1999 Jeep Cherokee Won't Start

I have a 1999 Jeep Cherokee Sport Utility 4-Door 4x2 with the I6 4.0L Engine and 88,000 miles. It is also a west coast vehicle so no rust what-so-ever. I am unable to start the vehicle. I hear 1 single click from under the hood everytime I try to turn the key to start it. The main cause would probably be the starter I'd guess but I've heard it could be other things like the relay, solenoid, battery, battery cables, corrosion, etc... I tried to jump my car but that didn't help. My interior lights are bright and I can turn my exterior lights on and they work just fine. When I turn the key the interior and exterior lights do not dim. Before I go and replace the starter I would like to see if anyone else thinks it could be something else causing the problem?

My battery has plenty of acid in it although there is some corrosion around the connector area. It's very little if no corrosion at all. If this would be the problem what can I clean the battery safely with? Or would I need to get a new batt? Thanks.

Before my car died about 1 week prior I had trouble starting it once where it churned very slowly. Then I tried a 2nd attempt to start and it started just fine. The day it died when I tried to start it at first it churned slowly until it wore itself out to only be able to click once per key turn. I thought it was a dead battery but after a jump I have plenty of power in the battery.

On a side note I had a 2nd problem with my Jeep. I had replaced all of my belts last summer and my distributor. At the start of this summer when it was time to turn on the A/C I hear a loud screaching noise on the first startup of the day when I turn on my A/C (the noise typically only lasts a few seconds to a minute but has been recurring sometimes while driving it really depends. I can usually avoid the noise if I let my car fun for a few minutes and turn the A/C on when I'm going 35mph but sometimes it'll screach very loud due to the belts being turned very fast but it'll seem to kick the noise right out and not have it come back for a day). Usually the noise is produced on startup, acceleration, and turning. But only when the A/C is on and turning on/off the lights in combination does nothing. Someone told me it could be my belt is loose but it looks fine I even tried belt dressing once on the belt. I also heard it could be my compressor or compressor bearings as well as my alternator or alternator bearings. The only thing strange I notice sometimes is when I drive my battery voltage meter will sway up and down between 12-14volts while driving. When I test my bat on idle it will start at ~12 and letting it sit the meter will go to ~14 volts after letting it sit and run for a few minutes.

I've had to dump so much money into this vehicle since I bought it 2 1/2 yrs ago. I've pretty much had to replace everything but the tranny, engine, alternator, compressor, and the starter. Most everything on it is brand new, belts, hoses, distributor, oxygen sensor, etc... I can say one thing is that Jeeps are very high maintenance vehicles!

Oh yeah and I of course suffer from the notorious Jeep leaking problem :). I'm not going to bother getting a new oil pan when the amount it leaks is very minimal. It would be impossible for a significant amount to leak out to be dangerous unless I let it sit for a year or drove it w/o getting an oil change. Typically when I get an oil change @ 3k miles it's just at the add oil line and not too far below it. I just have to wash my driveway and put kitty litter up. I'd say it maybe leaks about a dime size to quarter size drop per day if that. Just have to live with the burning oil smell too :).

This sounds more like it is your starter or starter relay than anything else. To bypass the starter relay, get a remote started switch at the part store and follow the directions for hooking it up. If the starter turns over then it is the relay, if it doesn't, then it is the starter.

Good look
Mike

Another thing you could do to check the starter is put a screwdriver across the posts on the relay forcing it to turn. If it doesn't turn then take the starter off and try it again with the starter removed from the engine and that will tell you a definite if it's the starter or if the engine's siezed on it.