Greetings Everyone,

I have a 2001 Ford Explorer Sport Trek V6. Turn the key in Park, No noise, no ignition. The lights do not flicker or change at all. Batter is good.I have checked the starter and the solenoid both good, also all fuses concerning these systems. I am also receiving power from the battery to the starter and solenoid.
I have tried to put the vehicle in Neutral, no change.
I'm thinking the neutral safety switch, but Im also thinking it could be the ignition switch gone bad...any advise on what I should check or what I should go after first? Has anyone had this problem before?
Also im not very mechanically inclined but money is tight is the neutral safety switch be easy to replace and the ignition switch the same?

 

I just replaced the starter on my 2002 EXP...It is a simple system with a solenoid on the starter. THe small wire gets 12 volts to pull in the solenoid when you turn the key. Mine had power... If you dont hear the solenoid click, then i would agree there is probably no power to the small wire. You could check that with a light or volt meter. How it gets from the switch to the neutral start then the starter, i dont know. In the old days there was a switch mouned on the side of the transmission or shift linkage. I think i would find the neutral switch and see if it has power to it, and then power thru it when in park.

 

Auto zone says it looks like this ... still dont know location.

 

If you're not getting any lights in the instrument cluster when you turn the key to the Run position, the issue is not the safety switch. I'm not sure when you say "lights do not flicker or change at all" if you're referring to instrument panel lights or headlights.

-Rod

 

Having issues with my 01 Explorer. V6, 4.0L. Changed out starter, battery and every thing was working fine until my wife tried to start it this morning. Battery still checking good, changed terminal ends and still nothing. Started having issues last week prompting me to change starter and battery. Last night heading home from the store when I went to start the SUV there was a pause before it started. Didn't notice any other issues and truck ran fine all the way home. When starting today, lights, instruments, etc all fine but when I turn key only a click in the dash and the starter solenoid. Interior lights and dash go out as well. I am currently in the processes of changing out the positive and negative cables (not a fun job). Any other suggestions that could be causing this issue? It seemed to happen over night.

JoJo

 

Have you confirmed with a multimeter or test light that one of the sounds you hear when you turn the key to Start is in fact voltage at the starter solenoid? Have you also checked for voltage to the starter motor?

-Rod

 

Hi Rod. Yes, I had a buddy assist me in reading out all wires. Both negative and positive wires had continuity, solenoid read out good and clicks when ignition turned. We also got 12V down to the starter solenoid (new starter/solenoid). I removed the starter and brought to Auto Zone for a bench check. It failed. I received another new starter because the previous one was only a week old. Installed 2nd new starter and car started up fine. Next morning started fine, went to store and returned home with no problems. Wife went to get in to head back to store about 30 min or so later and car wouldn't start. I went down to check and found the wires a little loose from new connectors (used copper ones that are crimped on and a new marine style positive connector - also used that terminal protector gel to help prevent corrosion which has caused me some issues around this area) so I tightened everything up and nothing but this time when I turned ignition I would lose all power. The following day, I had power again but when I turned the key lost everything. Today I changed out the positive terminal with an old standard one, cleaned off all that protective crap, cleaned up the battery terminals and made sure everything was tight. Had good power until I turned the ignition and then lost everything. Now I have no power to the car - interior lights, gages, idiot lights, nothing turns on. This is a very simple system and I have no idea why it's kicking my ***. Hopefully someone can provide me with some ideas. I will obviously have to change out the starter again (no idea why these solenoids seem to be failing unless there is a power surge causing it - I wouldn't think a loose positive connection would be the culprit???) and I am thinking of changing the ignition switch. Has anyone had these types of issues before?

 

It sounds like you're on the right track with ignition switch, but again it's time to break out the multimeter. Since, as you mention, there's a possibility of a overcharge condition, I'd suggest you stick with a multimeter to identify such versus a test light. Of course this will only matter once you get the truck started again. You should also check the fuses to make sure it's not a bad or loose fuse in the battery junction box. You could also swap out the accessory delay relay with a neighboring one, although that would not explain the starter issue.

If you need a factory wiring diagram for the starting and charging systems, send me a Private Message with the request and vehicle details and I'll e-mail a PDF of the diagrams to you.

-Rod