Hey guys, my friend is having a problem with his 2005 Ranger. It is a 4 cylinder automatic. This is the email he sent me:
"basically after about 2 weeks i had truck my wife went to go to work in it and had put car on..not started just power on to do wipers then went to start but nothing happened. we called dealership and they towed it to dealership and had there mechanics look at it and said they found nothing wrong. they even said it started right when they got it off truck. she told me it was making a clicking noise that was coming from under the glove box. like it is now. that happened back in february. and it was working until today. so basically there is no power at all. my uncle came and checked battery and its fine and says he has no clue but can hear the clicking. if i hit the break the clicking stops. also when it clicks the interior light flickers."
I'm going to go check it out on Saturday, does anyone have any ideas where to start?
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1980 Ford Bronco, 351M, edelbrock intake and carb, Lincoln Mark VIII electric fan, Flowmaster, Holley Black electric fuel pump.
He may have more than one problem, or a different problem than he had back in Feb.
First do as g_k50 suggested, to sorta check out the tranny TRS/Neutral Start Switch, to see if it's misbehaving, on the no crank problem.
As I read the story, a no crank/no start problem first began back in FEB, but the cause was never found, so now, 9 months later, when it's cooler again, another no start/no power/or low power condition is present.
This present problem my be different than the one in Feb.
He hears a clicking from under the dash area that sorta sounds like it did back in Feb & the interior lights flicker, but they stop when he presses the brake pedal.
All this, no power to crank the engine, strange flickering lighs & some solenoid under the dash chattering, sorta sounds like a voltage drop/ground loop problem, maybe from bad battery cables, or their connections are corroded, or their connection/s are loose, or maybe weak battery cell/s .
So back to basics, those battery cable connections need to be clean, bright & tight on Both ends. So have him check them at the battey & at the starter & engine block ground point.
Then check the battery SOC with a hydrometer if the cells are accessible. If they aren't, then with a multimeter, do a voltage drop test with the battery loaded, say with the head lights on & or have someone try to crank the engine with the head lights on, while he measures voltage drop at the battery posts & the accross the battery cable clamps.
If he doesn't have a multimeter to do the volage drop tests, just have him watch the head lights to see if they get really dim, or go out, when the battery is heavily electrically loaded.
If the battery cables & their connections have been tested & known to be good, but the head lights go really dim, or go out, then maybe suspect a battery cell problem.
More thoughts for consideration.
Let us know what he finds.
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99 Ranger 4dr 4x2 4.0L 5spd auto 3.55L/S Payload pkg2 tow pkg
Details are trifles but trifles make perfection & perfection is no trifle
(Ben Franklin)
Our signature is a sign of a job completed autograph your work with excellence
Well, i tested the battery and it was low. I jumped started it, then tested it again, and it was still only reading 12.4 volts. I took the alternator down to get tested and Kragen said that it was fine. Any ideas as to why it's not getting charge to the battery? perhaps the cables?
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1980 Ford Bronco, 351M, edelbrock intake and carb, Lincoln Mark VIII electric fan, Flowmaster, Holley Black electric fuel pump.
Seeing as how the altenator bench checks good, I like 87 XLT's idea about checking the alternators regulator/field winding fuse.
It's located in the under hood power distribution box, drivers side back in the corner where the fender & firewall meet.
On my 99 it's a 30 amp fuse, so check your owners manual for it's value & location.
if it's blown & you didn't have something hooked up that overloaded the alternator, before replacing the fuse, you'll want to do some checking of the wires running to the alternators electrical connector, to make sure their insulation isn't damaged or the plugs or alternators pins/sockets have bent pins, spread sockets, or broken off pieces, or corrosion that could cause an electrcal short.
Right now, no alternator output to the battery, sounds like a blown fuse, wiring, or electrical connector problem, or some combination thereof.
Let us know what you find.
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99 Ranger 4dr 4x2 4.0L 5spd auto 3.55L/S Payload pkg2 tow pkg
Details are trifles but trifles make perfection & perfection is no trifle
(Ben Franklin)
Our signature is a sign of a job completed autograph your work with excellence
Sometimes it takes awhile for a bad cell in a battery to show itself. Cold starts pull alot of juice from a battery, so it may just show itself in the cold weather. I have had batteries go bad in the heat that would show over 12 volts, but would not start the vehicle.
Don't know if the 12.4 volt battery reading was done under load or not, but at 12.4 volts unlaoded, the battery is at about an 80% SOC.
Weak, shorted, leaking, or internal high resistance connections between the battery cells sure can cause problems, but they won't cause a no output condition from the alternator.
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99 Ranger 4dr 4x2 4.0L 5spd auto 3.55L/S Payload pkg2 tow pkg
Details are trifles but trifles make perfection & perfection is no trifle
(Ben Franklin)
Our signature is a sign of a job completed autograph your work with excellence
OK, so the battery was reading 12.4 volts with the engine running. Thats a low, or maybe no output condition from the alternator, so have you found & checked the alternators field fuse????
If the alternators field fuse checks ok, what does the battery read across the posts, (not across the cable clamps), with the engine & all electrical loads off????
Then what does it read across the posts with an electrical load on it, say at KOEO, with the headlights on & the heater blower motor on high speed????
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99 Ranger 4dr 4x2 4.0L 5spd auto 3.55L/S Payload pkg2 tow pkg
Details are trifles but trifles make perfection & perfection is no trifle
(Ben Franklin)
Our signature is a sign of a job completed autograph your work with excellence
I suspect a bad ground. The hitting of the brake pedal causing things to change is the clue. Check all the grounds. Body, frame etc etc. The alternator will not charge if the ground is bad.
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