So my 2000 Ford Ranger has finally quit starting. I say finally because I have had issues for some time. I get an excessive amount of battery terminal corrosion, and probably a dozen times over the past 6 months, the truck wouldn't start. Normally it would start after a few minutes of banging on the battery terminals. A few times when that didn't work, I removed the wires from the positive terminal (mine is similar to the attached picture), cut a piece of the wire off, and reattached it to the terminal. Each time there was green corrosion down inside the wire.

So I'm thinking it's time to finally replace the positive battery cable. I traced it down to the starter, disconnected the old cable, ran a new one and attached it, and connected the other end to the battery. Hmm, still nothing. I put a jumper cable on the negative terminal and the other end on the engine, nothing.

So now I'm wondering if me banging around on the positive terminal and cutting/re-attaching the positive wire was just a coincidence and that I'm having starter or starter solenoid problems. There's no click click click, or no single click at the starter. I hear a quiet click from near the fuse box up top by the fuse box, but that's it. All accessories work, windows roll down, etc. After all this I did try jumping the battery just in case, and still nothing. I can't afford to put it in the shop (understatement of the year) and don't want to just start with the plug-n-pray, so some guidance would be appreciated.

Basics are a must here. Making sure that the same voltage is available at the starter that is at the battery. Making sure your grounds are clean and tight. Making sure your battery is fully charged and functioning properly. Your accessories dont take much power to operate, so you could still have a bad battery. Even a sick battery can have enough power to operate the wipers, horn, etc.).After all that is checked, then you can move on to the starter.

I had been reasonably sure that it wasn't the battery, especially when the kid at Walmart hooked me up to his portable starting box and I got the same results, but now I need to make sure after hearing this. While turning the key, sometimes the CD player ejects, the power locks jump, etc. Doesn't quite seem right. Going to take the battery to get it tested after dinner.

blacksnapon said:

Basics are a must here. Making sure that the same voltage is available at the starter that is at the battery. Making sure your grounds are clean and tight. Making sure your battery is fully charged and functioning properly. Your accessories dont take much power to operate, so you could still have a bad battery. Even a sick battery can have enough power to operate the wipers, horn, etc.).After all that is checked, then you can move on to the starter.

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Update on problem

This weekend was the first chance I've had to work on this since I posted last.



I'm getting 11.8 volts at the positive post of the starter solenoid (starter and solenoid are one unit). I took the starter off and took it into AutoZone yesterday, and the starter and solenoid both passed.



The guy there recommended that I try the ignition switch since it's a cheap part and something that he says is known to fail. Nope, that's not it.



One thing I noticed when I was under the truck with my multimeter with my wife turning the key- I hear a very very brief whirring sound and then nothing. No clicks, nothing.



I'm now sure that the battery is fine, my new multimeter has a battery load tester and it's showing 12.6 volts. The dome light and headlights dim when you turn the key, but the dash lights do not.



I'm at a loss as to where to go next.

I would check the resistance and connections of both the positive and negative battery cables, High resistance will still give you 12 volts but won't be able to carry the load needed to crank the engine.

d-kuzmen said:

I would check the resistance and connections of both the positive and negative battery cables, High resistance will still give you 12 volts but won't be able to carry the load needed to crank the engine.

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Will do. I ran a new positive cable because there was a lot of green corrosion surrounding the copper strands, but did not do the negative. I did try jumper cables from the negative terminal to a ground point on the motor, in an attempt to bypass the negative cable.

I would also look at the starter exciter wire ( the one small wire at the solinoid) to make sure every time you hit the key there is 12 volts there.

May have found problem

I have my buddy over to help me with this again, and I think we may have narrowed it down.

First of all, we did finally try a different battery- my buddy's battery is a week old, we put that one in my truck and no go. Good to finally eliminate that.

During troubleshooting the different circuits, relays, etc., we noticed that the Theft light in the dash is fast blinking. According to the manual, this is, as they say, "not good." Since going to the dealer with this problem isn't an option for me at this point, any advice on how to bypass this would be appreciated. I'd think we would be able to bypass the anti-theft device and get the truck running.

I hate to give you the bad news but there is no way to bypass it. Either your key is no good, or the pats transever could be shot. Gonna need to scan it to see if theres any codes.

Truck fixed

That was it, the Theft system. Fortunately it wasn't the truck at all, but my keys, BOTH mine and my wife's. When I started with this line of thinking today, I dug up a 3rd key and tried it- nothing. When I pulled the #4 relay (can't remember the name, but related to this) and replaced it, this apparently reset the bad attempt with my other key, and the truck started right up with the 3rd key.

This is a completely duplicatable scenario. I can start it every time with the 3rd key, but when I try key 1 or key 2, nothing. Then key 3 doesn't work until I reset the relay, then it starts right up. Oh, and the 3rd key doesn't cause the Theft light to fast blink. Difficult thing to figure out for sure, but I'm very pleased that all it took was time and very little money. Thanks to everyone who helped me solve this problem. I now know more about my great little truck than I did before, and you can't beat that.

Glad to hear it. If you put a key that's not programed of fauly in first the theft light will flash fast, it has a timer built in you have to wait I think it's 10min before attempting to start it with a good key, just a extra piece of info for ya..