96 3.0 will not crank at all

[farmer11]

I stopped the van and when I tried to start it starter would not do anything.
The other electrical things work just no action on the starter. Swapped the relay in the Power Control Center and that was no help. Where do I look next?
Thanks

[earlyrizr]

how was the starting up to this point,normal or??Check the connections on the starter solinoid and from the battery.

[KManiac]

The first thing you need to verify is the integrity of your "Neutral Safety Switch". The NS switch is designed to prevent starter operation if the transmission selector is in any range other than Park (P) or Neutral (N).

Make sure the transmission selector is in P and try to start the van. If the starter does not work, put the selector in N and try to start again. If still no starter, hold the key in the "Start" position with one hand, while moving the transmission selector through "R - N - D" to see if you can get the starter to engage at some point. If still no starter, find the "Neutral Safety Switch", disconnect the leads and put a jumper across the leads. If still no starter operation after going through all this, the problem is in the starter.

Do not make the mistake a former neighbor of mine made with his pick-up truck. One morning he turns the key and nothing happens. He gets in his other car and goes to the auto parts store. He buys a new starter for the truck. He crawls under the truck and replaces the starter. When he finishes, he turns the key again and still no starter activation. He pulls the new starter out and takes both the old and new starters to the auto parts store. Both starters bench test good! The parts person recommends looking at the Neutral Safety Switch. He goes home, reinstalls the old starter, and finds the Neutral Safety Switch and jumpers the leads. The truck starts. He goes back to the store and buys a new NS switch. He would have saved himself a lot of time and trouble if he had started with this switch first.

I wish I knew the exact location of the NS switch in your car, but I do not. I have seen some in the transmission and others on the steering column. Good luck and let us know what you find.