97 Ford Aerostar won't start

[elionwyr]

Car: '97 Aerostar 3.0 liter (extended back)
Problem: Died in transit. Will not start. There appears to be no energy drain from the battery (no dimming of lights). Battery is fine - lights do work.

No obvious loose or corroded wires.

From peeking through the forum here, it looks like similar problems have been fixed by replacing the solenoid/starter. Are there any obvious symptoms that would highlight this as the solution?

[questionablemechan]

first off do you have brake lights? if no brake lights try changeing gears(park nuetral,drive ,etc) if none of the above try checking for a loose or broken wire at the brake switch. usually a wire may be loose just make good connectin soder and you should be good to go. these switches tend to break wires due to constant movement.
hope this helps.

[occupant]

If it cranks but won't start, try resetting the fuel pump inertia switch in back. Not sure of location, but usually on driver's side behind the plastic panel. May or may not be labeled. If it still won't start you may have a bad ignition module, which is easy to replace but I don't know where it is.

If it won't crank, try it in Neutral instead of Park. If it still won't crank, put it back in Park, leave the ignition on, open the hood and try to crank it from the solenoid. It's on the driver's side inner fender, about three inches from the battery. There are three terminals on the solenoid. Two big ones and a small one with a wire running to it. Take the wire off the small one, or at least move it a bit, and you can jump that small terminal to the front large one. Use a rubber-handled tool like a screwdriver. That will activate the starter if it's not cranking from the key. If it starts, you need a new ignition switch (not the tumbler, the little black thing further down the column). If it doesn't start, you probably need a starter.