If gauges dont work jeep wont start

I would suspect the ignition switch (electrical) is the problem due to the age of your Jeep. Sometimes when you turn the ignition key if it's really bad, you will feel a bit of roughness indicating the switch is breaking apart inside.

Turn the key from off to on repeatedly and see if you notice if the fuel & volt gauges work each time.

If you find it's not the switch, you'll need to check your wiring ground locations to make sure they are not rusted and are making good electrical contact. Specifically, a ground wire to the dash panel.

If all grounds are in excellent condition then you may need to trace the wiring from the battery to the ign. switch to the gauges to see if you can find any damaged loose or pinched wiring. A good 12 volt test light should help you to isolate and find this issue, start at the battery and work your way through:)

FLEX your wiring a bit and make sure it's still flexible. Sometimes your wiring can become so corroded over time that current barely makes it to the destination.


Good luck.

my 2000 jgc was doing this for a while then gave out completly I spent a ton of $ trying to figure it out turned out to be the pcm

ok i know this might sound wiered but i just had the samething happen what i did was i cleaned the key with soap and water dryed off , locked the door with key and unlocked with key then got in jeep tryed starting it ,it started right up gauges all work now and windows work and running fine doesnt shut anymore.

Hello , What year is the vehical? Have you recently changed a computer or ecu on the vehical? Have you recently had keys made for it ? I ask these things because There may be a transponder system on the Jeep , and if its not sync'd up properly it will cause all these problems you have listed. It may even be as simple as a loose or faulty ground wire as well. Thank you , Quinn Texada.

Are you the only driver for this vehicle?
Next time when you refill up,DO NOT TOP OFF THE GAS.
When the gas pump stop,just let it stop. DO NOT TRY to put more into the take.
When topping off,the fuel sensing float is push BEYOND it limit. It will create a short on the wiring to the gauage.
Please ran few tank WITHOUT TOPPING off and see does the flow return to normal and not creating a short.
The fuel pump and gas level sensor is in the same unit. It's costly to pull the gas tank down and replace it.

Check that the smaller wire going to battery positive terminal has a good connection. Check for blown fusible links under the hood and fuses in fuse panel.

try replacing the fuel pump resister if that dont work may be the timing on the car

My daughters jeep had the same problem. We fixed by finding the wires that run beside the manifold down under the car. The conduit that have the wires in it was worn away because of resting up against the manifold, causing the wires to short the system out. Once I replaced the conduit and taped the wires it has not shorted out again. By the way, the Jeep dealer couldn't find the problem.

This is not a typical automotive problem. This is a serious electrical issue.... maybe related to ignition switch or emission control module. I don't think you'll find a simple answer other than taking it to a dealership for service.

check main ignition relay.without this some things will not power up.