I have a 1999 Dodge Ram 1500 with a 5.2L automatic. When I turn the key there is no click or any sound from the starter and it doesn't turn over. The battery is good. All grounds are good. I pulled the starter and had it tested and it turned right over and tested good in the store. I reinstalled the old starter. I checked and swapped the fuse and relay. I changed the neutral safety switch and the ignition switch and still nothing. I have not changed the key lock cylinder yet. Does anyone have any ideas before I throw more money at this?

 

Changing the lock cylinder won't change anything either.

On the starter relay, pin 30 should have constant power. pin 85 (or maybe 86) will have power when the key is in the start position. The other 8? pin should go to ground.

 

I used a test light on the slots the relay fits in. The 30 slot had power all the time. There are 85, 86, and 87 slots and none of those had power when the key was in the run or start position. I didn't use a multimeter if that makes a difference. I also didn't check to see if any went to ground because I'm not sure how to do that.

 

Never ever do this at home .... it leads to bad things and no telling where you will go in the after life.

I ran into this situation a year ago when I replaced the clutch.pressure plate in my Chebby truck.
I got it all back together and found out I damaged the clutch line and had no clutch .... I ordered it and a week later had it installed .... then I found out I had the same issue as you ..... turn the key and nothing happened. .... I ordered more parts and got nowhere another week later. ... I pulled the starter and inspected the wiring .... I'm really thinking it has a bad ignition switch now .... not the tumblers, but the internal switch itself .... this requires a good portion of disassembly of the steering column to run the new wires.

I spent about 2 days trying to figure this out with no luck .... I was out of beer and groceries and needed this truck to run.
I just installed a push button under the dash that goes straight to the battery and then to the starter. .... When I push the button that starter turns ... need the ignition switch on for it to start. ..... Been like this for over 1 year and I kinda like it ..... My John Deere mower is the same way .... the actual ignition switch is bad will take $90 for a new circuit board to replace it .... A $5 button works fine.

I had a dirty old man Uncle that taught me this trick .... He had a 90's Dodge ram van that was a luxury liner .... he did same thing, put a push button in it instead of tearing the column apart.

This is a terrible hack and you should never do this! It wont hurt anything .... if you leave the transmission in gear and push the button .... it will start .... all safety switches are bypassed.
You will be able to drive your vehicle until you actually figure out what is wrong.

 

That is an option if nothing else works but I'd rather fix it right if I can. I had a truck in the 80's with a button like that and it worked fine back then but I'd still rather do it right if I can.

 

If you aren't seeing power at any of the other three pins, then there is a problem.

Digging thru the diagrams, pin 86 is power from the ignition switch. Its the yellow wire from connector 1, pin 1, on the ignition switch. Test and see if you are getting power out from the switch there.

 

Sounds like you are fine then .... you can fix this and just takes time to chase down all the likely suspects.

I remember tearing down and replacing my internal ignition switch in 2018. ..... I have been there and done this before, I suspect I bought a cheap switch and it lasted 6 years.

After driving the truck for 6 years, I know what I need to do is completely remove the steering column and rebuild it .... so I have been looking for a used one that I can pickup for $150 and rebuild it completely in my garage .... then spend a day replacing the original column with the freshly rebuilt.

I'm just saying my truck has 430K miles on it .... it runs & drives perfect ... the column needs to be rebuilt, not just a new ignition switch added. .... I'm working on it and searching for a replacement ..... I also need the truck as a daily driver .... I really can not afford the time to take out the steering column and rebuild it.

I have a old Dodge truck that is a project, been working on it for over 5 years ..... no big deal if it takes 2 weeks to fix something .... A daily driver I need it functional.

 

I have never been able to find internal parts for a steering column.... aside from tilt supports and such. The bearings, and various and sundry other parts, just don't seem to be out there.

 

I admit I'm going off topic a little bit .... I'm talking about my early 90's chebby truck.


The ignition switch is universal and affects all vehicles including riding mowers.
This truck has 432K miles on it and runs and drives like new .... I need to replace the door hinge pins ... The steering column needs rebuilt .... it is ready for it's 3rd coat of paint ... it is not a perfect truck, I would not hesitate to drive it anywhere. And these older chebby tilt columns are pretty popular and all the parts are available.

I was just suggesting the reason why I never fixed mine properly yet .... I also have a manual 5spd transmission so a steering column is fewer and farther away.

I'm not here to talk Chevrolet trucks in a Dodge forum, I'm just suggesting the initial problem is the same .... I put a push button on this truck until I can fix it properly and still drive it.

Now my Dodge truck I admit it is harder finding parts for .... If it was a Chevrolet or a Ford .... vendors everywhere have parts .... Old Dodges were really never that popular and hard to get parts for.

 

85 is ground, and 87 goes to starter so it has power only when the relay connects it to a terminal 30. You can test the ground by placing the test light between the battery positive and 85 on the relay socket.

You could also use jumper wire to rule out most of the parts. Remove relay and place a wire to the terminal 86, and push relay back to socket. Place the wire to the battery positive. If all is good, starter should turn, so the issue lies between the relay and the ignition switch.