Ford 7600 won't start

I get one click each time I turn the key switch on but the starter does not engage. Jumping from the ignition terminal of the solenoid to a 12 volt source on the tractor starts the tractor so I think the solenoid and the starter are both working.

I think the neutral switch is located in the transmission and I cannot locate the relay(if there is one--I'm assuming the click that I hear is a relay) and the ignition switch is nearly impossible to get to for replacement.

Any suggestions?

It could just be a corroded connection on the terminal at the solenoid or the switch,I would check those first,if it was the safety
switch you probably wouldn't get any click at all.

No relay in that starting circuit, at least not from factory.

Most likely poor connections between the key switch and the starter. Start with the easy one, the connection between the harness coming out of the trans shift cover and the rear harness. Make sure those male/female connections are snug. Also make sure that the female spade terminals on the starter and the key switch are a snug slip fit as well. If that doesn't get it, then remove the shift cover and check the connections at the safety switch. Those have been known to cause issues as well.

(quoted from post at 16:37:05 07/29/16) It could just be a corroded connection on the terminal at the solenoid or the switch,I would check those first,if it was the safety
switch you probably wouldn't get any click at all.

Click to expand...

hanks. I plan to double check those connections today. I'm suspicious of the key switch but I haven't been able to reach/access it yet. I think I need someone with smaller hands.

(quoted from post at 20:11:52 07/29/16) No relay in that starting circuit, at least not from factory.

Most likely poor connections between the key switch and the starter. Start with the easy one, the connection between the harness coming out of the trans shift cover and the rear harness. Make sure those male/female connections are snug. Also make sure that the female spade terminals on the starter and the key switch are a snug slip fit as well. If that doesn't get it, then remove the shift cover and check the connections at the safety switch. Those have been known to cause issues as well.

Click to expand...

hanks for those suggestions. If there is no relay, then what is causing the clicking sound that I hear up under the dash behind the fuse box? I did take the clutch cover off but couldn't locate the neutral switch. Someone at the Ford dealer told me it was located in the transmission.

It does look like a bad connection somewhere between the key switch and the solenoid. I put a volt meter on the ignition wire at the solenoid terminal and I'm not getting any voltage with the key turned to the start position. I will double check all of that today. My best guess is that it has something to do with the key switch, either loose wire or faulty switch. I just have to figure out how to get to the switch.

Thanks for those suggestions. If there is no relay, then what is causing the clicking sound that I hear up under the dash behind the fuse box? I did take the clutch cover off but couldn't locate the neutral switch. Someone at the Ford dealer told me it was located in the transmission.

Click to expand...

The parts drawing shows a starter relay on the firewall, at least for the gas engine models, part labelled 10 in the parts drawing at the link below:

[u:460d372a16]http://partstore.agriculture.newholland.com/us/parts-search.html#epc::mr58362ar676451[/u:460d372a16]

The neutral safety switch is under the transmission top plate that has the gear shifters mounted on it. Here is a link to the parts drawing for the transmission case, the switch is labelled 61 in the drawing:

[u:460d372a16]http://partstore.agriculture.newholland.com/us/parts-search.html#epc::mr58362ar396726[/u:460d372a16]

7600's were never available as gassers. 6600 was
the biggest gas tractor Ford made in that era.

Yes, the neutral safety switch is located under the shift cover. You'll see two wires coming out of this cover - those are the wires going to the switch. Follow the other end of these wires up to the key switch.

You should be able to at least reach your hand up under the dash and get a good sense of how tight the wires are as they are attached to the key switch terminals.

Again, there is no relay. The faint clicking noise you hear is the tickling action of the starter solenoid trying to do something.

I'm really curious about this "clutch cover" you're talking about. There is no such thing as a clutch access cover.

There is no starter relay on a 10 series tractor unless it was added, which I am in the habit of doing...... However, if the tractor has a
cab, there IS an ignition load relay. It is possible that if it was getting a weak coil it could be breaking connection.... but if that was
the case you would notice all other cab electrics are dead.
Beyond that I find that the ignition switches are usually the culprit in 10 series starting circuits.... but ti's also not unheard of for the
starter solenoid to have burnt contacts and that will usually manifest as a click or clack at the starter and failure to crank. That will
require a new solenoid if that's the problem.

Rod

when they click...


most often.. cleaning the battery wire at the solenoid will fix the problem. It usually corrodes there. also.. at the bottom of the solenoid, there are cables coming out that go to the starter.. Clean this connection also. Then there is the battery connection at the battery that can be cleaned... Then the whole battery cable can be broken down.

Also the neg cable can be bad at both ends and in the middle as well.

I think the click you hear is the thermostart.

The neutral start switch is probably bad, move the shuttle back and forth while holding the key.

(quoted from post at 06:49:16 07/30/16)

I'm really curious about this "clutch cover" you're talking about. There is no such thing as a clutch access cover.

Click to expand...

meant shift cover. My mistake. Sorry.

