Gentlemen, I believe I have read almost 200 post regarding starting/starter issues. A lot of great input is on here however I am at a loss. Following earlier guidance found on here as well as my Rave and Haynes manuals I have done a considerable amount of troubleshooting.

My Disco has always run like a champ and have followed all maintenance/preventative schedules and it is has always been a one turn start. Ran fine last time I drove it, parked it, walked out three days later won't even turn over only a click could be heard from within the vehicle compartment. Pulled battery and had it tested, it failed replaced with new bosch battery, no dice, pulled starter had it tested and bendix would not extend/engage replaced with re-manufactured bosch starter. Installed no dice can only hear the clicking. Cleaned/resurfaced all connections from battery and grounds, nothing. Checked all connections with ohm meter all in spec range. ignition coil, alternator, etc. attempted to jump starter from battery, nothing. Checked start inhibitor(neutral safety switch) including pulling from tranny and cleaning it. Tested fine with interlock/reverse lights.

Could it be the starter relay? I think I have tried everything. Oh, an checked all fuses as well as fusible links. All good to go....

Any guidance before I set it on fire in my driveway is appreciated. - Jason

 

Could it be the anti-theft immobilization system kicking in? I vaguely remember reading about happening when you have the battery disconnected. I think you have to lock & unlock the driver's door three times to disable it.

 

No alarm system, manual locks, and i am on my third battery in the last couple of years. I was thinking the same thing at first after reading key fob issues. This is my third Disco, never seen one just stop working with no warning. Puzzling to say the least..

 

Is the new battery fully charged?
Most are dead or near dead when bought brand new.

 

Bench test the new starter. Sometimes the new refurbished starters are bad right out of the box.

 

[Is the new battery fully charged?
Most are dead or near dead when bought brand new.QUOTE][/QUOTE]



The battery seemed fully charged, but now that you mention it I may need to throw it on jumper cables for a few minutes. My lights are bright and aren't dimming at any point...I will try that and let you know. I had a leak from the sunroof as many discos do. I was wondering if water may have gone into the gear selector area and shorted something out but again, the back up lights, neutral safety, etc appeared all in order.

 

Thanks reference the starter, I was thinking that as well. It came with a three year warranty from NAPA. I should have bench tested it prior to putting it on but was a bit eager to be on the road again..it only takes me 20 minutes to remove and likewise installing, I'm going to try that as well...

 

Check the wiring.. Sounds like a ground has gone bad..
I worked on one of my cars for three days.. Replaced the starter and finally figured out the negative battery cable was bad...

Measure the voltage at the battery.. Turn the key to start.. Voltage should drop a little while cranking.. If no crank and no voltage drop, Then you need to check the + side of the solenoid for voltage...
You should be able to jump from battery + to solenoid + and get the engine to crank if nothing else.. If that doesn't happen. You've got a bad cable somewhere..

If you get a big voltage drop and no crank. Bad battery..

Good Luck

John

 

Or bad connection betwen negative wire from battery to the chassis, down by the bottom of radiator.

 

I pulled all of my cables and checked grounds, resurfaced them especially the negative below the radiator. I took the grounding points to bare metal for good contact. This is very confusing, you guys give great info which I follow religiously. Today rechecked all connections, bench tested the starter, had the new battery charged to full power and still nothing. We had the "hurricane" come through Virginia a couple of weeks ago and I do have a leak. Ever since this has been happening. Today when I was running test I determined the solenoid is not being allowed to receive power. I also hear two or three clicks from behind the glove box as soon as i turn the key. Without the key in the ignition if i hit the button on the gear selector i hear a single click from behind the glove box. Starter relay? ECU?