My 2006 F-150 with the 5.4 engine won’t start. When I turn the key, there’s no clicking sound at all. The battery is fine. I checked the starter relay, tried swapping it with other relays, and it seems okay. With the fuse cover off, I can hear the relay clicking when I turn the key. I had it towed to a local shop, and they said it’s not the starter but the wiring. They checked the wiring with their equipment but couldn’t find anything wrong and suggested I take it to a dealer.
About a week before this issue, the truck made a grinding noise like when you try to start a running engine, but then it started fine. The mechanic I took it to is good and has done work for me before, but he doesn’t seem to be the best at troubleshooting. Any advice would be appreciated since I really want to avoid going to the dealership.
If the relay clicks, it should be sending power to the starter solenoid, unless a heavy fuse is blown. First, remove the relay and check if one of the terminals is always hot. Then, have someone turn the key to start the engine and see if power is being sent to activate the relay. After that, disconnect the trigger wire from the starter solenoid and check if it gets power when you turn the key to start. If the shop couldn’t figure this out, you might want to find a different place.
When I bought mine, it started having problems about 4 months later. It started fine at first, but one day after stopping for gas—after starting it about 6 times that day—it wouldn’t start again.
I had it towed home. When we unloaded it, I tried starting it, and it worked. I thought it might be bad wiring, so I replaced the wires. But the next week, it happened again—after work, it wouldn’t start, so I had to tow it again. Frustrated, I tried jumping it with a wrench, but it didn’t crank. I was about to buy a new starter, so I decided to open the old one and check inside.
The brushes inside were destroyed and cracked, making contact with the motor. I took brushes from a 2-year-old starter from my 98’ with the same engine and put them in. It’s been working fine for 5 months now.
I agree. A multimeter can help check the wiring, and hopefully, they have a cheap one from the dollar store.
First, check the battery and cables for corrosion. Make sure you’re getting 12 volts to the starter. Then, check if there’s 12 volts at the solenoid signal wire when you turn the key.
If you have power to the starter and the solenoid signal but it still won’t start, you probably need a new starter. Since it sounded like it was grinding, replacing the starter is likely needed.
If there’s no power to the starter or the solenoid signal, but the relay is working, there’s a break in the circuit. If it’s the big starter supply wire from the battery, replace it. If it’s the solenoid signal, trace the wire to find the issue and fix it.
Also, get the battery tested just in case. The starter needs more power to run than what’s needed for the lights and radio.
The previous post explains it well. First, make sure to clean the battery terminals and clamps before doing anything else. This often fixes electrical issues. A simple test is to turn on the headlights and watch them while someone tries to start the truck. If the headlights dim a lot or go out, the battery terminals are probably the problem, assuming the battery is fully charged and in good condition.
I recently had the same issue. My truck wouldn’t do anything when I turned the key. I had it towed to a place that fixes Fords. The mechanic spent two days checking every circuit. They found that the starter had 6 volts on the relay and 12 volts when the key was turned. The relay was fine, but the starter was bad. While checking the wiring, they found a broken wire in the B post that caused the starter to short out. It’s tough to trace wiring in these Fords. I’d hate to see the bill from a dealership. I hope this helps others, as I never would have found the issue myself.