Land Rover Repair: no central locking or cranking, starter solenoid, fuel pump relay

Question
Hi John,
I have a '95 Disco (gas, 3.9L) that won't start (i.e. won't crank) and central locking is out. The problem arose after leaving the vehicle parked for Dec-Feb (near Vancouver, BC) while I was away. I was told by neighbors that the alarm spontaneously triggered several times during this period (no one was ever seen near the vehicle and there was no evidence of tampering).

Here's a list of symptoms/observations. Any thoughts or advise you can offer will be greatly appreciated. As I suspect this is alarm related, how can one bypass the alarm on a '95 Disco? (if nothing else, this might help with diagnosing the problem).

- I have no FOB (it broke 5 years ago and I never replaced it)
- Turning the key in the driver's door has no obvious effect (other than mechanical lock/unlock). No lights, no central locking.
- Red LED on dash does not blink
- The fuses appear to be OK (I checked all seemingly relevant ones)
- The engine does not crank. There are 2 clicks under the dashboard when I turn the key - 1 w/ the key, another a half second later (maybe a fuel pump relay? neither is the starter solenoid)
- Lights, radio, and fans work fine, and I've charged the battery for good measure (that didn't help)
- On a single occasion it cranked and quickly started (central locking was still out). I drove it for 30 minutes (ran great). I parked it and it restarted fine. It's not run before or after that, however. I tried many things that day before it started (including 1-5-1-5 lock/unlock combinations, and walking away but coming back for one last try) - not sure if any of that played a factor.
- <possibly related> The springs in the front door locks are broken, requiring that the lock sometimes be held up in order to open the door. Maybe a loose lock triggered the alarm and/or did something else nasty???? This truck was exposed to wind through the winter.

Many, many thanks,
Keith


Answer
Hi Keith,

your probably on the right track concerning the alarm.  You'll have to resolve the alarm fault first before searching for other possible causes.  The theft alarm unit provides a ground to your starter solenoid relay.  

For most '95 cranking problems, its usually ignition related - however, if you have blown your alarm system (shorted somehow), you should address this issue to get back your light and reconnect the relay ground path.

Sure sounds like a ground fault somewhere and you might as well start with the door problem that you mentioned.  Also, check the door switch to see if its shorted.  Then check the outside sidemarker lights (look into the bulb holder) to see if its shorting out.  All of these have been known to cause no crank.

Also, with no alarm, Park/neutral switch can fault and prevent starting.  Since the vehicle sat so long, also make sure your battery is full charged and not part of the problem.  

Best of luck,

JohnMc