Will not start

[mikeoc]

Hi folks Mike OC and Marla fairly new to motorhome, we have 1996 Sahara. things have been pretty good so far I do have a problem now. I replaced the radio with a newer model blue tooth and all the modern perks. Now by coincidence or what I am not sure I will not start, the strange thing to me is I will crank from the maintenance bay with the start button there. I changed the solenoid on the fire wall thinking this was the ignition solenoid but no luck. I need some help. My coach is 1996 Sahara 3126 motor Cat 250 hp. Allison 6 speed, any help at all would be appreciated. Mike

[05wingrider]

Mike,
If everything was fine before you changed the radio out, the first place that I'd look is under the dash and see if you dislodged some of the wires on the ignition switch while doing the radio. They aren't that far apart, and at least on my 96, (before I found out just how easy it was to remove the top of the dash) I noticed that some of the wires seem to be really snug and could easily be snagged and not noticed. Have you turned the key on and seen if it will start and run from the maintenance bay, or just cranked it over? Another test is do your monitor lights come on when you turn the key on?

[TDJohn]

Mike,

Did you happen to disconnect the chassis battery bank, when you installed the radio?
If yes, it is possible that you missed reconnecting one of the small wires that feed the engine and transmission computers. There should be to small wires (10 or 12 gauge) with an inline fuse on each one, connected to the positive chassis battery post. There should also be two wires of the same size connected to the chassis battery negative post.

When you turn your ignition on, does the Allison shift pad light up???

[stuplich@ymail.com]

Hi folks Mike OC and Marla fairly new to motorhome, we have 1996 Sahara. things have been pretty good so far I do have a problem now. I replaced the radio with a newer model blue tooth and all the modern perks. Now by coincidence or what I am not sure I will not start, the strange thing to me is I will crank from the maintenance bay with the start button there. I changed the solenoid on the fire wall thinking this was the ignition solenoid but no luck. I need some help. My coach is 1996 Sahara 3126 motor Cat 250 hp. Allison 6 speed, any help at all would be appreciated. Mike

Mike
Does your coach both 'crank' and 'start' using the maintenance bay starter button? .... (or only 'crank')?

On my '96 Sahara the the ignition solenoid, (aka, Ignition ON Solenoid), is located on the front firewall, near the 3 12V fuse panels.

There were photos of that solenoid in the PHOTOS section of the old Safarifriends Yahoo group site...
(supposedly we can search those PHOTOS but I haven't yet found how it's done).

[mikeoc]

Hi Guys, thanks for your reply, I have changed the solenoid on the fire wall, I believe is the start solenoid. I also change the start relay under the dash, with no luck. So I am down to tracing wires to see if I pulled a connection loose while putting the radio.I did not realize the top of dash could come off, Duane if you could pass that info to me I would be very grateful this could make this job much more comfortable. I am to big to be laying on the floor and reaching up under that dash.I will keep at it I want to go camping in a couple of weeks, thanks again for all the help and info Mike

[mikeoc]

I for got to mention that yes my engine will crank and start from the service bay. Also my dash lites work and my fan for heat and defrost are working. I did think I had a bad ignition switch but I have tried jumping it and still could not get the motor to crank, I think that is everything I have tried and come to conclusion it may be a loose wire. I am not getting the transmission panel to lite up even when the engine is running from the service bay and I am guessing that is correct.Thanks for any thing you guys can offer Mike

[05wingrider]

Mike,
The top of the dash is fairly easy to take off. Remove the screws from the dash face that go into that top piece (I poke them into a piece of cardboard in the pattern that they were removed to make it easier on putting it all back together). Only the screws on the outer rim need removed - none of the interior ones. Once you've gotten them out, under the dash on both sides is a bolt sticking down with a washer and nut - simply remove the nut and the dash top will lift straight off (thanks to everyone that provided this information to me last fall), allowing you access to all the wires and the gauges. That all being said, there IS a divider in the center of the dash that you'll have to work around to get to things like the ignition switch (or at least my 96 30 Sahara has one in place), but even with that it's a lot easier to see and access everything from above now. Putting it back on is simple, and "may" take one more set of hands to keep the top piece in the correct location while tightening down the bolts.

[mikeoc]

Thanks a million Duane, I will keep you posted on my progress, won't get back to motorhome until the weekend, I have to work for another year and four months. Thanks again Mike

[TDJohn]

I for got to mention that yes my engine will crank and start from the service bay. Also my dash lites work and my fan for heat and defrost are working. I did think I had a bad ignition switch but I have tried jumping it and still could not get the motor to crank, I think that is everything I have tried and come to conclusion it may be a loose wire. I am not getting the transmission panel to lite up even when the engine is running from the service bay and I am guessing that is correct.Thanks for any thing you guys can offer Mike

That is incorrect and thus, we now know why your coach does not start using the key. The Allison Transmission has a start lockout until it verifies that it is in neutral, so if the pad does not power up, you won't be able to start you engine.
You did not answer my questions I asked earlier, please do, as it will help track down the issue. Check the inline fuses at the chassis battery bank and also check for power coming into the VIM. There are two power sources, one is constant power even when the ignition is turned off, and the other one has power only when the ignition is on. The constant power feed to usually the common issue, but considering that you just installed the radio, it could be an issue from the ignition feed. Here is a link to photos of what the VIM looks like. Inside there should be two fuses, check those also. The VIM should either be under you dash area, or likely hidden under your shift pad.

[mikeoc]

Hi John I do not see a link with the photo of the VIM, I would like to get that to see what I am looking for. Please send the photo again if you get a chance. Thanks Mike