Ive had my DA for over a year now, and as it is old, and beat from previous owners its had its fair share of reliability issues. Lately it stopped cranking every day, sometimes not at all, now it has finally stopped cranking at all.

The last time i tried to crank it the starter would not drop, so i figured the solenoid was going out and its time for a new starter. So following in normall procedure i took a crescent and lightly tapped the starter for a good 20 seconds then attempted the crank the car. The starter did not drop however, and a short behind my gauge cluster caused the wiring to smoke, and fry my gauges.

I cannot see how my guages shorting, and my starter dying are somehow linked to the same problem, but theres no way that the two electrical issues are independent of eachother.

I am decently skilled in minor repair, i have replaced multiple pieces under the hood, as well as electrical in the dash, however my knowledge of the interior wiring harness is rather limited. I have checked the main fuel relay as well as some of the ones located on the fuse block, however they are all functional.

Is it possible that a short on my interior harness could cause the starter to not drop?

All the other powered items on my car work, lights, cd player, wipers, etc. It just will not drop the starter. I have yet to replace my guage cluster yet, so i do not know if the lack of a cluster would cause any issues either.

Any suggestions as to where i should begin looking, as i am trying to get the car running so i can sell this p.o.s. .

( i was able to get the starter to drop today after a few taps, however it stopped after 6 individual revolutions) While the key is turned (only with clutch depressed) there is a strange sound coming from under my steering column. Im assuming it is a shorted wire or blown relay only i have yet to find any while searching through the harness.