Tural

my buddy drove his 95 isuzu trooper to my place today. at some point he said his radio doesnt work, so i decided to take a look. i pulled the radio out and needed a voltmeter to test it, i couldnt find my regular one, so i grabbed the one that was sitting in a box, unopened.
i accidentally put it on the unfused side, couldnt get a reading. not seeing the problem, i touched the batt terminals to see if it show voltage. saw a small spark on contact to the positive. immediately realized the problem, switched it to the fused side. batt read 12.15V
this is where the problem started. radio became the least of concerns. u turn the key, fuel pump is heard, but it wont turn over.cant hear a click on the starter at all. i hear some sort of relay click in the fuse box under the engine, but i put my hand on the starter relay and it's not it.

another thing i had to do is, i had to put the key in and take the shift lever all the way down to get the radio out.

so, im trying to narrow it down.
starter relay
starter solenoid
ECM (fuel pump is heard when you turn the key)
neutral safety switch

and i cant even get a screwdriver near the starter cables to see if i can jump the terminals

any ideas?

stormitecture

Start with replacing the cheapest parts and work your way up. 1995....always a good idea to just start replacing parts (good, OEM if possible) like those you mentioned.

Are you saying that the vehicle started fine before testing with the voltmeter.

Tural

yupp, started it up not 2mins prior to check the radio
im not used to working with isuzus and this is turning into a quick pain.
im gonna get a new starter relay tomorrow, see if anything is up

Gimmy

Fuses always check fuses

Radi

That.
Sounds like you accidentally used the unfused amperage measurement on the meter, basically a dead short between terminals. That'll blow fuses.

skife

I hope you're kidding when you say it's a good idea to just start replacing parts.

Clean the battery terminals first.

Tural

lol, i appreciate all that offered a solution, or burned a calorie thinking about this.
so.... here we go

some "smart guy" has "professionally" wired the stereo. as it was stated originally, i was supposed to get the radio working.
when you put power to the radio, it burns the starter fuse right beside it. for some odd reason, neither the radio fuse, nor the starter fuse look burnt but they are.
so, u can try to replace the starter fuse, and it will burn it as long as the radio is getting power.
so, what u have to do is, take power away from the radio and put a new 10A starter fuse inside the cab.
starter right up.
i had given my buddy my xj to drive home (120mi away) in the meantime, and he said he's gonna be sad to give back a vehicle where everything works
like i said, i appreciate all input and all brain cells used

stormitecture

Not without prudent due diligence. But the main point is cheaper first then work your way up. But only if it can't be properly diagnosed.

I got a brother with an older trooper I'm thinking about helping him get back on the road. If you find any tips for those models (I think his is a 96 or 97 or something like that), post it up. Never owned one.

Tural

looks to be a quite solid vehicle. this one is a 95 with 261k miles, still on the road. i dont think there's a lash adjuster on it that i couldnt hear when the engine ran

dmill89

With the 5-speed they just about run forever as long as you change the timing belt and keep the PCV system clean (if it gets clogged it can suck the oil out of the crankcase fast and run low/out of oil).

The GM 4L30E transmission on the 4-speed auto version is a weak link and usually needs to be rebuilt around 125,000-150,000 mi. If you noticed from the model designation this transmission is designed for vehicles up to 3,000 lbs. (the 30), unfortunately the Trooper weighs about 4,500 lbs.