Ford V10 No Crank

[SavnTheWales]

Just completed a 5000 mile trip. Had some excitement with No Crank happening a few times. Got to the point I was afraid to turn it off.

Here is a video I put together showing 5 steps to diagnosing the problem and what I did to fix it.

https://youtu.be/BnjmKxLLIkY

[House Husband]

The ignition switch is NOT located behind the key. It is located on top of the steering column, under the dash.
You failed to note the most prominent starter problem with the F53 chassis.
There is a starter relay before the solenoid, that has a high failure rate.
The ford starter and solenoid is a very durable item, that lasts for many years.
My OEM 95 starter and solenoid is going on 167,000 miles. The relay has been changed twice.
Thanks for your effort.

[SavnTheWales]

Do you have a picture of that relay?
I was under me 2012 Bounder today and it looks like the positive cable goes from the battery to a bus block and then to starter solenoid.

[Waiter21]

I don't know if this is the same on yours, but on my 1999 there is an additional start relay (solenoid) mounted on the passenger side radiator support. It can be seen by looking in the passenger side front wheel well. This is a very bad location because its exposed to anything the tire kicks up, road salts, rock, gravel, water, etc... A common failure is broken wires and connections at on the solenoid. You can see the photos on my site.

NOTE - Ignore the red arrow in the photo, its showing where there was a missing bolt that holds the transmission cooler to the support. The solenoid is just below the red arrow.

The starter itself is also exposed to the same road crap, AND, it also gets cooked by the exhaust system. I installed a heat shield on my starter to help reduce the heat exposure.

Replacing starter on F53 – 1999 Southwind 35S

..

[twinboat]

Originally Posted by SavnTheWales

Do you have a picture of that relay?
I was under me 2012 Bounder today and it looks like the positive cable goes from the battery to a bus block and then to starter solenoid.

Look close at that bus block. If it has many wires and 2 large posts, That's the solenoid. Ford uses it as a junction point for battery power to the rest of the chassis.

[SavnTheWales]

Originally Posted by House Husband

The ignition switch is NOT located behind the key. It is located on top of the steering column, under the dash.
You failed to note the most prominent starter problem with the F53 chassis.
There is a starter relay before the solenoid, that has a high failure rate.
The ford starter and solenoid is a very durable item, that lasts for many years.
My OEM 95 starter and solenoid is going on 167,000 miles. The relay has been changed twice.
Thanks for your effort.

Looks like the 2012 is a little different than yours. I traced the wires from battery to bus block and then directly to the starter. There was no additional relay like the older models.

Maybe that’s why these new starters are not as reliable as the old ones. The relay must now be built into the solenoid and it fails due to the heat from the exhaust.

[SavnTheWales]

Originally Posted by Waiter21

I don't know if this is the same on yours, but on my 1999 there is an additional start relay (solenoid) mounted on the passenger side radiator support. It can be seen by looking in the passenger side front wheel well. This is a very bad location because its exposed to anything the tire kicks up, road salts, rock, gravel, water, etc... A common failure is broken wires and connections at on the solenoid. You can see the photos on my site.

NOTE - Ignore the red arrow in the photo, its showing where there was a missing bolt that holds the transmission cooler to the support. The solenoid is just below the red arrow.

The starter itself is also exposed to the same road crap, AND, it also gets cooked by the exhaust system. I installed a heat shield on my starter to help reduce the heat exposure.

Replacing starter on F53 – 1999 Southwind 35S

..

The only thing in that location on mine is a ground connection with a cover over it. Maybe Ford replaced the relay with this and did away with the relay on my 2012.