(quoted from post at 08:01:31 07/30/16) There is no starter relay on a 10 series tractor unless it was added, which I am in the habit of doing...... However, if the tractor has a
cab, there IS an ignition load relay. It is possible that if it was getting a weak coil it could be breaking connection.... but if that was
the case you would notice all other cab electrics are dead.
Beyond that I find that the ignition switches are usually the culprit in 10 series starting circuits.... but ti's also not unheard of for the
starter solenoid to have burnt contacts and that will usually manifest as a click or clack at the starter and failure to crank. That will
require a new solenoid if that's the problem.

Rod

Click to expand...

he tractor does have a cab.

I finally managed to remove the key switch and move it up to the fuse box area where I could check out the wiring. The wire to the solenoid had a broken connector at the key switch. I replaced the connector and that is when it got more confusing. When I reconnected the wire to the same key switch terminal it had been connected to, I still had the same problem. Just a click and no cranking by the starter. Just because I couldn't think of anything better to do, I connected that wire to another unused key switch terminal that had 12 volts on it and the starter started cranking and the tractor started right up. That told me that the wire was good and that it was the ignition-solenoid wire. I reconnected the wire back to the terminal that it had been connected to and again, all I got was a click.

What really seemed odd to me was the fact that both of those terminals had 12.7 volts on them with the key turned off and yet, only one of those two key switch terminals would energize the solenoid. The only thing I can think of is that maybe there is amperage required that the original terminal is not providing. The problem with that explanation is that I would have to have had two problems occurring at the same time, the broken terminal and a bad key switch. Perhaps someone has a better explanation.

Anyway, I can now start the tractor from the tractor seat and I am considering two options: 1)replace the key switch; 2)Leave the wire on the unused terminal and insert an on/off switch on that wire between the key switch and the solenoid because the constant 12 volts just runs the starter continually until I disconnect the wire from the key switch. I will probably go with #1 if I can manage to get the new key switch installed in the tractor where it belongs.

I really appreciate everyone's help. I am not a mechanic so any and all suggestions are helpful.

Just put a new ignition switch on it and wire it correctly................ I am pretty sure from what you describe that the switch is just
bad. You've hooked the starter wire to one of the other live #1 terminals on the switch and that's why you have no control of what it does.
Get a new switch. When you look at the OEM switch the blades will be numbered. #1 is the large blade/ brown-yellow wire for the input. #2 is
the accessory terminal which may be unused on your tractor. #3 is the thermostart (I think), #4 is 'run' and #5 is crank. I may have #3 and
#4 mixed up but IIRC, they are inverted in order vs how they act on the switch.
That will fix your problem.
I'd also suggest you get the OEM switch vs aftermarket as I find most of the aftermarket either don't fit correctly, the OEM keys don't work
in them and.... well they're just cheap sh!t.

Rod

(quoted from post at 07:32:51 07/31/16) Just put a new ignition switch on it and wire it correctly................ I am pretty sure from what you describe that the switch is just
bad. You've hooked the starter wire to one of the other live #1 terminals on the switch and that's why you have no control of what it does.
Get a new switch. When you look at the OEM switch the blades will be numbered. #1 is the large blade/ brown-yellow wire for the input. #2 is
the accessory terminal which may be unused on your tractor. #3 is the thermostart (I think), #4 is 'run' and #5 is crank. I may have #3 and
#4 mixed up but IIRC, they are inverted in order vs how they act on the switch.
That will fix your problem.
I'd also suggest you get the OEM switch vs aftermarket as I find most of the aftermarket either don't fit correctly, the OEM keys don't work
in them and.... well they're just cheap sh!t.

Rod

Click to expand...

'm pretty sure the switch is bad. It may be the original switch which would make it 40 years old. I will take your advice and get a new switch from the dealer tomorrow(Monday).

I'm still confused as to how the old switch was starting the tractor until the wire connector broke completely when the tractor won't start from that terminal now that the wire has been repaired. But the important thing is to fix the problem with a new switch(hopefully).

Thanks.

(quoted from post at 05:50:58 07/30/16)

Thanks for those suggestions. If there is no relay, then what is causing the clicking sound that I hear up under the dash behind the fuse box? I did take the clutch cover off but couldn't locate the neutral switch. Someone at the Ford dealer told me it was located in the transmission.

Click to expand...

The parts drawing shows a starter relay on the firewall, at least for the gas engine models, part labelled 10 in the parts drawing at the link below:

[u:3cb9b98436]http://partstore.agriculture.newholland.com/us/parts-search.html#epc::mr58362ar676451[/u:3cb9b98436]

The neutral safety switch is under the transmission top plate that has the gear shifters mounted on it. Here is a link to the parts drawing for the transmission case, the switch is labelled 61 in the drawing:

[u:3cb9b98436]http://partstore.agriculture.newholland.com/us/parts-search.html#epc::mr58362ar396726[/u:3cb9b98436]

Click to expand...

t looks like it would be difficult to get to the neutral safety switch. But I don't have to now because it checks out ok. I expected to see a safety switch for each shifting lever but it looks like only the high/low lever has a safety switch.

I dunno. I'd wager that mabey the wire broke when you were removing the switch? Hard to say.

