Hello all,

I have a 1997 f250HD 5.8l zf5(s5-42) that will not crank. I recently did a auto(e4od) to manual(zf5 s542) swap which seemed to go smoothly, then when I when to drive it the truck it started with no problem but within probably 1-2 minutes my battery died. I had almost everything on like climate controls, lights, and my radio but that still seemed very odd that it would drain that fast. I went ahead and charged the battery and got it tested as well as the alternator. after getting home from getting them tested i had to run to an appointment so I had a buddy hook everything back up for me so we could start to diagnose. He ended up putting the battery terminals on backwards and tried to start it and he said there was a good bit of smoke. I'm assuming that fried something somewhere because now it wont even try to crank. Some symptoms I'm having are...

I turn the key to the on position everything electrical wise works but as I turn the key to start I just hear a single loud click. I'm assuming this would be the starter solenoid working... I could be wrong though.

When this happens i turn the key to off and back to on and have no power until I unhook the battery completely as well as the small wire on the top post of the starter solenoid and reconnect it. I'm assuming this would be the ignition wire?

After reconnecting the battery and the small wire on the top post of the solenoid I have power but if I flick my high beams on everything shuts off just like it does when I turn the key... no power until I disconnect and reconnect everything.

any help is appreciated!

Thanks

 

What condition are the battery cables in? Do they have 'repair terminals' on the end of them?
Have you checked the fuseable links attached to the starter solenoid on the RH fender for burns/crispiness?

 

The cables seem to be fine. The terminals are a little beat. I have not checked anything yet. I was planning on posting tonight and looking tomorrow as this havoc just occurred.

 

Also, what would the fuseable links look like or what should I be looking for?

 

The fuse links are just wire
They burn out inside and not the insulation
You can test them by just pulling on the wire
If they are burnt, they will stretch out like a rubber band
Most come from the starter relay
Some of the Ford ones have a rubber blob or a square plastic tab and they are color coded for amperage
007

 

If you don't notice anything else remove the battery cables from the battery posts and clean the insides of the battery cables where they hook onto the posts and also clean the outsides of the battery posts, then make sure the cables tighten up properly around the battery posts. Dirty or loose connections is usually the problem in my experience.

 

Okay. I’m actually swapping the battery cables at the moment. I went ahead and changed the solenoid and now the issue with my brights is gone but they won’t stay one. Only if I pull the multi switch back they will flash nothing while moving it forward. Still no cranking though…

 

I am not seeing any play at all with the links.

 

Besides the fuse links, there may be a 100 amp or so main fuse in your under hood fuse relay panel
You really need to look at a 1997 Truck EVTM and go over power and ground distribution
It was jumped or hooked up backwards right?

 

Ok i will look around. Correct it was hooked up backwards and the key got turned.