Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) Starting/starter problem...SOLVED!

[tajensen]

It's been a while since I've involved myself with TDR in any way, however, earlier this week I found myself searching through the forums in hopes to find life for my dead truck.



Monday morning I climbed into my truck, turned the key, and... . nothing. I checked the batteries and they were fine, checked the codes and "P done" flashed up, and finally banged on the starter with a mallet and still nothing.



Since I work 12 hours a day I wasn't able to get back to my problem until last night when a friend of mine came over to help me figure out what was going on. We checked the voltage at the big wire on the solenoid and it had 12 volts all the time. Then we checked the voltage at the small wire and it had no volts even with the ignition switch at the start position. We were able to activate the starter by using a jumper wire from the positive battery post to the small terminal on the solenoid. Obviously the solenoid and starter were operational, so it was only a matter of tracing the electrical problem back to the source - easier said than done. We checked the starter relay and it was activating normally; we also checked the ignition switch and neutral safety switch (clutch position sensor) and the resistance was good on both.



Finally, this morning I woke up and did some reading on Fritz's Dodge Ram page (Service Action 00-01) and decided to check the 20 AMP solenoid fuse. I pulled it out and it was TOAST. Needless to say, the starter fired right up after I swapped the fuse with a good one.



Boy, am I glad I decided to take care of this myself rather than taking it to a shop. Had I taken it in, I'm sure I would have needed a new starter, wiring system, and ignition switch (yeah, right).



Hope this helps someone out there.



-Tim

 

[Thomas]

If the blown fuse problem mentioned in Service Action 00-01 & TSB 08-01-00 Rev A has not been an on-going thing then it's likely the sympton of another problem. Read this thread: https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/24-valve-engine-transmission-1998-5-2002/152704-truck-keeps-blowing-starter-fuses.html.

If your 2000 Ram is operating on the original starter contacts you likely have an unreliable starting system.

 

[tajensen]

Thanks for the reply, but the way I see it is I'm going to ride this 50 cent solution as long as possible - a pack of five 25 AMP fuses cost me $2. 50 after tax. The next time I blow a fuse I'll just swap the blown one for a good one. If I keep having to replace fuses, then I'll eventually look at LarryB's contacts or whatever the latest fix is. I read on LarryB's website that the OEM contacts are good for about 100k miles and having just tipped that mark myself, there's a good chance I will need those contacts down the road. But like I said, for now I'm sticking with the more immediate fix. I'll definitely post if/when I blow another fuse.

 

[wcjp]

Thanks for the reply, but the way I see it is I'm going to ride this 50 cent solution as long as possible - a pack of five 25 AMP fuses cost me $2. 50 after tax. The next time I blow a fuse I'll just swap the blown one for a good one. If I keep having to replace fuses, then I'll eventually look at LarryB's contacts or whatever the latest fix is. I read on LarryB's website that the OEM contacts are good for about 100k miles and having just tipped that mark myself, there's a good chance I will need those contacts down the road. But like I said, for now I'm sticking with the more immediate fix. I'll definitely post if/when I blow another fuse.

Your solution is probably the more expensive option. If the starter contacts go completely wrong, one contact will be very thin. The other contact will be thick. The plunger can become stuck while the starter is engaged. This could overheat the starter among other possibilities. At this point only battery cable removal stops the starter engagement. The starter is now toast.

 

[tajensen]

I stand corrected... the fuse was only a temporary fix seeing that I blew another one today . I guess I'll have to order those starter contacts anyhow. Thanks guys for the input.

 

[Thomas]

Sounds like a good idea. When you posted "there's a good chance I will need those contacts down the road" I said to myself "maybe out ON the road".

Let us know how the removed contacts look. I've always thought number of starts/age of truck was a better indicator of contact condition than the mileage figure given on Larry Buck's site.

Good luck.

 

[CHornsby]

yeah, I changed mine out around 90k or so and I still had half the contacts available. Peace of mind is what I was after. If there is someone who wants to prolong buying new contacts, I could ship these out if someone just wants to pay shipping.

 

[bnbrown]

I gotta say Larry B's contacts work great, and quick to install. found a wobble socket extension very helpful for removing the bolts that hold the starter on.
On the wifes 2000 the fuse blew once, took some cussin and looking around with a flashlight to figure out it was a fuse, that fuse lasted a couple months... then it blew another, then another a couple days after that... then it wouldnt engage at all if the motor was warm.
Now with Larry Bs contact, starts better than it ever had. and a heck of a lot cheaper than a new reman starter.