Truck does not start and the headlights do not turn on?

Tiny
CHELLEBELL85
  • MEMBER
  • 1995 DODGE DAKOTA
  • V6
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 200,000 MILES
My dad is trying to help me fix my late husband’s truck. He found out based on my description of how the truck sounded when it was cranked that the timing was off by 1 tooth. He fixed the timing problem. The other problem is that someone had cut the battery terminals in half and removed the battery. He got a new battery and replaced the cut terminals. The fuel pump can be heard when the key is turned. But the truck won’t crank. The headlights won’t come on with the key turned on. We are worried it’s a wiring issue since the battery terminals had been cut. We checked to make sure all the relays and fuses were good. We have no reason to suspect the starter is bad. While changing the timing belt my dad also put in a new water pump. What could cause the headlights not to come on and it not to crank?
Do you
have the same problem?
Yes
No
Thursday, April 20th, 2023 AT 6:44 AM

1 Reply

Tiny
KEN L
  • MASTER CERTIFIED MECHANIC
  • 42,554 POSTS
I am sorry to hear about your husband. Let's get this truck running for you. I believe there is a main power lead that powers up the fuse panel that is connected to the battery positive cable, the wire is not as big as the battery cable, but it needs to be connected. Also, I would use a test light to see if there are any fuses blown and if they have power, which most of them should.

This guide can help:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-check-a-car-fuse

Here is a guide that should help as well. In the post you say won't crank and won't start. These are two different things can you please clarify?

This guide can help:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/car-cranks-but-wont-start

Here are the fuse locations in the diagrams below. Check out the images (below). Let us know what happens and please upload pictures or videos of the problem so we can see what's going on.

Was this
answer
helpful?
Yes
No
Thursday, April 20th, 2023 AT 5:50 PM

Please login or register to post a reply.

Sponsored links