Lights are on, but a total non-starter! 2005 Defender TD5 90

Hi all,

Yesterday, as my TD5 2005 90 was performing well, I decided to fit a...
- Cruise control kit (pins 10 & 15 connected to live 33 and pins 11 & 17 switching to independent 12v +ve)
- Skytag tracker (using the courtesy light system as a power source)

I dutifully disconnected the battery & after some hours (as I'm fussy about making wiring look authentic & tidy) excitedly reconnected the battery looking forward to test driving with cruise control.

Everything went to plan, the dash lit up as usual, the fuel pump kicked into action & the glow plug light came & went, however, as I twisted the key to engage the starter I was greeted with the SOUND OF SILENCE!

The starter made no effort to engage whatsoever. I tried the following to see if it would resolve matters, but to no avail...
- Disconnected the cruise from the ECU
- Rearmed & disarmed the alarm
- Disconnected & reconnected the battery
- Took the instrument panel off to see if I'd accidentally knocked off one of the contacts from the ignition
- Checked for oil ingress into the red plug of the ECU

Each time I attempted to restart I had the same result - All lights & pumps working, but silence from the starter

The starter has never been problematic, has anyone got any ideas?
- Have I upset the ECU or 10AS?
- Is my Skytag power choice causing the problem?
- Is this an immobiliser issue?

I would welcome any suggestions

darkstig said:

The starter has never been problematic, has anyone got any ideas?
- Have I upset the ECU or 10AS?
- Is my Skytag power choice causing the problem?
- Is this an immobiliser issue?

I would welcome any suggestions

Click to expand...

Yr jumpin around a bit

1, Maybe
2, Dunno
3, Very possibly
4, Welcoming suggestions is dangerous here

However you could try

:search:

before you start ripping things apart you first need to check for a live feed to the small wire on the starter when the key is turned to the 'crank' position. DO NOT mess with anything else before you do this. This will tell you if the problem is at the starter motor or ignition switch end of the line.

Thanks Ratty

I eventually gave up & called the RAC.

Chap from the RAC managed to get the engine to start & run for a few seconds by putting an independent live to the starter whilst the ignition was on.

It stopped itself running about 3 seconds after it started & wouldn't repeat the same trick.

He seems to think that this implies either an immobiliser or ECU issue(?)

The chap from the local independent garage has it now & is going to plug it in first to see if that throws up any clues.

The fellow from Skytag seems to think that tinkerin' with the lines in the roof can upset the ECU (choose the solid purple wire - if anyone else is looking for a 12 volt source that won't kick anything else off BTW).

Any other ideas?

I'll let you know the result, unless you guy's have figured it out already.

Thanks once again