Voltage Regulator Stuck?

[Gainersfuel]

First off, the stats. 1995 Taurus with 115,000 miles. Everything stock. Now the problem. I come home for work, turn my car off and run in the house. I run in the house for 30 seconds to get something, come back and try to start my car and nothing. I dont think it even clicked. But then again maybe it did but it definately did not turn. I wake up and try again in the morning and nothing. I get a jumpstart and it cranks. I take it to a shop and from then on, it cranks EVERY TIME!!! They could find no problems. Everything tested just fine. I'm thinking to my self WTF? It has to be something wrong!! This one guy told me something about my voltage regulator sticking. Anyone ever heard of this? Does this sound like altenator or starter problems? Keep in mind that when it was not turning, the radio played fine and the interior lights were fine, however the headlights would not come on. This is a toughie I'm sure. Callin all Automotive Guru's!!!!

[RockinWRX]

Its not the voltage regulator. That has absolutely NOTHING to do with the car not starting. You may have a loose wire somewhere , possibly. The list of things that can cause that problem is quite long , including a "going bad" ignition switch.

[Gainersfuel]

All of the mechanics and car shops have told me that the ignition switch has nothing to do with it.

[RockinWRX]

Originally posted by Gainersfuel
All of the mechanics and car shops have told me that the ignition switch has nothing to do with it.

Yeah , but they are the same ones that said it might be the voltage regulator "sticking" Voltage regulators on older cars from the 60's might stick , because they actually used moving components in those. Voltage regulators are computer controlled now and have NO moving parts.
I so much hate when shops tell people some mumbo-jumbo about what is going on with their car. I've been working on all types of cars for 15 yrs and I never cease to be amazed by the bullshit they say.

In all seriousness , it possibly may be the starter solenoid. Or the starter itself. Fords are notorious for electrical problems. I really also need to know what motor is in that car.

[Gainersfuel]

All i know about the motor is that its a V-6. 3.0

Ok. Since it's not the voltage regulator sticking. How do I check the other thing you said. Starter solenoid, especially when it now cranks all the time. And how can you really check the altenator when machines say it puts out just fine. Am I just gonna have to get stuff fixed and see if it works? Process of elimination?

[RockinWRX]

The worst thing you can do is throw parts at a car til all the problems are fixed. Granted that all these parts may be going bad anyway
I beleive in the somewhat older Fords , the starter solenoid is still on the fender , and the main wire runs from there to the starter. The first thing to do is remove all the battery connections that you can get to and make sure they are clean. Corrosion plays a bigger factor with these cars because of the extra wiring. If you can reach the wire connection to the starter , so much the better , much sure it is not loose. Also check the ground cable , it should be bolted to the block somewhere.
Its possible the starter itself may be going bad , but the Ford ones appear to be fairly bullet-proof.
If this situation does happen again , try starting it in NEUTRAL instead of PARK. Its possible it may just not have been in PARK all the way , and the safety switch inside the trans will not let the car start. I would try to recreate the situation as it happened the first time. Since you were in a hurry to grab stuff from your house and leave , you may just have kinda "slammed" the shifter into PARK , yanked the key out , and jumped out of the car...
You can check the alternator if you have a volt-meter. Or go to a local auto-parts store , such as Auto-zone....they should be glad to check it for you.
Do you have a lot of "slop" in the ignition key switch??? I know the Fords are notorious for having key switch problems. The Tempo models are known for unusual fires in the igniton area. This may be your problem.
Without actually being there , looking at the car , I cannot do much but give you tons of advice. I wish you luck.

[Gainersfuel]

Dude or dudette, thanx for all the advice. Sounds like you know what you're talkin about instead of these repair shops who keep guessing. Seems like all they really know is how to change oil. When I get a chance, I'm gonna try recreating that moment. See if that could have caused it. Me not having it all the way in park. But if that was the case, wouldnt i be able to turn on the headlights?

[RockinWRX]

Originally posted by Gainersfuel
Dude or dudette, thanx for all the advice. Sounds like you know what you're talkin about instead of these repair shops who keep guessing. Seems like all they really know is how to change oil. When I get a chance, I'm gonna try recreating that moment. See if that could have caused it. Me not having it all the way in park. But if that was the case, wouldnt i be able to turn on the headlights?

Thats the stumper for me...the headlight thing. Thats why I'm convinced that it may be a bad wiring connection. Check your MAIN fuses , should be in a box under the hood somewhere , maybe on the drivers side. There may be more than one box. The MAIN itself should be about 70-80+ amps and the headlights run about 30+amps. If the fuse box is DIRTY inside , remove all the fuses and use some ELECTRICAL PARTS CLEANER spray , and spray the fusebox clean , you should be able to find that at any local auto-parts store. Check the fuses themselves , you should be able to see inside. Beyond that , and checking wiring connections , we would get into intermittent starter failure , ignition switch failure , etc. Unfortunately Fords have always had lots of electrical gremlins

[RockinWRX]

Oh...and its DUDE , btw. My name is Jason.

[Gainersfuel]

From all of the advice you've given, it seems to definately be an electrical problem. Would you agree?

[RockinWRX]

So it would seem. Are you in a position to fix any of this yourself? I would suggest acquiring a HAYNES manual , also available at any auto-parts store.

[Gainersfuel]

I wont be doing the work. My friend will be. I'm letting him know all the info you've given me.

[RockinWRX]

I wish you luck Let me know how it goes. You can PM me if you wish.