New to the forums, not new to fords. 1999 F350 7.3L Diesel. This has been a work truck and has seen multiple devices in and out over the years. I removed the last crap for GPS tracking etc from the last owners. The truck has worked well for a long time since until...
I'm moving slowly to a different state and so the truck got parked for 2 months. went to start it and nothing. the dash comes on and all the lights come on but when you turn the key to start the power drops and nothing.

Testing so far:
replaced the fender Solenoid
tested the starter motor and solenoid -passed
replaced the ignition switch
tested continuity of the hot and ground wires to the fender and starter and everything passed

When i shorted across the fender solenoid the starter works and tries to start the truck (unsuccessfully so far)

so the wire that goes to the fender solenoid is not working and i have no idea where to trace it to and what needs to be fixed. Is there a relay or fuse besides number 30 that is in the way? where does the magical wire go so i can check its continuity?

Im stuck 800 miles from where i need to be and it is costing me $1-2k per day im stuck here. I dont have the cash to get a mechanic and my mechanic friends are stumped. If it helps i do have a Snapon modus tester if someone can tell me what to do with it.

FYI the batteries are new and fully charged.

 

Is the truck auto or manual. Check the neutral safety switch. On the 99 the fuse might be #24 for the PCM.

 

sorry, manual transmission. somebody in the past bypassed the clutch pedal position switch. i have ordered a new one but when i bypassed it today i still got nothing. not sure where the neutral safety switch is but im sure it was bypassed too. there is nothing to stop the engine from turning over in gear or out with or without the clutch pedal depressed

 

When trying to start the truck is it cranking over fast like a good battery should or is it a slow struggle then dies to nothing?

 

when i use the key it doesnt crank at all. the lights and everything go out when i turn to start the engine. when i short across the solenoid it cranks fast but doesnt start for some reason

 

The wire (black w/orange stripe) goes from fender to the glow plug relay. The black/orange wire starts after the heat shrink. I don't think this is your problem. It just sends a constant 12V to the glow plug relay

This one, right?

 

Just want to make sure, but when cranking at the relay your leaving the ignition key to on, right?

Wait to start light turns on?

 

no, its the small wire on the small single post that i dont think is working.

when i stick the key in and turn it the dash lights up, when i turn it to start the truck everything goes off and the engine does nothing, when i turn the key back everything comes back on again.

yes when im shorting the solenoid i have someone turning the key too.

 

It really sounds like a bad battery, I know you said they were new, but I would have them tested. do you have a volt meter to see what the battery voltage is doing when you turn the key on, then when you try to start with the key?

 

Ok, That is a dark blue/orange or tan/red. In a manual trans that wire goes to the Clutch pedal position switch coming out white/pink wire which goes to fuse number 20 15amp. Under steering wheel fuse block center row second fuse. It's the Starter Motor Relay Coil, PCM.

Edit: Disregard the under hood fuse was going off memory. It is under the steering wheel 15 amp fuse section 20 (center row, 2nd one up) Starter Motor Relay Coil, PCM. I edited the above.

 

ok ill look at that. I took the batteries in today and one was bad. i got 2 new ones and put them in. they test full volts and amps.
ill be there in the AM tomorrow and post what i find. ill trace the wires to that fuse, i may replace it just in case

 

It does to me sound like a dead battery issue as well. They could have had a draw sitting those 2 months with having so many accessories on the truck. Never mind, saw that you replaced them today. But cranking the engine over at the solenoid and is fast and strong is making me think other and checking that fuse is easy.

Look at my edit thread 10

 

X2 on battery. I encountered the same thing on a different vehicle i had recently got back from a body shop. The battery was good but I had intermittent problems of when i turned key on everything lit up like it should. But when a load was put on the battery everything went off. Turned out they just finger tightened the battery connectors.

That said, make sure both batteries are good. Maje sure connections are all tight. If that doesnt work check all yhe wiring leading from the battery and insure they are all good and tight. Might take a wire brush and clean up all the connections. after that i would check for any of said wiring to be bad. This would be more of a visual test as wiring may test out good with a meter, but aren't good enough to handle the amps. Ive seen vehicles that sat for long periods like that get rodents in there chewing stuff up. Best of luck, keep us posted.

 

Check the ground wire on the batteries. Cut back some of the insulation and look for green chalky looking powder in the braid. If you see any of that, you need to replace at least both of your ground wires, but probably all battery wires on both batteries to be safe.

 

Ok folks here is where im at.

The truck starts and runs fine... if i start it by shorting across the solenoid on the fender. I have replaced about 4 fuses (especially number 20) the clutch position switch is new.

What it comes down to is i am not getting signal to that solenoid to start the truck. Is there a relay under the hood that may be causing this?