Truck will not start.
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Truck will not start.
I bought this truck a few days ago. Everything was running good. Guy replaced the alternator and such. Now I drove it to the store and it started fine. When I got back out to the truck I tried to start it and nothing happened. Got a Jump from someone and nothing. Bought a new battery and nothing. The truck turns on in accessory modee but as soon as I try and start it I hear a single click and I lose power for a few minutes. Accessory mode doesn't work in those few minutes either. Not sure what's going on here. The truck is a 1990 4.9L f150 . Lariat.
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I'll bet it's one of the battery cables. The quickest thing to try is to clean the battery connectors with one of those cheap battery brushes - sandpaper works well too. Don't skip cleaning (or replacing) the battery terminals before you get too far into diagnosis. Wiggling the cables in different spots may point you toward a break or corroded terminal.
The truck gets it's power from the cable between the battery + terminal and the starter solenoid, that's where I would start since you seem to lose all power.
The truck gets it's power from the cable between the battery + terminal and the starter solenoid, that's where I would start since you seem to lose all power.
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Freshman User
Joined: Aug 2012
Posts: 33
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I'll bet it's one of the battery cables. The quickest thing to try is to clean the battery connectors with one of those cheap battery brushes - sandpaper works well too. Don't skip cleaning (or replacing) the battery terminals before you get too far into diagnosis. Wiggling the cables in different spots may point you toward a break or corroded terminal.
The truck gets it's power from the cable between the battery + terminal and the starter solenoid, that's where I would start since you seem to lose all power.
The truck gets it's power from the cable between the battery + terminal and the starter solenoid, that's where I would start since you seem to lose all power.
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Well, it could be lots of things. However, since the truck gets most all it's power distributed from the cable between the battery and the starter solenoid, we can make the assumption that this is a likely culprit and it's a lot easier to check battery cables and terminals than the ignition switch...which is the next suspect, although unlikely with a complete loss of power to all systems simultaneously. Ignition switches usually don't break that way.
The previous owner replaced the alternator, which is a clue that they may have had some sort of problem that either burnt out the alternator, or an intermittent problem that replacing the alternator seemed to fix (at least long enough to sell the truck). A corroded battery terminal, connector, or cable will not transfer power predictably - especially when resistance causes heat and expansion when you turn the switch on and draw lots of amperes for the starter.
The previous owner replaced the alternator, which is a clue that they may have had some sort of problem that either burnt out the alternator, or an intermittent problem that replacing the alternator seemed to fix (at least long enough to sell the truck). A corroded battery terminal, connector, or cable will not transfer power predictably - especially when resistance causes heat and expansion when you turn the switch on and draw lots of amperes for the starter.
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