Starting issues

[mag162]

Sometimes she turns over and fires right up in Park. Then at other times she does nothing at all no noise no click nothing. Put her in Neutral and then she fires right up?
Starter is around a year old.
Just had the tranny rebuilt and this didn’t happen before the build?

 

[Davea Lux]

Sometimes she turns over and fires right up in Park. Then at other times she does nothing at all no noise no click nothing. Put her in Neutral and then she fires right up?
Starter is around a year old.
Just had the tranny rebuilt and this didn’t happen before the build?

You should check the Neutral safety switch. Most rebuilders will install a new one as part of the rebuild, may have got a defective one. Could also be a loose plug on for the harness that hooks to the switch. The fact that changing the gear selector causes the car to start suggests a bad switch. The shift linkage could also be improperly adjusted to where the rooster comb inside the transmission is not engaging the pawl on the switch properly, causing a no start condition.

Dave

 

[gyknot]

Your neutral safety switch is acting up. Could be a loose connection, bad switch itself, not quite aligned properly shift lever, etc.
I'd start with the connection itself first.

 

[CBODY67]

Has it been around any later-'60s Fords lately??? On many of them, you had to reach around and further pull the shift lever "up" while in "P" to get the starter to engage. Seemed like it was a part of their DNA back then.

As a recent thread had some comments about starting in "N" rather than "P", better to start it in "P" so the torque converter fills quicker on a first-start in the morning type of situation. For quick and more solid gear engagement going to "R" or "D" from "N", rather than from "P" to "D" or "R".

Enjoy!
CBODY67

 

[mag162]

I'll check it out this weekend
thanks guys

 

[John Kirby]

I believe there is also a switch on the steering column in column shift models. Or on the floor shift linkage if you have a floor shifter. If the linkage has been messed with I would suspect that is out of alignment. You can tell if the tranny switch is suspect by measuring the resistance from the transmission terminal on the starter relay (the one that connects to the transmission switch). It should be nearly zero in park an neutral. A light from the battery + to this wire will also light up under the same conditions if the trans switch is good. Also, As CBODY67 said push up on the shifter lever while starting, if that works your linkage is out of adjustment.