Rod

Replaced the key switch with a new one from the dealer. The tractor appears to be starting and running fine now. Thanks for the help and good advice from everyone.

(quoted from post at 16:00:47 07/29/16) I get one click each time I turn the key switch on but the starter does not engage. Jumping from the ignition terminal of the solenoid to a 12 volt source on the tractor starts the tractor so I think the solenoid and the starter are both working.

I think the neutral switch is located in the transmission and I cannot locate the relay(if there is one--I'm assuming the click that I hear is a relay) and the ignition switch is nearly impossible to get to for replacement.

Any suggestions?

Click to expand...

So I know this discussion is dead, however my 7600 had nearly the exact same thing happen this weekend and I was hoping for some additional input from this group of people.

I have a 7600 diesel, no cab, and had it hooked up to a dump trailer this weekend. It had a 7 pin harness coming off of the battery to keep the dump trailer's battery topped off. Left it out Saturday Night because it was hooked up to the trailer and of course it rained, and went to start it on Sunday and it wouldn't do anything. No lights, no clicking, nothing. The air filter light, which comes on before you start it flashed and that was it. Battery tested fine, but tried to jump it anyway. No luck. Also tried to cross it with the solenoid and the starter and nothing. Tried bump starting it with a bobcat, nothing. We too identified it was probably the starter switch so we replaced it with a new OEM starter switch this morning, still nothing.

Could it be the coil? A bad ground? Am I missing something obvious? Over the past few years, the high low lever sometimes had to be wiggled for it to engage the safety and for the tractor to start, but always ended up starting. That is what i plan to replace next, but idk if that solves the all dead electricals conundrum.

(quoted from post at 16:00:47 07/29/16) I get one click each time I turn the key switch on but the starter does not engage. Jumping from the ignition terminal of the solenoid to a 12 volt source on the tractor starts the tractor so I think the solenoid and the starter are both working.

I think the neutral switch is located in the transmission and I cannot locate the relay(if there is one--I'm assuming the click that I hear is a relay) and the ignition switch is nearly impossible to get to for replacement.

Any suggestions?

Click to expand...

So I know this discussion is dead, however my 7600 had nearly the exact same thing happen this weekend and I was hoping for some additional input from this group of people.

I have a 7600 diesel, no cab, and had it hooked up to a dump trailer this weekend. It had a 7 pin harness coming off of the battery to keep the dump trailer's battery topped off. Left it out Saturday Night because it was hooked up to the trailer and of course it rained, and went to start it on Sunday and it wouldn't do anything. No lights, no clicking, nothing. The air filter light, which comes on before you start it flashed and that was it. Battery tested fine, but tried to jump it anyway. No luck. Also tried to cross it with the solenoid and the starter and nothing. Tried bump starting it with a bobcat, nothing. We too identified it was probably the starter switch so we replaced it with a new OEM starter switch this morning, still nothing.

Could it be the coil? A bad ground? Am I missing something obvious? Over the past few years, the high low lever sometimes had to be wiggled for it to engage the safety and for the tractor to start, but always ended up starting. That is what i plan to replace next, but idk if that solves the all dead electricals conundrum.

Did you clean the connections at the battery and starter, The dash lights should come on with the key, also turn on the head lights to see if they work, if not you've got a connection problem.
If connections are good try jumping across the solenoid to see if the starter is working.

Rather than start a new thread, I'd like to horn in here with a related problem, keep all this 7600 electrical stuff together.

Last winter got a 7600 1978 no cab. Love the turbo. Apparently was parked outside for a while before it came here but started and ran fine to get chisel plowing done last spring.
Alternator replaced when the light came on. Starter quit, all corroded inside, replaced, but not even a click of the solenoid on the new one. Lights on the instrument panel occasionally worked. Saw smoke come up from under the sheet metal over the tank once while trying to start, figured I toasted some wiring. Ordered new wiring with connectors from Agri-Sevices (excellent product and service). New battery, cleaned all connections. Replaced voltage regulator. New key switch. New instrument panel. Got instrument panel lights now but one click of the starter solenoid and then nothing. Meter shows 12.4 V to starter solenoid and key switch. Meter on neutral safety switch wires shows resistance in Hi and Lo, and zero in neutral, so I am assuming this is working(?). Since it was in the shop for all this, repainted the sheet metal, has good rubber on all four. I have been thinking the tractor is worth all this investment for my long term use, but I am really baffled by the electronic problem. Any help or leads greatly appreciated.

Your not going to get many answers here on this thread.
Many of the long time users use the classic format and it doesn't bring a latest post up to the top.
Since the last post before your is over a year old your post will be probably 100 pages down on theirs.
I posted on this thread back then so it automatically notified me of a new post, but the guys on classic will never see it.
Best you start a new thread.

Before I go you said it had 12 volt at the solenoid, does it maintain those 12 volt when you try to crank it
If not your losing connection on the hot cable, if it does maintain 12 volts you losing connection on the ground side
Check your cables
Also I've found I get a better ground if I connect the ground cable to a started mounting bolt instead of the ground post on the front of the starter, that post is know to lose connection with the starter case.

Thanks!