relay I just connect jumpers to the battery and then to the starter right? With the ignition on? There is no ground that I can see on the starter so I just tried to create a ground using the truck frame. Is that the correct way or is there something else I should do?

 

[BrooklynBay]

Follow the thick power wire going to the starter. Connect a test light at this point, and ground the other end of the test light. Crank it, and see if it lights up.

 

[Jagator]

Follow the thick power wire going to the starter. Connect a test light at this point, and ground the other end of the test light. Crank it, and see if it lights up.

I just tried that and I can't get anything at the starter. I get power at the Solenoid even with the key out of the ignition but when I touch the test light to the power lead to the starter nothing happens when the key is turned. Does that mean it's not the starter?

I followed the thick wire back to the battery and the fuse box. I checked the fuse for the ignition/starter relay and it looks fine to me but then again I am not used to this sort of stuff. Are there any other tests I can do?

Thanks for all of your help with this. I am learning a lot from this and getting more comfortable working on my car now.

 

[BrooklynBay]

Jumping the starter relay should provide power to the starter. If not, then it might be a fuse. Did you check those big Maxi fuses in addition to the regular ones?

 

[Jagator]

OK, I can rule out the starter. Here is the newest update:

I was able to get the starter to fire by manually bridging the 2 connections on the Solenoid with a screwdriver. This is strange thing, I put my key in and turned it to ON and then bridged the connections to get the starter to fire so it should crank right up but it doesn't. It just turns over multiple times but never fires off. What does that mean? I don't have an aftermarket alarm system on it or anything, I do have an aftermarket CD player in it. Is there a kill switch related to the anti-theft system that needs reset or anything like maybe it was tripped somehow? I checked the fuse, I'm not sure what the "Maxi" fuses are, the ones I checked were under the hood and the ignition/starter relay fuse was fine.

Any ideas?

 

[BrooklynBay]

A Maxi fuse is a high current fuse, and is physically larger than a normal fuse. It sounds like an anti theft cut off is disconnecting the starter, fuel pump, and the ignition. Maybe it has to do with the PATS key. Do you have another key? Do a search for this on the forum.

 

[Jagator]

I hope that is it. My key is actually the second key for the Explorer, my wife has the other key and original key. I will try her key when she gets home to see if that is the problem.

My anti-theft light doesn't blink rapidly indicating a PATS violation though when my key is in. It blinks normal anytime and when I turn the key to ON it is solid. I even checked the fuel cut off and reset it thinking somehow it could have been tripped but still no luck.

Should I just wait for my wife and try her key to determine if that is the cause?

 

[BrooklynBay]

Was your key programmed to match her key or was it just a plain key? Try her key which is the original key to see if it works, and let us know.

 

[Jagator]

We received 2 keys when we purchased the truck used but only 1 keyfob. The dealer programmed an additional keyfob for us so we have 2 now.

If her key doesn't work does it mean that I need to take it to the dealer to get the keys programmed again?

 

[Jagator]

It was the key I was using. My wife got home and her key works just fine and it starts right up. My key must have gotten un-programmed somehow or just broke.

So I have learned from this experience today. If you are having the same type of problem I am had the first thing you should try is a different key before going through all the tests with the battery, starter and fuses. it's much easier.

Thanks to everyone that helped out today. You guys are great. I will definitely be back in the future.

 

[BrooklynBay]

Thanks for the update! At least you know that the PATS is working correctly. This thread was just posted, and has everything about the PATS system: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=234975