Hello. I am new to this forum.
I have a 1996 Ford E350 with a transit bus body. I used to run it as a mobile shop, but it has sat for the past several years.
I am trying to get it running again, but when I stuck a battery in it I get power to the lights but nothing else. Radio is dead, dash is dark and more importantly, nothing to the starter.
I have checked a bunch of the fuses, all good so far. The ignition is loose so I pulled it out and it looks fine.
I can post pictures of parts/areas if it would help.

If anyone has any great ideas (regarding this bus) I would love to hear them.
Thanks

 

I suspect a bad ground. Since it has sat idle for several years, corrosion could have built up on much of the connections. I would start by removing each one in the engine compartment (power and ground) and clean them all, especially where the grounds are attached to the frame and engine block.Just looks good means nothing if you don't remove and clean each connection. You could also try jumping across the starter solenoid and see if the starter cranks.
Again, I am assuming you have a tested and proven battery in the van.

 

Since you do have some lights working , it could mean there is a fairly good ground available.
A few things to consider,
could rodents have been at work on some of the wiring?
If it sat outside , moisture has had a good opportunity to get into some connections that send power to the inside of the vehicle.
Don't know if it is an automatic or stick shift, in either case, MAKE SURE THE TRANS IS IN PARK OR NEUTRAL IF YOU DECIDE TO JUMP THE STARTER RELAY !
There may be 2 fuse /relay panels.
One inside the vehicle and one in the engine compartment on the driver's side. Make sure you verify power is getting to both of them. There are fusible links that send power to the inside of the vehicle separate from the lighting. A simple check with a test light can verify if that power is present. As raski stated, and it is so important, just looking at something like a switch or connection is 50% of verifying if it is reliable. Here again, that simple test light or voltmeter can provide a better picture of just how good a connection or switch is functioning.

 

Thanks guys. I did check every fuse in the box under the hood and all looked fine. Was hoping to find where the power came from to the starter but it's so tight in there.

I'll try to reach around back of the starter and short it out, but cannot see anything. It's a short nose truck.

 

There should be a starter relay mounted somewhere on the firewall that sends power down to the starter solenoid.