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2000 Mercury Sable No-Crank

6K views 13 replies 3 participants last post by  CatSkinner 
#1 ·
this post is long, but it is detailed as i'm having some real issues here.

I'm having some real issues here, I'll start by giving a bit of background.

Hate on me if you must, but wal-mart gave me a different spec of battery than my old one. Considering this was night-time and in the middle of a snow-storm, and I was trying to get to work I thought little of changing out the battery. I put the new one in and turns out it was backwards. It was only in for a few seconds.

Fast forward a week or two.
I ended up replacing the alternator because a load test alerted me to a "bad voltage regulator". I still ended up having to troubleshoot charging issues, and my park lights, horn, radio, and door locks, didn't work. The ABS light was on as well.

After changing the alternator and all the blown fuses I was still having issues with I ended up with the following problems:

Charging light on, still testing a bad voltage regulator
Park lights setting/autolamp setting blowing fuse 27 (autolamp circuit)
No radio
Intermittent inside door locks not functioning (keypad still worked)

I did a drop test and checked all the wires in the charging system and found the master fuse (175A megafuse) to be the issue. I replaced it and one other fuse that had blown in the battery junction box and I was left with the following symptoms:

Autolamp/Park lamp setting blowing fuse 27
No radio
Intermittent inside door locks function (this would change based on disconnecting and reconnecting the battery at times).
3-5 second delay in the engine starting from when I turned the ignition to the "start" position.

Over the next couple weeks I studied the wiring diagrams and decided to do some electrical troubleshooting. I traced the autolamp circuitry problem to the switch and have ordered a new one to replace it that will be here soon. By jumping the two pins (pin 31 and 34) on connector 270b I was able to get my park lamps to function without blowing the fuse. Essentially I bypassed the switch (which I'm not so certain was the smartest thing to do at the moment). I hooked a 15A toggle up to give me intermittent function of lights and left it set to the OFF position and tried to start the car. At this point the car would not crank and I had the following issues:

The High/Lo indicator was blinking on and off as if it was getting varied amounts of voltage.
None of the Cluster Indicator lights turned on except the "flashing" High/Lo indicator and the anti-left. The PATs light was functioning as it should.

I disconnected my battery and let it sit over night. The next morning I drove it home (I was at a friend's garage) and I had the following symptoms:

No break lights/turn signals/park lights
No cluster lights
No gauge functions except the fuel gauge

When I went to start the car about an hour after getting home to go to school it would not crank. I traced the voltage back and found the starter to be working by jumping the solenoid and that the solenoid wasn't getting voltage. Now here are the symptoms I'm left with after checking for blown fuses:

Car will not crank
I am able to turn the ignition into the "start" position in any gear. I have tried to crank the car in multiple gears and it has not made any difference. The radio does turn off when I try the ignition to the "start" position.
None of the lights work except the headlights (High/Lo and normal)
Fuse 27 still blows with the autolamp circuit but I expect the new switch to correct this issue.
No indicator lights on the cluster when I turn the key to the "run" position

I'm not sure if this is a TRS issue or an ignition switch issue. I do hear the relay kick over when I try to start the ignition. One thing I do know is I have a lot of issues going on here but if I can divide and conquor I can start tackling some of these problems, hopefully someone on here can give some guidance. I can provide wiring diagrams if necessary.
 
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#5 ·
Well, the ECM wasn't fried as I was able to drive this car until recently. I wish the insurance company would cover it, but I don't think they would. The bottom line is as far as I know my electronic modules are still functioning (lucky me).

The first issue I'm working on is my no-crank issue. The voltage going into the DTR is good (11.45V) which is the battery voltage and is normal given the circumstances (the car sitting and me probing electrical stuff and repeatedly trying to start it). There is no voltage coming out of the DTR so I'm guessing the DTR is bad and needs replaced. I'll be doing this shortly and keep you guys updated, let me know if anyone else has any suggestions.

I also double-checked the fuses and the starter relay. The relay is good, but won't kick due to a lack of voltage at the DTR. Could this also cause the issue with my cluster panel not getting power for lights/gauges?
 
#6 ·
it could take months for the ECM damage to show up. but it will. No offense.
Boosting a correctly hooked up battery has been known to damage an ECM when the
surge of the disconnect or connect of the booster cables happen. It took almost one year for the damage to show up on the last ECM i tested. It was boosted. You had reverse polarity. That is an electrical explosion. Cut your losses. Get rid of it. Don't spend anymore money. Just my opinion. Again no offense.
 
#8 ·
No offense taken btw, thanks for the tips on the damage taking a while to show up. Electricity in general can be quite finicky, you are right.

And you called it right on. I tested the voltages today, there is voltage going into the neutral safety switch but no voltage coming out.

If the damage doesn't show up for a year that is fine with me, as of right now its my only option for a vehicle.
 
#13 ·
I did have the switch in proper adjustment. I was out there looking at it today, and decided to try turning it over again and the car fired right up. Two or three more times it fired right up, but I'm scared to drive it because I know it may not start if it turn it off.

I'm still getting an issue with no power to the cluster (no tachometer and no rpm meter, temp gauge isn't working) and no indicator lights other then the High-Lo indicator and the anti-theft light when the car is off. None of my turn signals or break lights work either.
 
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