Chrysler Repair: 99 Cirrus: ignition fuse (#8, 20 amp) blows, starter solenoid, starter relay

Question
car sputters ,rpms serge at idle it wants to die now it wont start,wheni attemp to start car my ignition fuse 20 blows steve

Answer
Hi Steve,
Here is how I responded to another questioner with a '00 Breeze which is identical in its wiring to your '99:
"The three possibilities were the fuel pump and the starter motor relay and the starter solenoid which is powered by the relay (all 3 draw on fuse 8).
It the fuse truly didn't blow (and the starter nonetheless won't turn over the engine) then I would first: listen when you turn the switch to the run position to make sure that the fuel does its usual thing of humming for 1 second or so (or better yet check the radio). It that is still true, then that would indeed verify that fuse 8 is still good. That would mean that the failure of the starter has to do with the starter relay or the starter solenoid now being "open" on its actuating coil (which would be why the fuse doesn't blow as it had in the past). You could try pulling the starter relay (located in the rear lower section of the under-hood power distribution box (there are four relays, the starter is the front left one)) and then take a wire and jump between the two pins sockets that are side by side on the driver side of the relay socket, which replicates the closing of the relay. If the starter motor then responds, then it is likely that the relay was bad. If it doesn't respond then your starter motor solenoid is bad and you would need to pull and rebuild that motor. But be sure that the fuel pump does hum (or that the radio still works which also needs fuse 8) which would assure you that you are also getting voltage to the relay socket. And when you try the 'jump' be sure that the trans is in park or neutral because otherwise you will start in a gear, which is UNSAFE.
If the fuse is indeed blown (but just has a subtle crack instead) then you would want to pull the starter motor relay, put in a new 2OA fuse, and turn the ignition switch to run and make sure the fuel pump operates without blowing the fuse, trying it several times. If that proves to be true then try the relay jump routine and see whether the fuse blows or the starter responds. If the fuse blows then there is a short in the wire from the outside socket pin to the solenoid or the solenoid itself; if the fuse doesn't blow and the starter responds normally to the jump then the relay is probably open.
If you have a volt-ohm meter you can test for all these possibilities but what I am describing is a way to analyze this indirectly."
The poor idling could be many things, but first lets get it to start and then worry about that.
Roland
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