1997 Fleetwood Bounder (ford) not starting

enblethen wrote:
What other dash lights come on when in the run position?

only the odometer, the battery and the check engine. nothing else

tommy g wrote:
Did you check for corrosion on the main ground yet?

Battery posts were clean, I cleaned em anyways, checked all grounds, they are tight and clean too....

still nothing

What other dash lights come on when in the run position?

OnaQuest wrote:

Cikan Vuz wrote:

what confused me is the click comes from the dashboard, driver area, not from the passenger side, where the starter supposedly is. and it actually only clicks when I flip on the battery button, the other thin is not really a click but just the normal noise the key makes in the ignition when you turn the key on, then there is some noise as the dash-lights light up, but that is it.
Thank you

That certainly changes things a bit.

The click you hear, initially, is the battery disconnect closing to connect the chassis battery. That's normal.

You may have a problem that is actually prior to any start circuits.

After you hear the initial click (batteries activated) can you get the jacks panel to light up? (parking brake must be ON and TX in Park or Neutral). Is the LP detector ON? These are items that would indicate if the disconnect solenoid is actually closing the contacts and not just making a clicking noise without actually working.

ok, not sure what TX is, but I figure your are speaking of the shifter of the steering column . I tried to set the parking brake, but it does not stay depressed and need the brake release pulled to release it.... ( if you saw this RV from the inside, you would probably cry...) anyways, I turned on main and aux battery, depressed and help down the parking brake while I turned the key on. The Brake warning light in the dash did light up but the jack panel did not nor does it respond when I press the on/off button. When I push the LP Gas button it glows red on E(mpty)

Did you check for corrosion on the main ground yet?

OnaQuest wrote:

Lt46 wrote:
Re. the fuel cut-off switch; it will be found low on the firewall, inside and behind your brake pedal. If the switch has been activated a red pop-up button will be visible. Pushing the button down resets it.

The fuel cutoff switch will NOT stop the starter from attempting to crank the engine, it simply interrupts the power to the electric fuel pump. That is not your problem.

ok, I was not sure if if shout off the ability for the vehicle to start, like I used to have a 90's ford ranger and it has a reset switch that kicked in if you were in an accident, preventing the vehicle from starting until a "qualified" mechanic looked it over...

Cikan Vuz wrote:

what confused me is the click comes from the dashboard, driver area, not from the passenger side, where the starter supposedly is. and it actually only clicks when I flip on the battery button, the other thin is not really a click but just the normal noise the key makes in the ignition when you turn the key on, then there is some noise as the dash-lights light up, but that is it.
Thank you

That certainly changes things a bit.

The click you hear, initially, is the battery disconnect closing to connect the chassis battery. That's normal.

You may have a problem that is actually prior to any start circuits.

After you hear the initial click (batteries activated) can you get the jacks panel to light up? (parking brake must be ON and TX in Park or Neutral). Is the LP detector ON? These are items that would indicate if the disconnect solenoid is actually closing the contacts and not just making a clicking noise without actually working.

Lt46 wrote:
Re. the fuel cut-off switch; it will be found low on the firewall, inside and behind your brake pedal. If the switch has been activated a red pop-up button will be visible. Pushing the button down resets it.

The fuel cutoff switch will NOT stop the starter from attempting to crank the engine, it simply interrupts the power to the electric fuel pump. That is not your problem.

OnaQuest wrote:

Johno02 wrote:
I'm glad someone else has seen the corrosion thing. up to a point, everything else seems normal, voltages, meters, lights, just not enough wire available for the starter power.

I agree, the problem can be one of many problems with getting current to the starter, however, the symptom that points to the starter relay is "the single click".

Usually, when the problem is low voltage or weak connection, the starter will chatter or otherwise indicate that it is trying. The most notable symptom would be dimming of lights under excessive current when trying to start if voltage is getting past the relay.

Guessing time is over I think. It's time to check the connections and possibly get busy with a meter.

what confused me is the click comes from the dashboard, driver area, not from the passenger side, where the starter supposedly is. and it actually only clicks when I flip on the battery button, the other thin is not really a click but just the normal noise the key makes in the ignition when you turn the key on, then there is some noise as the dash-lights light up, but that is is.

I recently had issues with my Bus doing this and the click would come from the starter. I replaced the ignition switch and it stopped, for a while, then I replaced the battery cables, and it stopped for a while, then I replaced the starter with a good used starter and it stopped for a while, then I replaced the used starter with a new starter and it stopped for a while. I installed a cheater button and that helped for a while but I ended up replacing all the wiring related to the ignition from the key all the way back to the battery and all in between.

This Fleetwood, I really hope it is just something simple like corrosion as you all suggest; the cables look near new to me but I will look harder at them.

Thank you

Lt46 wrote:
Re. the fuel cut-off switch; it will be found low on the firewall, inside and behind your brake pedal. If the switch has been activated a red pop-up button will be visible. Pushing the button down resets it.

ok, thank you.