Cadillac Repair: 1985 fleetwood NO Start, neutral safety switch, key cylinder

Question
i have an 85 Fleetwood turn key and nothing no dash panel lights, new batter, the car will turn over when i jump the starter but won't stay running, I'm thinking it could be Neutral safety switch or/ Bad Ignition switch

Answer
Hello,

The neutral switch will prevent the engine from starting, but will not cause the engine not to stay running.

A majority of the people out there think the key cylinder is the ignition switch. The key cylinder will not cause your problem, however the electrical ignition switch under the dash at the top of the steering column could possibly be faulty where it is not supplying power to the engine in the run position.

The easiest way to check this would be with a meter or a test light to switched power at the ignition switch. If you have no power coming out of the switch with lock cylinder in RUN position, the switch is bad. Otherwise, you will have to look elsewhere.

Rob