No crank no start?

GPARK3

MEMBER
2004 CHRYSLER SEBRING
2.7L
6 CYL
2WD
AUTOMATIC
124,000 MILES

My son's car listed above lxi stopped running at work and now will not start. He tried jumping it with no luck. When I inspected it, the dash had a no bus signal. I hooked it to a reader which stated no codes were stored.

We replaced the battery and a blown 20-amp fuse in the start/fuel #8 position. After doing so it cranked a few times but still wouldn't fully turn over. The no bus also stopped showing. We tried starting in neutral as well.

We then noticed the fuse had blown again so I removed the relays and had him try again; the fuse only blew once the starter relay was reinstalled not when they are both out or just the fuel pump relay was installed.

We are unable to have it towed and the starter is in a location that is very difficult to get to, but it does sound like it is trying to connect. I am not sure exactly where to go from here. Any advice on what is best to check next would be appreciated.

1 Reply

AL514

MECHANIC
4,699 POSTS

Hello, shorts to grounds can be very difficult to find most of time, but just so we're clear, the fuse pops if you have either the Starter relay in or just the Fuel pump relay in.
Since this only happens when going to crank the engine over, you will need someone to help when trying to locate the short.
The best way to find a short is to put a test light in place of the fuse, that way when you find the short to ground or bump the wire that is shorted the test light should go out.

But having the Fuel Pump disconnected will be necessary because the test light will find a ground through the fuel pump. It will probably be the same for the Starter Solenoid; it will light the test light as well.

You'll notice that Fuse 8 also feeds the (Fused Ignition Start) for the Transmission Control Module. Since the fuse doesn't pop with both relays pulled, the short to ground shouldn't be down the TCM wiring, let's hope.
But try to find this C121 connector first because it will be the easiest to start with. Check the connector for any corrosion as well. I've added the pinouts for both C121 and C321

The circuit design on this will make it more difficult though, do you hear the Fuel pump prime for 2 seconds with a fuse in place and fuel pump relay in?

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-use-a-test-light-circuit-tester

Here is a video on using a test light to find shorts to ground:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lfk-vmeK4G0

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