Myself and my buddy have the same truck 96 F150 5.0, and both of us have the same starter problem, I have a rebuilt starter and he has a new Ford starter, turn the key and "click" get under the truck and give the Battery cable nut on the solenoid the smallest of a turn and away she goes, happens a few times a week, he replaced his two or three times under warranty but the problem comes back, anyone else have this prob, and how did you solve it?

 

Replace the starter cable they turn green and corrod up underneath the insulation. You could do a voltake drop test to confirm it.

-Jon

 

What he said.

 

The ground cable also corrodes at the intermediate frame ground. While you're at it you may as well replace both cables under the heading of preventive maintenance. Replace the ground cable with 2 cables. The first long one goes from battery to the engine ground at the starter flange; the second short one goes from the starter flange to the frame

 

might want to replace the solenoid while yer at it.. They're only $8.00.

 

I ready the posts and replies above. Sounds familiar. My starter is having a slightly different issue. Truck is a 94 F150 supercab 5-speed 6-cyl. had the starter replaced a year ago. All of a sudden, I get the solenoid click but no start. I traced the problem to that skinny wire that also runs from the solenoid to the starter (it's not the big one with all the juice). I snipped the end of the wired, cleaned it up and crimped on a new connector. I cleaned the spade connector and applied some terminal grease to all parts. Still, if I want to start the truck I have to: 1. turn key on; 2. jump the solenoid; 3. reach in through the wheel well, over the tire, and manipulate the connector. It's really Jeff Foxworthy stuff. What is that smaller wire for? Can I just shunt it to the big wire?