79 cherokee wont start

[jeepkid304]

My 79 Cherokee WT 360 TH400 wont start. turn the key and nothing happens. good battery, replaced the nuetral safety switch with new and the starter solinoid with one from my baby Jeep. when i turn the key i can hear a click in the neutral safety switch, so i think the key cylander is still good. it will turn if i jump the solinoid

TIA
Timm

[Elliott]

Are you positive the solinoid is wire correctly?
Unplug the nuetral safety switch and try a jumper wire at the solinoid for the nuetral safety switch. If it starts it is your NS switch, otherwise it sounds like you blew an ign fuse or your ign switch is not fully working. Sometimes if it is the ign switch you can cycle the key off and on real fast and it will turn over.
That brake pedal plunger switch is tied in to the NS switch also, do you have brake lights?

[jeepkid304]

Originally posted by Elliott:
Are you positive the solinoid is wire correctly?
Unplug the nuetral safety switch and try a jumper wire at the solinoid for the nuetral safety switch. If it starts it is your NS switch, otherwise it sounds like you blew an ign fuse or your ign switch is not fully working. Sometimes if it is the ign switch you can cycle the key off and on real fast and it will turn over.
That brake pedal plunger switch is tied in to the NS switch also, do you have brake lights?the NS switch is new, i thought that was it so i got a new one and it still doesnt work. the solinoid is wired the same as it always was before. is the ignitoin switch the next thing in line that could be bad?

[jeepkid304]

so where is the Ignition fuse? it it the one labled ign. lights or not? that one is only 3 amp and is good

[Elliott]

Do you have brake lights? If not, check the plunger switch at the pedal.
If that's all good then disconnect the NS switch at the tranny, jump to solenoid and see if it starts. If it does then you still have a problem with the NS Switch for some reason or the trouble is in your ignition switch.

[Joe Guilbeau]

Remove the Battery cable and the starter cable from the solenoid, and anything else on the "ears".

Now you can have someone place an ohm-meter from ear to ear, and turn the key to start, if the ohm-meter reads a short across the terminals, then the wiring is OK on the solenoid.

The short should go to an open circuit when the key is released.

[Elliott]

Originally posted by Joe Guilbeau:
Remove the Battery cable and the starter cable from the solenoid, and anything else on the "ears".

Now you can have someone place an ohm-meter from ear to ear, and turn the key to start, if the ohm-meter reads a short across the terminals, then the wiring is OK on the solenoid.

The short should go to an open circuit when the key is released.Didja figure it out yet?

Joe, seems like the test you mentioned is only going to work as long as the ignition switch itself is working... but then if you do get a reading across the solenoid that should indicate both the solenoid and ignition switch are working.

[Elliott]

One other area to check on an auto tranny vehicle and that is the (non-keyed) ignition switch 1/2 way down the steering column. Those will go bad and may be the reason everything else seems to be working and it will only start on a hot wire.
Hope you got that all figured out by now.