Chrysler Repair: Starter motor only works if steering wheel turned hard, starter solenoid, daimler chrysler

Question
My van will only start if I turn the steering wheel hard to the right only makes clicking noise until I turn wheel very hard to right while turning ignition. Could the starter be bad or could i have a short in a wire or could the stereo that was installed when buying van has maybe burned up a wire?

Answer
Hi Bob,
The clicking sound is that of the starter solenoid closing and releasing prematurely. This is usually related to the voltage on the battery being too low to sustain the solenoid in the closed position. The circuits that are in the steering column are the airbag, the horn, the speed control and perhaps the radio controls. Any of those circuits might have a short due to a defective wire in the clockspring unit that connects the wires in the wheel to the steering column wiring harness. You might check the voltage on the battery as you turn the steering wheel to various positions and notice whether the voltage changes at different positions of the wheel and thus get some confirmation that the wheel has some indirect impact on the starter system. The starter circuit itself does not have anything to do with the steering column directly, but there may be such an indirect relationship with one the other systems having a short. But it should show up as a voltage drop on the battery if that were the case. If you find such a situation you may be able to get a new clockspring under a factory recall program that including vans from the latter half of the 90's. Ask the dealer or Daimler/Chrysler in Detroit about that.
Roland