I drove my F-350 to work on Monday. When I was ready to leave for the day, it would not turn over at all. I knew my batteries were a little old, so I went ahead and replaced them and cleaned the terminals, etc. Still nothing. I have checked the solenoid, and the starter solenoid wire does not get any voltage when trying to start the truck. I spoke to a Ford mechanic and he said I could jump the solenoid to see if the truck would start, so I did and it started right up. I called back later to get further advise, and another technician said I should not have done jumped the solenoid....I could damage a lot of different things by doing so. I'm looking for advise as to where I should go from here. My initial thought was to start the truck, as I did, and drive it to a shop to have them look at it. Now I'm concerned that I might cause further damage.

Any advise is welcome.

Thanks,
Todd

 

Is your shifter sloppy? Did you try starting in neutral?

I think you'll be fine with jumping the solenoid.

 

Thanks for the suggestion! I did move the shifter earlier, but I always put it back in park. I put it in neutral and it started right up! I put it in park, shut it off, and then re-started it fine. What would you think the culprit is? Is there a kill switch for the shifter if it is not in park or neutral?

 

I am unsure if the E series have the same column, but I would imagine it is very similar. Yes the motor can only be started in P or N. It's a range switch on the side of the trans that houses the neutral safety switch,

There are 2 torx screws at the steering column that are known to loosen up and cause the shifter to be a little sloppy. Here's a pic on a SD.

 

Thanks again for the advice. I will try to make time this weekend to tear into the steering column. Have a great weekend!!! I'll keep you posted.